DW Memorial Dice Run Wrap-Up
DW Memorial Dice Run Wrap-Up
2nd Annual Event Awards Memorial Scholarship to First Recipient
Drew Brokaw, first recipient of the DW Memorial Scholarship with committee member DJ Dick. Photo / GOACC
OLEAN - The 2nd Annual DW Memorial Dice Run wrapped up Saturday evening, August 19th with many winners from the dice run, cash raffles and 50/50. But the biggest winner was Drew Brokaw as the first recipient of the DW Memorial Scholarship. Named in honor/memorial of Dennis Jones and Wayne Johnston, Drew was chosen from over more than two dozen who signed up for the initial scholarship.
The scholarship applications were reviewed by an ad hoc committee of DJ Dick and Joe Duplechian (event committee members), Angie Johnston Honeck (Wayne’s daughter) and Kara Lynn Jennings (Dennis’ daughter). Dick stated, “We were able to start this scholarship fund with seed monies from the 2014-17 Rally in the Valley proceeds in early 2022. However, it was too late to have a recipient for ‘22 as the scholarship process had already begun.”
Friday night festivities included a bike parade, cornhole tourney, music, vendors and recognition of Drew Brokaw. Drew, a recent graduate at Olean High School, will be attending Alfred University this fall.
The 2023 edition of the event went from one day to two and added a twist to the dice run with registration running all week up to the actual run! Last year’s numbers were around 120 for the dice run, with this year’s just slightly lower around 100. Dick stated, “Although our numbers didn’t exceed 2022, the committee did a tremendous job in securing $14,000 in sponsorships and roughly $2,500 in the raffle tickets.”
The DW Memorial Dice Run is in honor and in memory of two businessmen from the Rally in the Valley Event Committee who have passed away - Dennis Jones and Wayne Johnston. Proceeds from the Run will benefit area youth in the county through scholarships named after the two gentlemen at Olean City Schools and Allegany Limestone Central School through the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation. For more information on GOACC events and activities, please call 716-372-4433 or email info@oleanny.com.