P.E.O. awards scholarships to local women pursuing higher education

CHS Graduate Caroline Menna received the P.E.O STAR Scholarship earlier this year. She is attending Dartmouth College this fall.

COURTESY OF P.E.O.

Post nursing degree, Molly Elder hopes to work in end of life care.

COURTESY OF P.E.O.

Alpine Lakes Elementary’s Brianna Lane is advancing her teaching career with dual certification in Early Childhood General and Special Education.

COURTESY OF P.E.O.

• 
• 
• 
• 

LEAVENWORTH — The  Philanthropic Educational Organization (P.E.O.) Chapter JF - Leavenworth has announced the recipients of its local scholarship for the 2025-26 academic year. 

P.E.O. is a philanthropic organization of women who provide support to other women in their educational pursuits. This year, they awarded scholarships to three women over 30 in the Wenatchee Valley area: Molly Elder, Brianna Lane, and Morgan Fraser.

Molly Elder plans to graduate with a nursing degree from Wenatchee Valley College in June 2026. The Plain resident has worked as an EMT, in-home health care provider and at Cascade Medical Center. Elder is interested in becoming a Hospice or Palliative Care Nurse in order to assist with end of life care.

Cashmere resident Brianna Lane is finishing a degree at Wenatchee Valley College; by the end, she will have a dual certification in Early Childhood General and Special Education. Lane grew up in Leavenworth and is currently doing her student teaching at Alpine Lakes Elementary.

Morgan Fraser is pursuing a mental health counseling degree at Antioch University this fall. Fraser has been an upper valley resident for the past 10 years. During that time, she owned Leavenworth Spanish, where she taught Spanish to several hundred kids and adults. Fraser hopes to continue providing meaningful support to her community as she begins her new chapter in mental health services.

The local chapter also nominated Cascade High School Graduate Caroline Menna for a $2,500 STAR Scholarship from the P.E.O. Sisterhood, which Menna was awarded earlier this year. The scholarship recognizes high school women preparing to enter postsecondary education, who have demonstrated excellence in leadership, academics, extracurricular involvement and community service.

Menna is attending Dartmouth College this fall, joining her sister as a member of the Class of 2029. She will also be competing on the college’s NCAA Division I ski team. Menna plans to study economics with a quantitative emphasis and focus on energy policy. She aims to return to Eastern Washington, helping shape sustainable and forward-looking development in her home region.

P.E.O. Chapter JF is part of a larger nonprofit organization committed to advancing women’s education. Founded in 1869, the P.E.O. Sisterhood has awarded more than $462 million in scholarships, grants, awards, and loans to over 129,000 women. Through membership, it has brought together more than a half a million women in the United States and Canada who are dedicated to helping women advance through education.

The local chapter is grateful for the continued support from Leavenworth and the surrounding communities. For more information, or to learn how to donate, contact peo.jf.leavenworth@gmail.com.