Exchange Awards $3,000 in Prizes to Three Military Students for Academic Excellence
DALLAS – Three young scholars have learned that good grades can pay off in a big way thanks to the Army & Air Force Exchange Service’s You Made the Grade program.
Anastasia Newsome, 13, won the grand prize in the program’s semiannual sweepstakes. Anastasia, a seventh-grader in the gifted-and-talented program at TK Stone Middle School in Elizabethtown, Ky., received a $2,000 Exchange gift card during a surprise presentation at the Fort Knox Exchange. 
Her father, Brian Newsome, who medically retired from the Army in 2004, didn’t tell her she had won the sweepstakes, leading Anastasia, a straight-A student, to believe that he had won a prize instead.
“I’m still trying to get it through my head that it’s $2,000,” said Anastasia, who plans to spend her winnings on items for school, including a tablet, clothes and books. “The program is a great way to reward kids and make them want to achieve higher standards like getting A’s and B’s.”
Nathan Tuttle, a sophomore at Key West High School, took home the second prize, a $1,500 Exchange gift card. Nathan, who has an A average, entered the drawing at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Exchange. His father, retired Air Force Col. Ron Tuttle works for the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson, telecommuting from the family’s home in Florida.
Nathan is no stranger to winning. He earned a grand prize of $3,000 in savings bonds from the program in 2011.
“It’s exciting to win—especially twice,” the 16-year-old said.
For the third prize, a $500 Exchange gift card, two sisters turned sibling rivalry into sibling revelry. Megan Walters of Mooresville, N.C., daughter of retired Staff Sgt. Kevin Walters. Megan, a sixth-grader who earns straight A’s, received her prize during a presentation at the Fort Bragg North Post Exchange.
Megan split the prize with her older sister, Sydney, a seventh-grader who also earns perfect marks. The sisters had entered the sweepstakes at Fort Bragg for the last few years, vowing to share the prize should either of them win.
Through the You Made the Grade program, first- through 12th-graders with a B average or higher are eligible to receive a coupon book filled with Exchange discounts and a sweepstakes entry form for a shot at a $2,000, $1,500 or $500 prize. Drawings are typically held in June and December.
“These three young scholars deserve to be rewarded for their commitment to excellence in the classroom,” said U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Sean Applegate, Exchange senior enlisted advisor. “The Exchange understands the challenges that military students face—and we appreciate the sacrifices they make, too.”
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The Army & Air Force Exchange Service goes where Soldiers, Airmen and their families go to improve the quality of their lives through goods and services provided. Exchange earnings provide dividends to support military morale, welfare and recreation programs. The Exchange is part of the Department of Defense and is directed by a Board of Directors, responsible to the Secretaries of the Army and Air Force through the Chiefs of Staff. To find out more about the Exchange history and mission or to view recent press releases please visit our Web site at http://www.shopmyexchange.com or follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ExchangePAO.
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Media Notes:
For more information or to schedule an interview with an Exchange representative please contact Julie Mitchell, 214-312-3327 or [email protected].