New scholarship available for DeKalb County students pursuing trades careers

(Left to right); Jason Wehrli and Elijah Somlock

SYCAMORE – The DeKalb County Community Foundation announced the creation of the Wehrli Custom Fabrication Scholarship Fund.

The scholarship will aid students interested in pursuing a trades career, according to a news release.

The fund supports two annual scholarships. The first scholarship supports students attending a trade school or two-year college. The second scholarship benefits students attending a four-year college or university. Eligible study fields include welding, machine tooling, auto mechanics, auto body, business management, and mechanical, industrial, manufacturing, or agricultural engineering.

The fund awarded its first scholarships in May. The recipients were Elijah Somlock of Sandwich High School and Reagan Vander-Bleek of DeKalb High School.

Wehrli Custom Fabrication was founded in 2010 by Jason Wehrli. Wehrli and his brothers worked on trucks in their parent’s garage in Sandwich. Their skills expanded over the years to include repairing trucks and machines.

Wehrli hosted an open house at their DeKalb location in September of 2022. The open house included activities to raise support for students interested in trade-related fields. The open house raised $20,000 used to create the fund.

To donate to any fund at the DeKalb County Community Foundation, visit dekalbccf.org/donate or by mail to the DeKalb County Community Foundation, 475 DeKalb Ave., Sycamore.

For information, call 815-748-5383 or email dan@dekalbccf.org.

(Left to right); DeKalb County Community Foundation representative Becky Zantout, Jason Wehrli and Dan Templin donating to the Wehrli Custom Fabrication Scholarship Fund.
(Left to right); Jason Wehrli and Reagan Vander-Bleek
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