Scholarship endowed for automotive students that enroll at Co-Lin's Wesson Campus

Special to Wesson News

Bruce Shawton Smith and LaNiaa A. Wilson with Co-Lin’s Angela Furr, Director of college Foundation, and Dwayne Middleton, college President, after endowing Shawn Marquis Smith Memorial Scholarship in memory of their son.

The Shawn Marquis Smith Memorial Scholarship was recently endowed with the Co-Lin Foundation by his parents, LaNissa A. Wilson, of Houston, Texas, and Bruce Shawnton Smith, of Brookhaven. The scholarship was established to benefit a Brookhaven High School graduate with a 2.5 or higher grade point average who is majoring in Automotive Technology or business on Co-Lin’s Wesson campus.

Smith had a love for cars and could often be found outside his grandmother’s house working on his own vehicle. His parents described him as a protector of his family. He was known as “Smitti Lo” in the Brookhaven area, a nickname given to him by his cousin. Smith passed away May 12, 2013, at age 19.

“Simply put, Shawn was charismatic, well-mannered and such a comedian,” Wilson said. “To know him was to love him, and he was loved by all. I am overjoyed to establish this scholarship in his memory.”

Contributions to the Shawn Marquis Smith Memorial Scholarship, or any other scholarship, can be mailed to the Co-Lin Foundation at P.O. Box 649, Wesson, MS 39191, or made online at https://www.colin.edu/alumni-foundation/give-now/.