GRAVETTE — Sixty-two Gravette High School HOSA (Health Occupation Students of America) students invaded and conquered at the state HOSA conference held in Hot Springs earlier this month.

The students and their sponsor/instructor Angela Scott came home with the highest number of medals of any HOSA contingent in the state.

The singular achievement matched last year’s state-wide record and again propels GHS to the nationals in Orlando, FL, later this year.

Another achievement of the group was establishment of a state scholarship in honor and memory of Casey Russell, Gravette HOSA student and Gravette Lion football player, who succumbed to a staph infection last autumn.

As part of the scholarship plan, a statewide campaign to raise funds will be held September 23 of this year, the anniversary of Casey’s death.

Lori Russell, Casey’s mother, accompanied the chapter to Hot Springs and was presented an honorary gold medal. A similar medal was presented the Gravette chapter.

Scott said special thanks “goes to Cody Montee, GHS EAST student, who assembled the Casey Russell Arkansas HOSA presentation for us.”

Listed below are the Gravette winners who willbe eligible to represent Arkansas at the HOSA national conference.

Medal Winners

Chris Cowgur: gold, Concepts of Healthcare.

Connor Houtchens: silver, Concepts of Healthcare.

Hayden James: gold, Nutrition.

Klisha Poe, bronze, Nutrition.

Cody Bullock: gold, Medical Math.

Heath Houtchens: silver, Medical Math.

Colton Moorman: gold, Pharmacology.

Adam Roberts and Bailey Nease: bronze, CERT.

Ashley Bohannon and Logan Hendrickson: silver, CERT.

Jessica Bayley and Chase Brody: bronze, CPR/First Aid.

Amber Tucker and Brittany Walling: silver, CPR/ First Aid.

Tajhe Turner and Makayla Morrison: gold, CPR/ First Aid.

Katie Deatherage: bronze, Epidemiology.

Amanda Eddy: silver, Epidemiology.

Nick Hendren: gold, Epidemiology.

Sydney Graham: bronze, Dental Spelling.

Raul Guerra and Dylan Scott: bronze, Forensic Science.

MacKenzie Wallace and Beth Malone: gold, Forensic Science.

Eduardo Duarte: gold, Home Health Aide.

Jessica Springer: bronze,Nursing Assisting.

Alex Vega: gold, Nursing Assisting.

Aaron Homer; bronze, Dental Assisting.

Dallas Banta: silver, Dental Assisting.

Amanda Denver: silver, Medical Clinic Assisting.

Kate Stidham: gold, Medical Clinic Assisting.

Kyndra Meeker: bronze, Sports Medicine.

Vanessa Moore: gold, Sports Medicine.

Adam Overton: bronze, Veterinary Assisting.

TJ Chevallier: gold, Veterinary Assisting.

Travis Eden: bronze, Job Seeking Skills.

Christine Carmichael: bronze, Medical Photography.

Brenna Sullivan: gold, Medical Photography.

Skyler Warren: bronze, Researched Persuasive Speaking.

David O’Brien: silver, Researched Persuasive Speaking.

Holly Wells, Ashley Steenberger, Destaney Wishon and Kyle Smithers: gold, Public Service Announcement.

At the state level, “We compete against schools of all sizes; there is no distinction of enrollment,” Ms. Scott said.

“I am proud to have these students represent our district and our community,” she continued. “Please congratulate all of our HOSA members who participated in the state conference.”

Opinion, Pages 7 on 03/24/2010