Provident Bank awards $1,500 scholarships to students for community service work

The Provident Bank Charitable Foundation awarded $1,500 scholarships to 14 high school seniors from across the Hudson Valley, as part of its annual Community Involvement Scholarship Program to recognize students who have demonstrated outstanding community service. The students were honored in a ceremony at the bank’s headquarters in Montebello.

“Provident Bank is proud to award scholarships to students who have volunteered to help improve their communities,” said George Strayton, president and chief executive officer of Provident Bank. “The winners have bright futures, and their community service and involvement mirrors our bank’s philosophy of giving back to the community. We wish each of them the best of luck as they begin their college studies.”

The winners from Orange County are: Lisa Cannariato of Goshen High School, Richard Fivehouse of Warwick Valley High School, Matthew Krauze of Warwick Valley High School, Gregory Ludwig of Warwick Valley High School, Thomas Marchiano of Chester Academy, and Jonathan McHugh of George F. Baker High School.

The scholarship winners from Rockland County are: Amanda Butler of Tappan Zee High School, Justy John of Ramapo High School, Mathew George of Suffern High School, Alicia Parrino of Clarkstown North High School, Jessi Van Buren of Tappan Zee High School, and Karen Zimmerman of Tappan Zee High School.

Scholarship recipients from Sullivan County are: Rose Marie Merlo of John S. Burke Catholic High School, and Nikolai Nesteroke of Pine Bush High School.

To be eligible for the scholarship, students must have logged a minimum of 40 hours of community service in the last four years, and must attend a college in Rockland, Orange, Ulster, Sullivan, Putnam, or Bergen counties.

The program was established in 1992 by Provident Bank, and has awarded more than $100,000 to local students.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.