FARMINGTON — Recent Mt. Blue High School graduate Nicholas Searles has been awarded the Three Rivers Orthopaedics and Joseph J. Caldwell, MD, Scholarship.

The award, available for the first time, was presented to Searles at MBHS Awards Night on June 5. The scholarship of $5,000 was awarded to the MBHS student-athlete who has excelled in the face of adversity.

The spirit of the award was recognized in the presentation, which included a reading of a portion of President Theodore Roosevelt’s speech, “Citizen in a Republic.”

Caldwell personally made the selection of Searles as the award winner for 2012. The selection was based in part upon Caldwell’s experiences with Searles as a player on the MBHS football team, as Searles was dealing with a number of injuries throughout his high school career.

Recommendations for Searles were obtained from his coaches and the teaching and advising staff at MBHS.

The full amount of the award is to be used to pay tuition and/or room and board at the college of the recipient’s choice. Searles plans to attend Washington County Community College in the fall, with a major in heavy equipment maintenance technology.