Crowley Memorial Scholarships Presented to Three Midshipmen

Continuing its tradition of supporting academic excellence, Crowley Maritime Corporation last week presented Thomas B. Crowley Sr., Memorial Scholarships to three midshipmen from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, NY. Mark Miller, director of corporate communications for Crowley, presented scholarships to Allison Bennett, Casey Benefield and Jared Leigh at a Containerization & Intermodal Institute luncheon Thursday in New Jersey.

Midshipman Bennett, of Arlington, Texas, is a senior majoring in Logistics and Intermodal Transportation. She was recently named a national alternate for the British Marshall Scholarship, and is currently competing for a Fulbright Scholarship to further her maritime education in the United Kingdom. Allison aspires to involve herself in the formation of global maritime infrastructural standards. At Kings Point, she serves as the third-highest ranking midshipmen through her position as Regimental Operations Officer (ROPS). Bennett also plays the violin, and she lettered as a three-year athlete on the varsity basketball team. She was awarded a $3,000 scholarship.

Midshipman Benefield is a senior from Floresville, Texas, and is majoring in Marine Transportation. He aspires to join the U.S. Marine Corps and eventually the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). At Kings Point Benefield is EMT crew chief, a member of the sea year enhancement group and first battalion commander. Away from school, he enjoys hunting, fishing and camping. Benefield was awarded a $500 scholarship.

Midshipman Jared Leigh is a senior from Pasadena, Maryland, majoring in Marine Engineering Systems. He has a 3.6 GPA and is also pursuing a minor in Nuclear Engineering. Leigh has excelled in regimental activities, academics, and sports at Kings Point. He is the Regimental Waterfront Officer, in charge of over 100 waterfront vessels and the Academy's 224' training ship.

Additionally, Leigh is a member of one of the top 10 intercollegiate division-one sailing teams in the nation. In the future, he plans to go to sea, attend graduate school, earn his professional engineer's license, then practice engineering for a shore side company. Leigh was awarded a $500 scholarship. Over the years, Crowley Chairman, President and CEO, Tom Crowley Jr., has given tens of thousands of dollars to deserving students at the maritime academies and other select institutions in the name of his father Thomas B. Crowley Sr., who guided the company to extraordinary heights before passing away in 1994.