Youths Awarded Scholarships for “Good Acts”CLEARWATER - The Clearwater Police Department, Clearwater Parks & Recreation and the Rotary Club of Clearwater awarded one-year recreational scholarships to well-behaved children. This special ceremony took place June 4, at Ross Norton Recreation and Aquatic Complex, 1426 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., Clearwater. The Clearwater Police Department honored children who have committed good acts with a year of free swimming. Children selected received one-year recreational scholarships to Clearwater’s state of the art recreation facilities. Teachers, School Resource Officers and Community Policing Officers nominated children with good grades and good behavior, who have participated in community service and helped solve crimes. Another determining factor is the economic status of the child. The Good ACT program began 2004, after Clearwater Police Sergeant Ben McBride wanted to do something to help children who could not afford the $2 admission to the pool at the North Greenwood Recreation and Aquatic Center. He worked with the Parks and Recreation Department, to give the program life. Good ACT is an acronym for Aquatic Center Time. In 2004, the Rotary Club of Clearwater partnered with the City of Clearwater to give the recreational scholarship grants for deserving children in the North Greenwood neighborhood. Since then, Good ACT scholarships are distributed to deserving children every year during the first week of summer vacation. The 2008 Good ACT recreational scholarships were awarded to 26 deserving young citizens.
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