AUBURN – Mechanics Savings Bank recently awarded $1,000 Banking on the Future Scholarships to Edward Little High School graduates Meredith M. Byard and Tanya J. Gagne.

Byard is the daughter of Richard Byard and Lucile Merin of Auburn. While at Edward Little High School, Byard was a member of the National Honor Society, Student Government and the Recycling Club.

She achieved high honors all four years and received many awards, including the Citizenship Award, St. Michael’s College Book Award, Catholic Youth Ministry’s Timothy Award and the University of New Hampshire Dean’s Scholarship. She was a member of the swim team and has been active in dance.

Byard volunteered her time for Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Catholic Youth Ministry and served as a freshman kick-off student mentor. In addition, she served as a volunteer fundraiser for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America.

Byard is a lifeguard and swim instructor at the YWCA of Central Maine and a former lifeguard and counselor at Camp Pondicherry. In the fall, Byard will attend the University of New Hampshire to pursue a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy.

Gagne is the daughter of Roderick and Suzanne Boutot of Auburn. She was a member of the National Honor Society, Youth Court, Freshman Kick-Off Council and the class executive board. She received numerous awards, including the Academic Excellence Award, the Class Leadership Award and the Fredrick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony Award in Humanities and Social Sciences from the University of Rochester.

Gagne also received the College Board’s AP Scholar Award and the L/A Exchange Club’s Student of the Year Award. She was active in sports, playing on the basketball, field hockey and varsity lacrosse teams.

Gagne’s community service contributions included volunteering for the Democrats of Maine, coaching a third-grade Odyssey of the Mind team and serving as a student representative to the Auburn School Committee.

Gagne plans to attend the University of Maine in Orono to pursue a bachelor’s degree in journalism.

More information is available on Mechanics at www.mechanicssavings.com or by calling 1-800-325-7553.