By Jon Mettus
Editor-In-Chief

Neshaminy senior Ricky Lucas was awarded the NHL/Thurgood Marshall College Fund scholarship. The award was presented at the Congressional Hockey Caucus briefing in Washington, D.C on Wednesday, April 24.

“When I received the scholarship I was actually in chemistry lab,” Lucas said. “Typically we are not suppose to have phones out during lab, but when I saw the email, I decided that the scholarship was more important. I first texted my parents who were ecstatic. I also texted my coach who ‘knew’ that I would win the scholarship; he was right.”

The other recipient of the award was Donald Shaw III of the Fort Dupont Ice Hockey Club in Washington, D.C.

“My trip to Washington D.C was indescribable, Lucas said. “When I walked in, the congressmen, [NHL General Manager] Gary Bettman, and many other professionals greeted me by saying, ‘It is a pleasure to meet you,’ when in fact, the pleasure should have been mine.”

The scholarship is awarded to two college-bound student-athletes who participate in the NHL’s Hockey Is For Everyone Program and is worth $6,200 annually over four years on the condition that they maintain a 3.0 grade point average.

To win the scholarship Lucas had to submit a resume and write an essay out of three topic choices. “The topic I chose was society’s biggest issue,” Lucas said. “I decided to write about the U.S education system and how it doesn’t compare to that of countries of our caliber.”

Lucas plays goaltender for Neshaminy’s hockey team and plans to attend Pennsylvania State University in the fall. He got his start playing ice hockey when he joined the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation during his freshman year in high school. The program provides underprivileged youth with the opportunity to play hockey.

“It was a very unique experience,” Lucas continued of his trip to Washington. “The best part was seeing the Stanley cup and talking to the man who cares for it during its travels around the world, Mike Bolt. Mike had some very interesting stories.”