FARMINGTON — The Jamie Beth Shible Memorial Scholarship Award was presented to Mt. Blue High School senior cheerleaders Laura Dunham and Macey Smith on Friday by Stephen and Julie Shible.

The presentation was held beside a crab apple tree and plaque that were given in memory of Jaime by friends. The tree was moved to what will soon be a courtyard at the school.

On Memorial Day, May 26, 1997, Jaime died of bacterial meningitis just days before the end of her junior year at Mt. Blue High School. She was 17 years old.

The two girls each receive a $500 scholarship, with $50 given to them Friday to use however they wish, Steve Shible said. The remainder is given after completion of one semester of college. 

Dunham, the daughter of Diane and Ken Dunham of Temple, plans to attend the University of Maine in Orono to pursue a degree in civil engineering.

Smith, the daughter of Jenny and Jason Macomber and James Smith, all of Wilton, also plans to attend the University of Maine for core courses before transferring to Central Maine Medical Center College of Nursing and Health Professions to pursue a career in radiology.

Along with the scholarship, the seniors will be named on a plaque with Shible’s photo hung in the newly renovated school. The words engraved remember Shible’s contribution to the school and the spirit of Jamie.

The scholarships are given to cheerleaders because of Jamie’s dedication to the sport. A total of 25 have already been given out, Steve Shible said.

Last year there were no applicants, he said.

“This year we’re back to normal,” he said of the three applicants for the awards.

Shible also presented a video about Jamie that he had created and dedicated to his wife on what would have been their daughter’s 22nd birthday.

It’s one that Smith remembers watching when she was 7 years old and attended Jamie Beth Shible Camp.

The camp inspired her to move on in the sport, she wrote on her application for the award. A senior captain of the high school team, she is a junior coach for girls in elementary grades to “improve and fall in love with the sport,” she wrote.

Dunham also remembers watching the video before Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference competitions.

It “really opened by eyes to how dedicated a person she was, and how much she cared about herself, her team, her teammates and the sport of cheering. I remember trying to emulate those qualities while I was in a leadership position,” Dunham wrote.

abryant@sunjournal.com