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Novo Nordisk Donnelly Awards offers scholarships
for teen tennis players living with diabetes
Novo Nordisk, the leading pharmaceutical company in diabetes care, is proud to be the sponsor of the WTT Donnelly Awards. Billie Jean King established the awards in 1998 to encourage diabetic children to lead an active life and compete in tennis. The awards provide college scholarships to young tennis players living with diabetes and are named after two long-time World TeamTennis executives and tennis champions, Diane Donnelly Stone and Tracey Donnelly Maltby, who are sisters. Stone was an All-American and NCAA doubles champion at Northwestern University, and Maltby earned All-Big Ten honors at the University of Iowa. Both women have had diabetes since childhood.
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(Photo: Presentation of the 2010 Novo Nordisk Donnelly Awards at the Freedoms v. Sportimes match on July 14. Pictured L to R: Diane Donnelly Stone, Tracey Donnelly Maltby, Kelsey Aho, Melanie Nolt, Per Falk (VP, Novo Nordisk), and Billie Jean King.
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The Novo Nordisk Donnelly Awards annually award $15,000 in scholarships including two one-time $5,000 scholarships given to two young people, ages 12-21, who have diabetes and play tennis competitively in tournaments or on their school team. The awards are to be used for education, tennis development and/or medical care. The 2010 national recepients are Kelsey Aho, 18, of Marietta, Ga., and Melanie Nolt, 19, of Manheim, Pa. Two regional finalist awards of $2,500 each have also been added to the scholarship program. The 2010 regional finalists are Garrett Jensen, 18, of Portland, Ore., and Lauren Stauffer, 16, of Lilitz, Pa.
Kelsey Aho and Melanie Nolt received their awards at halftime of the July 14 World TeamTennis match between the New York Sportimes and the Philadelphia Freedoms. Per Falk of Novo Nordisk made the presentation along with WTT co-founder Billie Jean King and the namesakes of the award - Diane Donnelly Stone and Tracy Donnelly Maltby.
Novo Nordisk is a healthcare company with an 86-year history of innovation and achievement in diabetes care. The company has the broadest diabetes product portfolio in the industry, including the most advanced products within the area of insulin delivery systems. In addition to diabetes care, Novo Nordisk has a leading position within areas such as hemostasis management, growth hormone therapy, and hormone therapy for women. Novo Nordisk's business is driven by the Triple Bottom Line: a commitment to economic success, environmental soundness, and social responsibility to employees and customers. With headquarters in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs more than 27,000 employees in 81 countries, and markets its products in 179 countries. Novo Nordisk's B shares are listed on the stock exchanges in Copenhagen and London. Its ADRs are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol 'NVO'. For global information, visit novonordisk.com; for United States information, visit www.novonordisk-us.com. For information about Novo Nordisk insulin products, visit www.novonordiskcare.com.
Learn More About the 2010 Award Winners & the Criteria
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2010 Novo Nordisk Donnelly Award National Winners
Kelsey Aho of Marietta, Ga. and Melanie Nolt of Manheim, Pa.
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Kelsey Aho, Marietta, Ga. (18) –
National Novo Nordisk Donnelly Award recipient ($5,000)
 Aho (pictured to the left), who started playing tennis at the age of six, began competing in tournaments at age 9 and held state and sectional rankings through the age of 16. She played on her high school tennis team all four years and was voted most improved her freshman and sophomore years. Aho earned All-County honors as a junior, and her team finished 4 th in the state. After being diagnosed with Type I diabetes in her senior year, she served as a tennis co-captain and led her team to an 18-1 record and a regional championship title. Aho has also excelled off the court, with a 4.5 GPA to rank third in her class. In 2008, she created a non-profit organization called WE/CAN that sells t-shirts to raise money for various charities. She won a rotary scholarship for outstanding service to her community and also received the Cobb County DAR Good Citizen Award. This fall, Aho will be attending the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
Melanie Nolt, Manheim, Pa. (19) –
National Novo Nordisk Donnelly Award recipient ($5,000) |
 Nolt (pictured to the left) was diagnosed with Type I diabetes at the age of 16. She recently completed an outstanding freshman year at Wilkes University, playing No. 1 singles and doubles and leading her team to a perfect 8-0 record in the fall and a #12 regional ranking. Nolt was the first player in the history of the Wilkes tennis program to achieve a regional ranking in singles while remaining undefeated in singles and doubles in the conference Her team won the Freedom Conference Title and Nolt was named the Conference’s Most Valuable Player. She received First Team All-Freedom Conference honors as well as being named Player of the Year. Her team qualified for the NCAA Division III National Tournament where they lost in the second round to Denison but making school history by securing the first victory at the national event. Nolt is also an outstanding student with a 3.91 GPA. She is the secretary of the Student Athletic Advisory Club and was elected Vice-President of her class.
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2010 Novo Nordisk Donnelly Award Regional Recipients
Garrett Jensen, Portland, Ore. (18) –
Regional Novo Nordisk Donnelly Award recipient ($2,500)
Diagnosed at age 13, Jensen played all four years on his high school tennis team at Jesuit High School. In his senior year in 2010, he played No. 3 doubles. In 2008 and 2009, Jensen’s high school team captured the state title. Jensen was ranked in the top 50 in the Pacific Northwest for the Class of 2010. He graduated from high school this spring and will be attending Santa Clara University in the fall.
Lauren Stauffer, Lititz, Pa. (16) –
Regional Novo Nordisk Donnelly Award recipient ($2,500)
Diagnosed at age 10, Stauffer has played competitive tennis for several years. She was selected to the Middle States Zonal team in the Girls 14 and 16 and under divisions. She played number one singles in her freshman year in high school and led the team to the state semifinals. In doubles that year, she and her partner won the bronze medal at the state championship. Stauffer again played No. 1 singles and doubles in her sophomore year, and she and her partner finished fourth in the state. She has also qualified for several national tournaments on the junior tennis circuit. Stauffer will return to high school as a junior in the fall.
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Past Winners
2009 - Kayla Cyr and Heather Welch
2008 - Jordan Cox and Jennifer Heumann
2007 - Kristen Wade and Andrew Rogers
2006 - Rose Cantlin and Matthew Kranich
2005 - Danni Paulson and Madison Golightly
2004 - Travis Fillmore and Mitchell Fender
2003 - Julia Kozin and Jimmy Myers
2002 - Lindsay Hammes and Dash Connell
2001 - Katie Arneson and Adam Brown
2000 - Haley Edmiston and Drew Silow
1999 - Sharon Reske and Carrie Goldhahn
1998 - Meredith Britton and PJ Goldfeder
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Photos: WTT
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