An annual scholarship established in memory of a Franklin native will help students who are accepted into the RN Program at Paul D. Camp Community College. The scholarship was created to honor the memory and exemplary career of Karen Phillips Chase, who died in June 2010.

A graduate of Franklin High School and the Louise Obici School of Nursing, Chase was a registered nurse with the Western Tidewater Health District for more than 25 years.

According to her husband Rusty, of Windsor, and daughters, Lindsey Christine, Lauren Brooke and Leigh-Ann Phillips, the Karen Phillips Chase Memorial Nursing Scholarship was established to give back to the community, as the community has been so giving to them.

Karen Chase is remembered for being happy, close to her family and always smiling. She strongly believed in the importance of education and encouraged her daughters to be at their best.

Lindsey Chase will graduate from Old Dominion University next year with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a bachelor’s degree in human services. She also is a PDCCC graduate. Lauren Chase graduated from PDCCC in May with an associate’s degree in business. Leigh-Ann Chase will graduate from Windsor High School in June next year, and will attend PDCCC before transferring to Longwood University to study to become a teacher.

The recipient of the Karen Phillips Chase Memorial Nursing Scholarship, awarded for the fall semester in the amount of $500, is Damacita Cave of Holland. Cave stated that her goal after graduation is to succeed in “fully understanding the depth of what is expected in the RN program-educationally, mentally and physically.”

The criteria for this special scholarship include an acceptance letter to the RN program at PDCCC, and an essay about career goals and why nursing was chosen as a profession.