CONYERS, GA (SNN TV) - Something I've waited seven years to share: the first Taylor D. Terrell scholarship recipients.

For backstory: I worked at my old station, 41NBC WMGT, in Macon, Georgia with a gentle soul, Taylor Terrell -- a sweetheart with nothing but good in her body; we worked the morning newscasts. Unfortunately, three months after I started working in Sarasota in 2016, she died in a tragic fall during a trip in North Carolina.

After she died, a group of friends and family of Taylor's got together to start the Taylor D. Terrell Scholarship. We finally launched the Terrell Educational Foundation in 2022, fundraised more than $6,000, and began requesting applications at Taylor's alma mater, Heritage High School in Conyers, Georgia. The scholarship goes to kids pursuing journalism and communications as Taylor did.

Heritage senior Brianna Jackson is the winner and was awarded $2,000 Thursday, and runner-up Keith Copeland Junior received $500.

The scholarship’s board is comprised of Karen Terrell, Russell Terrell, Loni Gibson, Deja Yuan, Demetrius Coleman, and myself.

Interested in donating or reading more about the scholarship and associated foundation? Go to https://TDTscholarship.org/.