2026 LOUDOUN FAIR & ASSOCIATES SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS

Mary Grace Menuey

Mary Grace Menuey is the recipient of a 2026 Loudoun Fair & Associates scholarship in the amount of $5,000.  During her ten years as a 4-Her, Mary Grace has been a member of the Rabbit, Poultry, and Dairy clubs where she often held club officer positions and was instrumental in the success of many club service projects and fundraisers.  She served four terms as an Honor Council member helping to organize and implement countywide 4-H events that strengthen youth engagement and community involvement.  Additionally, Mary Grace expanded her leadership and dedication beyond the county level by whole-heartedly participating in many district, state and national 4-H activities. She presented a vast array of workshops and keynote addresses on youth advocacy and community service, led civic engagement programming, advocated for 4-H with state legislators, made recommendations to the US Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, served as a camp counselor, and represented Virginia as a delegate to National 4-H Congress.   Her accomplishments are highlighted by her many recognitions including being a 4-H All Star and receiving the Youth in Action Award for Agriculture, Viginia State Champion Extemporaneous Speaker, I Dare You Leadership, and Loudoun County Outstanding Member awards, just to name a few.

Mary Grace has been a devoted supporter of the Fair throughout her 4-H career.  She has entered a wide variety of exhibits each year in the Blue Ribbon Showcase and enthusiastically showed her livestock projects. She also participated in livestock demonstrations that provide educational information to fair patrons.  As a Youth Fair Committee member for multiple years, Mary Grace designed publicity materials, secured donations, led fairgrounds tours, marketed the Fair to summer camps and senior centers, organized kids’ games, and assisted Fair patrons during Fair Week.  In her role as Miss Loudoun County Fair 2024, she participated in many outreach activities promoting the Fair at local parades and festivals as well as making visits to elementary schools as a Fair and agricultural ambassador. 

In addition to all her commitments with 4-H and the Fair, Mary Grace volunteered as a SAT tutor for high school students, served as captain of the Loudoun County Home School Speech and Debate Club and head librarian for the Maranatha Youth Music Academy Choir.  She advocated for the agricultural industry as National Teen Miss Agriculture in 2023 and for the Dairy industry in 2026 as Virginia Dairy Princess.  One of her main passions is mock trial competitions, where she not only challenges herself by competing, but also volunteers by organizing team practices, managing team social media and mentoring other members.

In the fall Mary Grace will attend the College of William and Mary to study International Relations on a pre-law track. The Loudoun Fair & Associates Board of Directors is honored to congratulate Mary Grace on her achievements and wishes her much success in her future endeavors. 

Lincoln Reck

Lincoln Reck is a graduate of Woodgrove High School and the recipient of a 2026 Loudoun Fair & Associates scholarship in the amount of $3,000.  He has been a 4-H member for seven years participating in the Alpaca/Llama, Poultry, Rabbit, Sheep and Goat Clubs.  In addition to serving in club president and vice president roles during his 4-H career, Lincoln also supported club activities including presenting workshops on best practices for herd health and parasite resistance, showmanship techniques, and how to properly clean and skirt fleece. He attended 4-H Day at the Capitol multiple years interacting with state political leaders regarding the importance of farming.  As a camp counselor, his supervisor noted his growth in leadership skills and his patience and grace particularly with special needs youth.  He is a 4-H All Star who has competed at the district level in Share the Fun and Table Setting contests as well as state level Poultry Judging.  In 2024 and 2025 Lincoln attended the premiere state-wide 4-H event—Virginia 4-H Congress on the Virginia Tech campus.

At the Fair, Lincoln’s contributions have been many.  To educate Fair patrons about fiber, he and his sister designed and built a ‘Match the Fiber’ guessing game. He also led the initiative to hold a fiber show during the Fair which brings recognition and education to livestock exhibitors as well as visitors.   He cleaned and restored signage for the Poultry Club and assisted with marking the grid for the Fair’s Cow Pie Bingo event.  He has also given fairgrounds tours to local politicians and guests.  Beyond Fair week, he promoted 4-H and the Fair at community parades and at his family’s farm during the county’s Spring and Fall Farm tours.  In his role as Youth Farmer in Loudoun’s Economic Development Farmer Trading Cards program, Lincoln educated elementary students about farming.

In addition to his agricultural expertise, Lincoln is a talented violinist who shared his gift as a member and volunteer in the Loudoun Symphony Youth Orchestra and Woodgrove Music and Arts Association where he mentors younger musicians.

Lincoln plans to study Mathematical and Computational Sciences.  The Loudoun Fair & Associates Board of Directors congratulates Lincoln on his achievements and wishes him success in his future pursuits.

Aditi Pesarakayala

Aditi Pesarakayala is the recipient of a 2026 Loudoun Fair & Associates scholarship in the amount of $3,000.  A graduate of Rock Ridge High School, she is a six-year member of the Innovation Club leading and mentoring youth in a variety of STEM projects.  As a member of the Honor Council she helped coordinate countywide activities such as Cloverbud Fun Camp and the annual Day of Service. Additionally she participated in a variety of district, state, and national opportunities where her contributions to the 4-H program have been significant. As a District Ambassador and Mentor on the 4-H State Cabinet, Aditi helped plan and execute activities at 4-H State Congress.  In her role as 4-H STEM Ambassador she represented Virginia in roundtable discussions on STEM initiatives at conferences such as National 4-H Congress and Ignite by 4-H. Aditi is a Virginia 4-H All Star and recipient of the I Dare You Leadership Award.  In 2024, she was the Virginia Youth In Action STEM Award winner for her D.I.V.E. (Diversity, Inclusion, Voice and Empowerment) project which she designed to encourage girls to explore and develop skills in STEM. 

Although she has never been a livestock exhibitor, Aditi still assisted at the Fair.  She helped with organizing Animal Dress Up, by advertising 4-H to the public, and helping at the livestock auction.  She has also submitted entries into the Blue Ribbon Showcase, taking home the Champion Senior Cake award in 2024.

Aditi has volunteered over 200 hours as an intern for a Delegate in the Virginia House.  At her school she served in leadership roles for the German Honor Society and DECA.  A skilled pianist and composer, she created lesson plans and helped instruct elementary students. She also was an AP Language and Composition Teaching Assistant and tutor. 

Aditi will be attending Virginia Tech this fall to study Business Administration with Information Systems.  The Loudoun Fair & Associates Board of Directors congratulates Aditi on her achievements and wishes her success in her future pursuits.

Hailey Hendershot 

Hailey Hendershot is the recipient of a 2026 Loudoun Fair & Associates scholarship in the amount of $1,000.   Hailey has been a 4-H member for eight years having participated in the Beef, Horse, Poultry and Swine clubs.  In her years in the Poultry club, she served as president, secretary and youth mentor teaching poultry evaluation and judging skills to others for competition at the state level.  Hailey has also been an active member of the Honor Council promoting the values of 4-H and coordinating countywide projects.  She is a 4-H All Star and was named the Outstanding Loudoun Senior 4-Her for 2025.  Over the years she enthusiastically participated in many club sponsored community service opportunities, including Cloverbud Fun Camp, walk-a-thon fundraisers, Backpack Buddies, and food, clothing and children’s book drives.

Hailey has served as a Youth Fair Committee member engaging the public with information about the Fair and agriculture. She helped lead barnyard tours and children’s games, as well as doing many clean up tasks during Fair Week. She appeared in a Fair promotional video sharing her 4-H and Fair experiences broadening outreach through social media.  Additionally, she supported the Fair by handing out informational flyers at local parades and festivals.

Beyond her involvement with 4-H and Fair, Hailey has been a dedicated Honor Society member at her school.  She regularly volunteered her time tutoring elementary students and assisted at multiple community events benefiting local organizations. 

This fall Hailey will be attending the University of Florida where she plans to study Microbiology. The Loudoun Fair & Associates Board of Directors congratulates Hailey on her accomplishments and wishes her well in her future.

David Olorunda

David Olorunda is the recipient of a 2026 Loudoun Fair & Associates scholarship in the amount of $1,000.  David is a graduate of Riverside High School.  He has been a member of the Alpaca/Llama 4-H club for the past four years where he has served as president, vice president, treasurer and secretary.  Beyond the club level, David attended the National Ignite by 4-H Conference where he competed in the Lead to Change contest presenting his concept for a 4-H Young Professionals Club.  He was awarded a grant to start the project in Loudoun.  This group helps educate high school youth about various career topics by hosting monthly events that bring in accomplished professionals from diverse fields to share their expertise and advice.  In the summers of 2023 and 2024, David traveled to the Dominican Republic and helped run a 4-H Day Camp for underprivileged youth there.  David was inducted as a Virginia 4-H All Star in June 2025 for his outstanding participation and service. 

Over the years David has enthusiastically promoted the Loudoun County Fair at local farmer’s markets and Loudoun’s Spring and Fall Farm Tours.  During Fair Week, to educate Fair patrons about alpaca and llama fiber, he helped with his club’s many demonstrations and entered fiber based projects into the Blue Ribbon Showcase.

Outside of 4-H and the Fair, David has been extremely involved in the wider community. In addition to playing saxophone at school concerts and events, his leadership includes serving as student council president, founder and president of the investment club, and leader of the broadcast team. During the 2025-26 school year, David was Riverside’s representative to the Loudoun County School Board attending meetings, countywide legislative events, and acting as a student liaison.

David will be attending the University of Miami in the fall where he will be majoring in Economics on a pre-law track.  The Loudoun Fair & Associates Board of Directors congratulates David on his accomplishments and wishes him well in his future.

Abby Landes

Abby Landes is a graduate of Loudoun Valley High School and the recipient of a 2026 Loudoun Fair & Associates scholarship in the amount of $1,000. She has been an active 4-H member for ten years and is a 4-H All Star. During her 4-H career she participated in the Poultry, Sheep, and Goat clubs.  In the Poultry club she served in various leadership roles including president, vice president and mentor.  She competed in poultry judging and showmanship at the state and national levels.  She consistently attended club community service events in support of local organizations such as Mobile Hope and the Salvation Army.  Abby was a member of the Honor Council for two years assisting with countywide 4-H activities. 

During Fair week, Abby has demonstrated her support by conducting hands-on poultry educational activities for kids, emceeing the Dairy Show, and serving on the Youth Fair Committee conducting tours of the fairgrounds and assisting Fair patrons and adult Fair staff.

Talented in theatrical arts, Abby has been very active at her school as a member of the Drama Board, National Thespian Society and Improv Group.  She was a drama camp counselor for elementary and middle school kids mentoring them in performance skills.  As a member of the National Honor Society, she volunteered frequently on service projects such as food, toy and blood drives that support the wider Loudoun community.

Abby will be attending Columbia College this fall to study Comedy Writing, Directing and Acting.  The Loudoun Fair & Associates Board of Directors congratulates Abby on her accomplishments and wishes her well in her future.

Every year, Loudoun Fair & Associates, Inc. awards scholarships to several high school seniors pursuing higher education.  These select 4-H members have demonstrated service to the Fair, their clubs, and their community during their 4-H careers.  Since 1992, over 100 Loudoun youth have benefitted from these scholarship funds.

Loudoun Fair & Associates, Inc. Scholarship Recipients