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Optimist Junior Golf recently announced the junior golfers of the 2024 Hugh Cranford All-Scholastic Team. Those making the team exemplified an impressive balance of academics, golf and community service. After reviewing the qualifications of impressive applicants, the Optimist Junior Golf Committee selected the following exceptional student athletes for the team:
ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP
Lev Abramson: Denver, Colorado
Mason Conrad: Castle Pines, Colorado
Gabrielle (Gabby) Hultstrand: Pensacola, Florida
Marcus Leong: Folsom, California
Josephine Nguyen: Springfield, Virginia

COMMUNITY SERVICE SCHOLARSHIP
Elizabeth Sterling: Farmington Hills, Michigan
Tyler Whisler: Tahoe City, California
This team exemplified an impressive balance of academics, golf and community service. The All-Scholastic Team is named for Hugh Cranford, who served as executive director of Optimist International from 1967 to 1986.He was instrumental in starting the Optimist Junior Golf program and in 1978 led the efforts to co-sponsor the Optimist Junior World Golf Championships in San Diego, the forerunner to today's Optimist International Junior Golf Championships. Cranford passed away in August 2014.
Lev Abramson Lev Abramson – graduated from Kent Denver High School in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. Lev will be attending and playing golf at Wesleyan University in the Fall. Lev has excelled in the classroom earning a 35 on the ACT and attaining a GPA of 4.119. He was a senior captain of his high school golf team where he earned all-metro, first team all-state, and academic all-state. Throughout his longstanding involvement in First Tee, he has been employed as a Junior Coach and Assistant Players' Club Coach providing youth with instruction and training. Lev volunteers through First Tee-Colorado Rocky Mountain's Youth Leadership Council spearheading community service and fundraising initiatives. Lev also had the opportunity to compete in the 2023 PURE Insurance Championship impacting First Tee at Pebble Beach.

Mason Conrad graduated from Rock Canyon High School in Highlands Ranch, Colorado where he has attained a cumulative GPA of 4.266. Mason co-captained his high school golf team that won a State Championship in 2023. He was a member of the Future Business Leaders of America where he also won a state championship in Business Management. As a member of the Social Studies National Honors Society, he participated in food/clothing drives to improve and spread awareness about inequalities in his community. In his free time, he was a ski patroller at Granby Ranch Ski Resort where he led patient care, managed resources, and mentored young patrollers.

Gabrielle "Gabby" Hultsrand is a junior at Pensacola High School International Baccalaureate Program in Pensacola, Florida. She is ranked 1 of 280 in her class with a cumulative GPA of 5.05. She is a member of the Future Business Leaders of America where she attended the regional and state competitions. She has 200 hours of community service as an assistant teacher for First Tee classes, Manna Food Pantries, and First United Methodist Church. She spent other time volunteering for the First Tee Special Olympics putt-putt tournament and Autism Pensacola Kids for camp where she sewed pillows and gave them to hospitalized children. Through First Tee she created 7 golf scholarships for future youth by organizing another putt-putt tournament.

Marcus Leong is a junior at Vista Del Lago High School in Folsom, California. He has earned a cumulative GPA of 4.33 and a score of 1530 on his SAT. He is a CIF Sac-Joaquin Scholar Athlete and is a part of the Boy Scouts of America where he became an Eagle Scout in April of 2022. Through Boy Scouts of America, he did a wide variety of community service projects including trail cleanups, food donation collection, school, church, and camp beautification. He also volunteered in other community service projects through his involvement with Key Club, the California Scholarship Federation, Interact Club, and Twin Lakes Food Bank.

Josephine Nguyen is graduating from Lake Braddock Secondary School in Burke, Virginia. She is in the top 10% in her class. Josephine is involved in the National Honors Society, National Art Honors Society, the Athletic Council, Girls in Roles of Leadership, Key Club and the First Tee of Greater Washinton DC. She has volunteered as a peer tutor, a golf coach with the school and first tee, and at Leewood Healthcare Center Volunteer playing games with seniors, cleaning up, and serving meals. She has had success on and off the course and was named 2023 Lake Braddock Most Valuable Golfer.

The Community Service Award goes to:

Elizabeth Sterling recently graduated from North Farmington High School in Farmington Hills, Michigan where she maintained a 4.0 unweighted GPA. She was a varsity athlete in both golf and softball, Elizabeth is a servant leader at heart. She volunteers at the Catholic Heart Workcamp where she attends week long mission trips. She is also a leader in the St. Fabian Youth Group where she assists in many service projects, including providing meals for the homeless and performing household tasks for the elderly. Elizabeth is also a member of the National Honor Society where she recently conducted a snack and hygiene bag drive for the homeless and passed out 150 bags of these bags in Detroit, tutors fellow students, makes cards for local nursing homes, recycles around her school campus, and fundraises for various organizations.

The Community Service Award goes to:

Tyler Whisler is a Junior from Tahoe City, California. Tyler has a lot of experience serving his community including 500+ hours as a National Junior Ski Patroller at Homewood Mountain Resort. He has also volunteered as an assistant golf instructor at Tahoe City Golf Course, Youth Group assistant at First Baptist Church, the Younglife program at Truckee Tahoe Young Life Chapter, provides education on children’s exploration in food and health with Harvest of the Month Program at local schools, and promoting environmental stewardship with the Green Team through Sierra Watershed Education Partnership. After depending upon the assistance of his community while battling cancer, Tyler found serving his community was a great way to give back to the community that supported him.