Never quit is the message from a Bay Commitment Scholarship alumnus to current students

This article is part of an ongoing Inspiring Generosity series highlighting people, agencies, and programs the Bay Area Community Foundation supports.

The Bay Commitment Scholarship gives recipients a spoonful of self-confidence alongside help with tuition. For Bay County students who are among the first in their families to go to college, the scholarship symbolizes the community believes in them.

Chamika Ford, a 2011 Bay Commitment Scholarship recipient, says the scholarship still inspires her today, long after she graduated from Delta College and launched her career. Faith Johnson, who earned the scholarship this year, says earning the scholarship made her feel that others believe in her ability to realize big dreams.

Since 2008, the Bay Area Community Foundation has offered the Bay Commitment Scholarship to first-generation college students in Bay County pursuing degrees at either Saginaw Valley State University or Delta College. The program provides more than $2,000 for college expenses. Recipients also get support from Anderson Bearden of Complete College Advising.

Ford became a Bay Commitment scholar in 2011, the same year she graduated from Bay City Central High School. This spring, she was invited to speak to the 2026 recipients, including Johnson.

In 2011, Ford attended Delta College, originally studying nursing, then changing her major. In the end, she graduated with two Associate’s Degrees, one in Business Studies with a focus on Entrepreneurship and one in Art. She’s working now on her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration at Ferris State University. 

The Bay Commitment Scholarship gave Ford help with more than just tuition. 

A few months before high school graduation, she gave birth to her son, making her college journey a bit more complicated.

“When I got the scholarship, it just reminded me to keep on going,” she says. “I owed it to myself and the Bay Area Community Foundation to keep trying.”

She’s still living that creed as she works and continues her education. 

After graduating from Delta, Ford worked at Delta College for four years. Her role at Delta was to help students find ways to stay in school. There, she learned that finances were a common obstacle.

When the opportunity to work at the Saginaw Community Foundation arose, she saw it as a way to help even more people overcome financial challenges to continue their education. Today, she’s the Foundation’s Program Officer for Scholarships and Teaching Grants. 

Ford encouraged the latest Bay Commitment scholars to keep trying no matter the obstacles and to stay strong when things get tough. She also urged the students to focus on acquiring valuable knowledge to serve themselves or others. 

“I feel like we’re all lifetime learners and we all face challenges,” she says. 

This spring, the Bay Area Community Foundation celebrated 73 outstanding students as each received a $2,000 Bay Commitment Scholarship.

Faith Johnson, who is set to graduate from Bay City Academy this spring and expects to attend Delta College in the fall, is the 2026 Jerome Yantz Bay Commitment Scholar. Johnson plans to study nursing at Delta and hopes to become a psychiatric nurse in the future. 

“This scholarship, to me specifically, feels like a way to show other young moms or soon-to-be moms that they aren’t alone,” Johnson says. 

When she became pregnant during high school, Johnson says some people told her she was “throwing my life away,” and that she wouldn’t accomplish much. 

This scholarship is one tangible way she can see those people were wrong. She has every intention of realizing her dreams.

“Now, being a young mom isn’t for everyone whatsoever and the challenges were definitely there for me through every part of it, but for me, it has probably been my favorite decision I’ve made because my son is such a happy, smart, and adorable little boy,”

The scholarship also celebrates that she has overcome the challenges of doing well in school while raising a child.

“It’s a very amazing thing to celebrate due to all the challenges,” Johnson says. “In a way, it shows thanks for all the help I’ve received, but also strength. I’d like to say it gives hope for the future and what the future brings with it.”

The Community Foundation describes the scholarship as a milestone and the beginning of new opportunities, growth, and the pursuit of big dreams.

“At the heart of this moment is a simple but powerful idea: belief,” says Bay Area Community Foundation President & CEO Shawna Walraven. “Belief in potential, in education, and in what’s possible when a community comes together. Thank you to our generous donors for making that belief tangible. Your support continues to open doors and shape futures across Bay County.”

During the 2026 ceremony, the Bay Area Community Foundation thanked key partners, including Board Chair Danielle Krupp; Board Member and Bay Commitment Steering Committee Chair Todd Clements; Delta College Interim President Andrea Ursuy; and Saginaw Valley State University Provost Lisa Boehm.

The Foundation also recognized educators, college prep advisors, mentors, staff, and volunteers who guided these students.

“To our scholarship recipients, this is your moment. Celebrate it!” Walraven says. “As you move forward, challenges may come, but so will growth. Believe in yourself, lean on your support system, and remember that an entire community is behind you.”