Taking the ceremonial turning of the soil were (from left) Hill family farm matriarch Susie Hill, Virginia Beach Vice Mayor Louis Jones, Lauren Sadler, builder Ed Sadler, Kristen Sadler, and TBA President John Olivieri as Virginia Beach Schools Superintendent Dr. Sheila Magula and Michael Newsome, chair of the TBA Scholarship Foundation looked on.

Continuing the Tidewater Builders Association tradition of giving, Ed Sadler of Sadler Building Corp., with daughters Kristin and Lauren helped break ground on the 2006 Scholarship House.

The home, being built in the Heritage Park development in Virginia Beach, will be the first custom built scholarship house in TBA history and is expected to bring in one of the largest contributions ever to TBA’s Scholarship Foundation when it is sold.

Since 1965, the Scholarship Foundation has given out over $1 million dollars to over 300 students. In 2005, TBA’s Scholarship Foundation awarded 10 $5,000 academic scholarships to local high school seniors and another $10,000 in its Young Designers’ Competition.

The 3,800 square-foot home will be all brick and will incorporate the finest amenities including: finished third floor, 12-by-16 treated deck, master sitting room complete with peninsula fireplace, granite kitchen countertops, and butler's pantry.

“This house is a team effort and we are simply the vehicle in which to invite your participation in contributing to the TBA Scholarship Foundation,” said Sadler, who spoke to a gathering of about 75 supporters and contributors.

Susie Hill, the matriarch of the Hill family that formerly owned the property on which the house is being built, was in attendance. At a youthful 94 years of age, Hill was extremely delighted to take part in the ceremonies, remarking, “I think this is the most wonderful thing that could be happening here.”

Hill assisted Sadler in the ceremonial turning of the soil at the homesite on Feb. 22, along with TBA President John Olivieri; vice mayor of Virginia Beach, Louis Jones; Virginia Beach Schools Superintendent, Dr. Sheila Magula and Michael Newsome, chairman of the TBA Scholarship Foundation.

Bob Smalley, City of Chesapeake Compliance Manager and a 1970 TBA Scholarship recipient, recognized how the Scholarship Foundation was a prime example of the idea of “paying it forward.”

“A contribution to the TBA Scholarship Foundation today, marks a significant effort in assisting more students in the future,” remarked Smalley.

Already, over 40 of TBA’s associate member firms have come together to support this project with donations of materials and services. Their generosity and that of other contributors will assist future scholarship recipients in making their dreams of higher education possible.

The Tidewater Builders Association Scholarship Foundation is accepting applications from qualified high school students for college grants. They can be used to pursue higher education in any field. Applicants must be high school seniors and residents of either Chesapeake, Franklin, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Southampton County, Suffolk, Virginia Beach or the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Scholarship applications are available on the TBA Web site. The deadline to apply is Friday, March 24.

For more information about the TBA Scholarship House or the TBA Scholarship Foundation, contact Mary Hearring at 420-2434, ext. 281, or [email protected].