United Finnish Kaleva Brothers & Sisters Aberdeen Lodge #9 Scholarship

(United Finnish Brothers and Sisters Lodge #9)

This scholarship is available to any CURRENT graduating senior from a Grays Harbor County High School.

  • The UFKB&S Lodge #9 Scholarship (Finnish Scholarship) is awarded annually by the Grays Harbor Community Foundation (GHCF) to an applicant who has interest in the Finnish culture.
  • The Finnish Scholarship is awarded in recognition of the Finnish immigrants and families in the Grays Harbor area.
  • Being of Finnish descent is not a Scholarship application requirement, but a Finnish heritage connection or a strong interest in learning about the Finnish culture is preferred.
  • Scholarship is available to be used for educational certificate programs or degrees through Community College, University, or Trade schools
  • Once awarded the Scholarship is renewable for 3 additional years through GHCF.
  • An essay of 750–1500-words and a personal statement is required for the original application.

A word about us.

Grays Harbor is a community built on immigrants. Many of them came from Finland during the big influx at the turn of the century. They came with skills in the areas of fishing and logging as well as knowledge of the cranberry industry. They came to America for opportunity. They were strong and determined and possessed a hard work ethic that allowed them to prosper. The first chartered Finnish lodge was established for men only in 1903, and the women established their own organization in 1909. By 1915, the two merged and became the Lodge that still actively exists today.

Educational support for its members has always been a strong tenet for the Lodge, having awarded scholarships to its own students for many years. A few years ago, the members moved to fund an endowment with GHCF to support current graduating seniors from Aberdeen High School with scholarship opportunities. In 2022, the members approved an expansion of that opportunity to any

CURRENT graduating senior from a Grays Harbor County high school.

The scholarship endowment created with GHCF, as well as a large Finnish cemetery section and standing monument at Fern Hill, are part of the Finnish Communities legacy on Grays Harbor.