The Peoria North Rotary Club is now accepting applications for the club's 2026 educational scholarships to be granted to a graduating Peoria Unified School District high school student.

The George and Willi Wheeler Scholarship is available to all students who currently attend a PUSD high school or Mountain Ridge High School.

 The object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of service as a basis of worthy enterprise. The scholarship will recognize high school students who demonstrate strong leadership skills that include opportunities to serve humanity.

The $3,000 Rotary scholarship may be used for any school-related payments such as tuition, books, software and/or equipment at any accredited college, university, vocational school, or certificate program.

The scholarship is named after two long-time club members: George and Willi Wheeler. George was a founding member of the Peoria North Rotary Club and a former Arizona Rotary District Governor. He passed away in 2022.

The Wheelers were strong supporters of education and instrumental in organizing a variety of club projects aimed at promoting literacy. The club recognizes Students of the Month at several Peoria high schools and has sponsored several book drives to benefit Peoria schools.

For over 10 years, a signature project of the club was to purchase and distribute dictionaries to third-grade students in the Peoria Unified School District.

“All during their dedicated careers in Rotary, the Wheelers traveled to many countries to distribute schoolbooks, administer the polio vaccine, provide computers to schools and bringing goodwill to underprivileged children,” said Darlene Eger, president of the Peoria North Rotary Club.

“Their dedication to helping children is the reason the George and Willi Scholarship was founded. It is Rotary’s desire to help as many students as possible to achieve an education and eventually hoping to eliminate poverty throughout the world.”

The deadline to apply for the 2026 scholarship is Dec. 31, 2025. Click here to download the application. 

For additional information, email the club at desertdar06@gmail.com.