Two Mountain Grove students among TCMH scholarship winners

The Texas County Memorial Hospital Healthcare Foundation has awarded $10,000 in scholarships to local students to support their educational goals for the 2026 academic year and help grow the future of rural healthcare.
Eight students each received a $1,000 scholarship through the Foundation’s annual scholarship program.
Locally, there were two students from Mountain Grove.
Reagan Hoerning, of Mountain Grove, is studying biochemistry with a pre-med focus at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar.
She hopes to attend medical school and eventually practice rural medicine in Missouri as either a pediatrician or family practice physician.
Nicki Lawson, of Mountain Grove, is pursuing a degree as a registered health information technician through Ozarks Technical Community College in Lebanon and plans to continue her education to become a registered health information administrator.
She currently works in the administration department at TCMH.
The rest of the students included Carrie Lewis, of Cabool; Sierra Keller, of Houston; Noah Gulick, of Houston; Gracyn McNiell, of Houston; Jadyn Barnes, of Licking; and Kadyn Hall, of Licking;
The Dr. Eugene Charles Honeywell Memorial Scholarship awarded a $1,000 scholarship to Austin Stephens, of Licking. 
Stephens is studying radiologic technology at East Central College in Rolla and plans to pursue advanced certification in computed tomography.
The endowed Dr. Joe L. and Judith T. Spears Memorial Scholarship Fund also awarded a $1,000 scholarship to Benjamin Steelman, of Houston.
Steelman is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry through Drury University in Springfield as he works toward becoming an emergency medicine physician. He currently serves as an emergency room technician in the TCMH emergency department. Since the scholarship program began in 2007, the Foundation has awarded nearly $176,000 in scholarships to area students pursuing healthcare careers.
The Foundation’s board of directors recognizes the growing need for healthcare professionals in rural communities and hopes these scholarships will help attract and retain qualified healthcare workers close to home.
Applications for spring 2027 scholarships will open in January.
Complete scholarship information and applications are available at www.tcmhfoundation.org.