Calaboose Museum presents 2nd Annual Johnnie Armstead Memorial Scholarship Awards

The Calaboose African American History Museum has selected three graduating seniors of San Marcos High School to receive the Second Annual Johnnie Armstead Memorial Scholarships based on their demonstrated scholastic excellence, leadership, character and perseverance.

This year’s recipients were each awarded $500 on May 13 This year’s awardees are: Sebastian Russo, Adriana Magee and Mia Wilson.

Russo is known among his peers and teachers as thoughtful, kind and exceptionally bright. His academic pursuits have placed him as No. 1 in his class of over 400 students while being active in sports and a leader in numerous student organizations. He has interned at Texas State University since the summer of 2019 as a lab assistant in a graduate level research program where he became the first person to image a mobile RNA in a whole plant, winning many state and international science fair awards. Russo is also a caring individual and recognizes that many kids are marginalized, struggling to get by. He conceived, designed and led a group of his peers to implement a thriving mentorship program, Pathways Mentoring, where successful upperclassmen guide and support ambitious 8th to 10th graders.

Magee is a disciplined, service-oriented person that plans to pursue a nursing degree at the University of Texas at Austin. She has held several leadership roles in her four years in Air Force JROTC and participated in many service projects such as the High School Food Drive and the HomeTown Heroes project celebrating local veterans. She has proven to be motivated to make a difference in the lives of others and Calaboose is pleased to support her in those efforts.

In addition to her academic success, Wilson has been very active in varsity tennis, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Criminal Justice Club and National Honor Society. Because of her discipline and motivation, she will be starting college with 12 hours earned through dual credit classes. She also gives back to her community, working with a Young Lives group of teenage mothers. She plans to attend Texas State and pursue a degree in psychology.

This scholarship program honors Mrs. Johnnie Armstead, founder of the Calaboose African Ameri can History Museum. This year, numerous donations were received in memory of Mrs. Payton Lawrence and those were included in these scholarship funds.

Mrs. Armstead’s goal when she started the museum in 1997 was to preserve and honor the memories and contributions of African Americans in Hays County. The museum’s permanent collection contains more than 500 items, including photographs, letters, books, textiles, drawings and other artifacts. The museum is housed in an early city jail that was built on the site of the first Hays County jail, built in 1873, located at 200 W Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive. Learn more about the Calaboose at calaboosemuseum.org.

Submitted by Calaboose African American History Museum