Ridge Student Awarded Scholarship For Local History Involvment

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Ridge High School senior Pari Mandalapu was awarded the 2021 Mr. Local History Project Scholarship for his community service in local history.

Mandalapu has lived in Basking Ridge most of his life and has been involved in local history projects for all four of his high school years. In addition to being a club swimmer and member of the Ridge High School varsity swim team for many years, he also describes himself as an "avid fanatic" of "anything history."

During his time volunteering, he has amassed more than 250 hours of volunteer time. His volunteer work included researching people and places that have had an impact on the town; archiving information relevant to local history; working with children on historic craft projects; helping to usher participants taking part in Mr. Local History annual walking tours; helping to decorate holiday trees honoring local history and businesses; and being an all-around bright spot among the teen volunteers who work with the Mr. Local History Project.

"From digging through old documents to archiving information, there's always history to be found in you look hard enough," says Mandalapu of his contributions.

Mandalapu will continue his education at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, Massachusetts.

Somerset Hills area students in grades 7-12 who are interested in volunteering for Community Service hours and the possibility of a Mr. Local History Scholarship in the future are encouraged to contact MLH Trustee Meg Wastie at kitmeg@verizon.net.

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