Friday, November 10, 2006

Wilmington, N.C. - The MSgt. E. S. Moncrief Scholarship has been established at University of North Carolina Wilmington in memory of Master Sergeant Edward S. "Big Ed" Moncrief, USAF Retired who served his country for over twenty years. The scholarship is designed to assist military dependents pursuing secondary education at UNCW and the university's satellite campuses.

The scholarship was formally announced at a Veteran¹s Day commemoration ceremony on Friday, Nov. 10 on the Campus Commons Amphitheater. The event was sponsored by the UNCW Student Veterans Organization.

From the final days of the Berlin Air Lift, through the Korean conflict and Vietnam War, MSgt. Moncrief served in both the Military Airlift Command and the Strategic Air Command as a mid-air refueling technician on aircraft including the KB-29, the KC-97 and the KC-135 Stratotanker. A member of the infamous "Young Tigers," MSgt. Moncrief performed hundreds of mid-air refuelings over Southeast Asia for U.S. Air Force, Navy and allied aviators. He retired from the Air Force in 1969 and eventually settled in Wilmington, where he died in 2003.

The scholarship will be available to dependent spouses and children of enlisted military personnel.

The family of Moncrief hopes this scholarship will spark veteran¹s organizations, and their partners, to create scholarships that will address the needs of enlisted military personnel and honorably discharge veterans, an often over-looked segment of the military family.

The UNCW Student Veterans Organization fosters support for all Veterans of the Armed Forces, members of the Reserves, National Guard, and their spouses, honoring the diversity of veterans and encouraging their pursuit of knowledge and academic excellence.

The SVO welcomes all military members and the spouses of military members who are students at UNCW. Please contact Pamela Evers, eversp@uncw.edu, for more information.