All PONO | Lonnie Winston Memorial Scholarship

2024-2025 APPLICATIONS NOW CLOSED

Hailing from the small farm town community of Ottumwa, IA, Lonnie was a competitor who excelled in numerous sports. His exhilaration in connecting with others, competing, championing teamwork, and creating fun awarded achievements in baseball, basketball, track, and wrestling. In addition, he was an unbelievable football player with a 266-yard, two touchdown record performance in his final Ottumwa High game. However, his heart swung hard for baseball where he played or competed in close to 1200 [baseball] games in his lifetime.

Lonnie’s love for baseball began as a 10-year-old Little Leaguer who smashed an over the fence homerun on a high and outside pitch. An exciting memory where his grandfather yelled from the stands, “$1 for a homerun, Lonnie!” and his mother running to home plate to celebrate him alongside his teammates. He would constantly practice every element of the game where he, his siblings and neighborhood friends would play in a makeshift ball diamond in the alley corner lot or play “tape ball” with his little cousins in his grandma’s backyard during every trip to Maui.

Lonnie, aka “The Flyin’ Hawaiian”, received countless accolades and awards of excellence throughout his Little League, Babe Ruth, high school, and collegiate career. To showcase a few, Lonnie was a first-team all-state selection at Ottumwa High and named Male Athlete of the Year in 1984. Lonnie played two years at Indian Hills Community College (IHCC) competing in the Junior College World Series as a junior and earned honorable mention All-American honors as a sophomore second baseman. He also played at Southern Louisiana and was an all-district pick at Tarkio (Mo.) College where he earned his BA in Sociology.

As Lonnie launched his career in 1989 at Southeastern Community College (SCC) in Burlington, IA, he was committed to making an impact in multiple roles that included minority student affairs, an admissions representative, a dormitory supervisor, and intramural director. Oh, and let’s add one more role of assistant baseball coach.

His greatest impactful moment came in 1992. At the spry youthful age of 26, Lonnie assumed the head coaching duties for SCC’s Blackhawk baseball program. An opportunity that Lonnie was passionate about--to recruit and mentor players toward their own excellence on and off the field. And while mentoring and coaching the game is important, Lonnie’s ability to motivate and inspire his players with passion and drive for the game is what made Lonnie an exceptional leader of the game.

Over a 13-year span, Lonnie coached over 250 players and led the team to an impressive 299 wins. Of those wins the Blackhawks won the Iowa NJCAA Division II State & Regional Championship in 1994, advancing to the national Elite 8.

Lonnie had a special gift that touched so many lives during his short journey. A journey filled with excellence, drive, achievement, laughter, and LOVE for his family. In partnership with ALL PONO, it is our mission to honor his legacy by providing academic and athletic opportunities to Southeastern Community College baseball players through his memorial scholarship fund. Whether a donation or participating in a fundraising event, please join us in awarding scholarships of EXCELLENCE.

On behalf of Lonnie’s ʻOhana, thank you.