LAGRANGE – Annagail Warrener of Westview Jr. Sr. High School is the recipient of the 2025 Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Award for LaGrange County.
Lilly Endowment Community Scholars are recognized for their community involvement, academic achievement, and demonstrated leadership.
Each Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship provides full tuition, required fees and a special allocation of up to $900 per year for books and equipment for four years.
The scholarship is for full-time undergraduate students leading to a bachelor’s degree at any eligible Indiana public or private nonprofit college or university.
Warrener, set to graduate high school with academic honors, plans to pursue a pre-med degree at Taylor University with the goal of becoming a pediatrician. She is the daughter of James and Jennifer Warrener of Shipshewana.
The medical field runs deep in Warrener’s family. Her father, who is currently in medical residency at the University of Michigan, and her grandfather, a family physician, have been key inspirations in her journey. In her application essay, Warrener reflected on her aspirations: “I want to be the kind of doctor who helps ease people’s fears and always makes my patients feel welcome. Watching my dad, who just finished medical school last year, I’ve seen how the journey is challenging but ultimately worth it. There are many career paths to choose from, but I believe becoming a pediatrician will allow me to make the greatest impact on families.”
Warrener is actively involved in her school community, participating in Student Council, PLUS, National Honor Society, the School Health Advisory Council, school musicals, and the Dynamic Singsations choir.
A dedicated runner, Warrener competes on both the varsity cross country and varsity track teams. Running is also a family passion—she, her parents, and her sisters frequently take part in local running competitions. In her application, she shared, “I will always make time to run, whether as part of a team or on my own.
Warrener is involved in her church community, volunteering in the church nursery, participating in Vacation Bible School, and regularly supporting the efforts of Feed My Starving Children.
The selection of LaGrange County’s Lilly Endowment Community Scholar nominees was based on a comprehensive evaluation of academic achievement, demonstrated service to others, leadership skills, commitment and motivation to succeed, employment history, extracurricular activities, essay responses, and two recommendation letters.
The top five students with the highest application scores were invited to complete an impromptu essay presented by the LaGrange County Community Foundation and participate in a personal interview with the Lilly Scholarship Advisory Committee. After narrowing the field of applicants, the nominees were submitted to Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI), the statewide administrator of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program, which approves the final scholarship recipients.
Finalists for the 2025 award include Arlene Thompson from Lakeland Jr/Sr High School, and Morgan Riegsecker, Gavin Engle, and Grace Heyerly from Westview Jr. Sr. High School. Each finalist will receive the Lambright Leadership Scholarship, a $1,000 renewable scholarship established by Kevin and Carrie Lambright in 2013. The scholarship is renewable for up to three additional years, providing a total award of $4,000.
“The Foundation is honored to nominate a LaGrange County student for this prestigious award,” Octavia Yoder, Executive Director of the LaGrange County Community Foundation, stated. “We are grateful Lilly Endowment continues to support future leaders and makes dreams possible for our LaGrange County students. Selecting a nominee is a difficult process based on many factors. The scholarship committee was impressed by the exceptional students in our community.”
Lilly Endowment created the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program for the 1997-98 school year and has supported the program every year since with grants totaling more than $490 million. The LaGrange County Community Foundation has awarded the scholarship to 43 LaGrange County students since the program’s inception.
The primary purposes of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship Program are: 1) to help raise the level of educational attainment in Indiana; 2) to increase awareness of the beneficial roles Indiana community foundations can play in their communities; and 3) to encourage and support the efforts of current and past Lilly Endowment Community Scholars to engage with each other and with Indiana business, governmental, educational, nonprofit and civic leaders to improve the quality of life in Indiana generally and in local communities throughout the state.
