Amanda Cullinan Scholarship Presented to Seniors

Huntington High School seniors Jolie Weinschreider and Alvin Luna are this year’s recipients of the Amanda Hertig Cullinan Student-Athlete Resiliency Award. The $2,500 scholarship was presented at the 58th Blue Devil senior athletic awards ceremony.

The scholarship recognizes a cherished Huntington alum. Mrs. Cullinan passed away in May 2022 after a four year battle with breast cancer. She was a married mother of three living in Summerfield, North Carolina who served as a head coach of the varsity girls’ lacrosse team at Northern Guilford High School.

Mrs. Cullinan’s close friend, Meghan Knieriem was on hand to announce that Ms. Weinschreider and Mr. Luna were this year’s award winners and to speak briefly about the scholarship. A sizeable number of Blue Devil senior student-athletes submitted applications.

Dr. James Paci, one of Amanda Hertig’s Huntington classmates was alongside Mrs. Knieriem as she said she wished “we could give every single one of the applicants a scholarship. They are all so deserving.”

Known as Amanda Hertig during her time at Huntington High School, she played on the Blue Devils’ 1994 county and state championship girls’ soccer team and on the 1996 county champion and state finalist girls’ lacrosse team.

Born in Keokuk, Iowa on June 21, 1978, Amanda Hertig moved to Huntington as a first grader. After playing for the Blue Devil girls’ lacrosse team’s founding coach, Mary Paar she went on to study biology and play lacrosse at Brown University.

“Amanda wanted the award to be given to a student-athlete who has demonstrated great resiliency in the face of adversity, whether that be in the classroom, on the playing field or in life,” according to the application. “Someone who has faced obstacles big or small and not given up; a person who has struggled but kept fighting. No one was more resilient than Amanda. This foundation and these scholarships will be a huge part of her legacy and will give all of those who loved her a way to honor her inspiring life.”

The Huntington alum served as the master of ceremonies at Huntington High School’s 1996 commencement exercises. “To sum up Amanda’s zest for life, while in hospice care she and her family went on vacation to Turks and Caicos,” according to an online tribute. “On day five, she said, ‘I’m leaving it all on the field’ and went down a waterslide. She never missed an opportunity to show her kids how life should be lived.”

Ms. Weinschreider is a three sport Blue Devil great who help lift Huntington to its first ever girls’ lacrosse team state title along with significant contributions to the soccer and basketball teams. She plans to study psychology and play NCAA Division I lacrosse at Rutgers University.

Ms. Weinschreider’s application essay touched upon the resilience she summoned while helping to navigate through multiple family related challenges. “I learned to manage my emotions, communicate and set boundaries,” she said. “I believe that resilience is not a single moment, but a continuous choice.”

Mr. Luna played football and lacrosse for the Blue Devils. He plans to play lacrosse goalie at Felician University. “My dream is to go to college and build a career that allows me to become my own person,” wrote Mr. Luna in his application. “Going to college will give me the chance to create a future where I can turn challenges into opportunities and prove that my differences do not define my limits, through the support of my family, my community and my own hard work and perseverance.”