Grayson Scholarship

GRAYSON SCHOLARSHIPS

The founder of the town of Grayson in Stanislaus County was also a self-taught ornithologist and bird artist known in the 19th century as “The Audubon of the West.”  Despite great hardships, Grayson created Birds of the Pacific Slope, which was not published until 117 years after his death. In 2015, Stanislaus Audubon Society sought to purchase those volumes, which consisted of Grayson’s biography, his field notes, and full-color prints of 156 bird paintings. After a fundraising drive, our chapter purchased an edition of Birds of the Pacific Slope. On July 12, 2016, our chapter donated Grayson’s masterwork to the Vasche Library of Stanislaus State. With funds left over from that purchase, the Board of Directors established an annual Grayson Scholarship of $600 to a promising student of Environmental Sciences at Stanislaus State. The scholarship amount was later increased to $1,000.

 Stanislaus Audubon Society would appreciate any directed donations by its members for this scholarship, which is intended to continue in perpetuity.  Any donations may be sent directly to our chapter at P.O. Box 4012, Modesto, CA 95352.

The recipients of this scholarship have been Anela Medeiros (2017), Rachael Devaughn (2018), Lalayna Hablutzel and CeCe Hurst (2019), CeCe Hurst again (2020), Rajan Singh (2022), Tayler Blee (2023) and Ally Watkins (2025).

Anela Medeiros                                                                                             Rachael Devaughn

                  Lalayna Hablutzel                           CeCe Hurst                                                                                                       Rajan Singh

          Tayler Blee                                                     Ally Watkins