Helen M. and Peter J. Skoufis Scholarship

Recipient: Nicholas P. Achorn

“The Helen M. and Peter J. Skoufis Scholarship has encouraged and rewarded me in my efforts as a student at the University of Maine. The scholarship has given me the opportunity to put quality time into my schoolwork, which has led to an increase in my GPA and job opportunities. This has also eased my family’s worries with the financial struggles on my schooling, and rather than one step forward and two steps back... it’s now two steps forward and one back, thanks to the scholarship. From this point on, I know it will be possible to graduate and to manage the cost of doing so.”

Nicholas is a third-year student who is majoring in Civil Engineering. He grew up in Bangor and graduated from Bangor High School. He is planning to serve as an intern to help him decide how he’ll use his degree. Someday he hopes to own his own business.

The Helen M. and Peter J. Skoufis Scholarship was established in 1996 to benefit graduates of Bangor High School and John Bapst High School in Bangor, Maine. The late Peter Skoufis, a graduate of the Class of 1941, and his wife, Helen, established this fund to help young people obtain an education. Peter, a graduate of the Class of 1941, served his country in the foreign service throughout the world. After retiring in 1971 he began working for the United Nations as assistant director of its food and agricultural organization in Rome. After being married to Helen for 55 years he passed away in 2005.