Applications open for DeKalb County’s Esther Mae Nesbitt memorial scholarship for med students

SYCAMORE – A scholarship fund at the DeKalb County Community Foundation is accepting online applications through February to support medical students seeking financial aid.

Online applications for the Esther Mae Nesbitt Medical Student Scholarship Fund are available beginning in February each year at dekalbccf.org/scholarships, according to a news release.

Esther Mae Nesbitt, a lifelong Sycamore resident, established the Nesbitt Medical Student scholarship from her estate, according to the Foundation. Nesbitt wished to assist medical students in financial need, especially DeKalb County residents and women. She wanted to encourage their entry into general practice, either in DeKalb County or any county in Illinois with a population of less than 50,000 residents.

“The Esther Mae Nesbitt Scholarship allowed me to attend my preferred medical school and diminished my post-graduation debt,” past recipient Dr. Photine Liakos said. “It also inspired me to explore job opportunities in the DeKalb/Sycamore area after completing my training. It has been an honor to serve on the selection committee. I work to raise awareness of this scholarship so others can benefit from the same opportunity and continue its legacy.”

Esther Mae Nesbitt was born on July 21, 1913, to Dr. John B. Nesbitt and Jessie Doloras Doty. On Oct. 1, 1942, Nesbitt enlisted as an aviation cadet in the Women’s Army Corps, at which time her civil occupation was postal clerk or photographer. She served as an artist in the WAC until shortly before she died in 1971. She never married, according to the Foundation.

A plaque at her gravesite in the Elmwood Cemetery, Sycamore, memorializes Nesbitt’s 21 years of service. She was with the first WWII WAC unit to land on Omaha Beach. As a trained artist, she was assigned the duty of map custodian for all ordinances in the European War Room. The maps under her care showed the locations of military units, supply depots, and supply routes. The information she provided on an hourly basis to the generals saved lives, according to the Foundation. Master Sgt. Nesbitt was the only non-commissioned European Theatre of Operations officer to receive the French Croix Guerre Medal.

In 2024, the Esther Mae Nesbitt Medical Student Scholarship Fund was transferred from Old National Bank’s Trust Department to the DeKalb County Community Foundation, along with eight other funds. The funds, now entrusted to the Community Foundation for administration, include Arnold and Mildred Erickson Scholarship Fund, Arnold and Mildred Erickson Fund, Bernice Kirkus Scholarship Fund, Lorene Brown Scholarship Fund, Mary K. Roberts Scholarship Fund, O. Robert Hoover & Anna and Emma Hoehn Scholarship Fund, Oneita J. Waltenberger Scholarship Fund, and the Thomas B. and Grace Stevenson Jones Scholarship Fund.

“We at the Community Foundation are honored to be the permanent stewards of Ms. Nesbitt’s legacy of leadership, sacrifice, and investing in others through this important Scholarship Fund,” Executive Director Dan Templin said.

Students interested in applying for the Esther Mae Nesbitt Medical Student Scholarship Fund are encouraged to review the guidelines and award criteria. Community Foundation scholarships will open for applications in February 2025. Visit dekalbccf.org/scholarships for more information.