A 14-year-old student at Augusta Christian School won the Army & Air Force Exchange Service’s “You Made the Grade” sweepstakes, which recognizes academic excellence among military-connected students. He was selected out of 2,300 entrants.
Trent Hall is the son of retired Fort Gordon veterans, Tamika and Robert Hall, who have served for a combined 42 years. He enjoys studying science, plays soccer, and aspires to become a professional soccer player.
His grand prize in the form of a $2,000 Exchange gift card was presented to him during a presentation at the Fort Gordon Exchange earlier this week.
“I feel so grateful and blessed to have been chosen. I was really surprised when my mom told me I was chosen in the first place,” Trent said.
Trent plans to use his prize money to support a local organization that helps women fighting cancer. Any remaining funds will be used for his school supplies.
“I plan to save the gift card until I visit the Lydia Project, which offers support services to women undergoing cancer treatment. I want to use it to buy supplies for my volunteer shifts,” Trent said.
The scholarly sweepstakes is engineered to reward military students for going above and beyond in their studies. Trent was selected after maintaining at least a B average during the spring semester.
“As a parent, I felt excited and incredibly proud because Trenton loves school and puts in a lot of effort both inside and outside of the classroom,” Tameka Hall said. “I truly feel blessed to have such a wonderful child.”
Currently, Trent is enrolled in all honors classes.
Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Rich Martinez, Exchange senior enlisted advisor, praised the top
three winners for their hard work. “These exceptional students have demonstrated that dedication to academics leads to positive outcomes,” Martinez said. “Students, especially from military families, face significant pressures on their time. The Exchange is proud to recognize their hard work.”
