Applications available for Nathan Babcock Scholarships

GILFORD — Students graduating from Gilford and Laconia high schools are eligible to apply for Nathan Babcock Scholarships if they plan to attend a post-secondary educational program in the fall.

Applications are available in the Guidance Department at each school; by contacting the Babcocks, at 41 Haywagon Road, Gilford, NH, 03249; by calling 603-528-2820; or emailing jcox@

metrocast.net. Application forms must be turned in to the appropriate Guidance Department or mailed directly to the Babcocks by Tuesday, April 30. All scholarships will be awarded at awards night at each high school by a member of the Babcock family.

The scholarships are in memory of Nathan J. Babcock, who was a senior at Gilford High School when he was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer. Babcock battled with dignity and grace, but died on Sept., 28, 2005.

His wish was to go to college; he planned to attend the University of Rhode Island, but he never got the chance. The purpose of the Nathan J. Babcock Scholarship fund is to financially assist students with their endeavors toward post-secondary education, to help them with the opportunity Babcock never got.

He was known for his positive demeanor, his great enthusiasm for life and his ability to light up a room. Those who knew him best remember him for all these characteristics and his extremely kind and giving nature, his constant reaching out to others in need without any concern for acknowledgment.

It is these qualities The Nathan Babcock Fund is most interested in. 

The concepts of kindness and compassion in one’s daily life and how one contributes to others are the key criteria used in awarding the scholarships.

Post-secondary educational programs include, but are not limited to, two- and four-year colleges, apprenticeships and technical programs. Students who have graduated in past years from Gilford or Laconia high schools who are still pursuing an education may also apply.