2 Kaua‘i High School seniors awarded $5K Tommy and Penny Thompson Outstanding Wrestler Scholarships

A Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame member who has lived for the past nearly 30 years on Kaua‘i stepped up his support for the Kaua‘i High School wrestling program, offering two $5,000 scholarships to outstanding senior wrestlers instead of just one.

Julius Naanep and Bella “Bea” Kellerman were the recipients of the 2025 Tommy and Penny Thompson Outstanding Wrestler Scholarships.

The generous $5,000 awards, given by Princeville resident Thomas “Tommy” Thompson, are intended to reward outstanding Kaua‘i High School senior wrestlers who exceeded performance expectations in the sport, excelled academically and displayed strong leadership qualities.

“This year, he was extremely generous and gave two scholarships,” Kaua‘i High School head wrestling coach Julian Saldana said in an email. “Each scholarship has opened many doors for our wrestlers for educational opportunities and financial assistance.”

The awards were given last month during the annual Kaua‘i High School wrestling team and supporters luncheon.

Naanep wrestled on the Kaua‘i High School team for just 2 years but progressed immensely in a short time, qualifying for two Hawai‘i High School Athletics Association state tournaments during his career.

He carries a 3.477 cumulative grade-point average and plans to join the U.S. Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program as a chef in Madison, Wisc., where he will attend University of Wisconsin and pursue an undergraduate degree in kinesiology.

Naanep also plans to walk on to the University of Wisconsin Division 1 Big 10 wrestling team to try and earn a varsity spot as well as full financial assistance.

Kellerman wrestled 4 years as a Red Raider, earning four trips to the Hawai‘i High School Athletics Association state tournament. She was a team captain for 3 years and also has placed in the top 10 at the Pāʻani Challenge, an all-girls tournament that simulates the state tournament in terms of toughness.

She has a 3.8 cumulative grade-point average and plans to attend University of Segovia in Spain to study international relations.

Thompson has lived in Princeville 26 years. He and his lat wife Penny, a retired Safeway manager, moved in 1998 to Kaua‘i for retirement after being annual visitors to the islands since 1983.

He retired after working 37 years as a U.S. Air Force officer, then an aerospace engineer and finally a corporate contracting officer. The couple were active supporters of Kaua‘i Humane Society, Kaua‘i High School, Public Broadcasting System and other charities through the years, and Thompson continues to be.

Thompson was born in the perennial Pennsylvania wrestling powerhouse community of Shamokin, earning his first wrestling championship medal in the 45-55 lb. class at just 7 years old.

He went on to have an excellent high school wrestling career as well as being a college wrestling standout at the U.S. Military Academy West Point. He was inducted in 2014 to the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame for his performance in wrestling, football, Little League baseball and Pop Warner football and high school baseball, as well as his academic achievements.

The awards are presented as part of a West Point Association of Graduates Hawai‘i program that seeks to foster the continuing education of island students.

It includes, among others, several Kaua‘i scholarship awards given by Gen. Eric “Ric” Shinseki (ret.), a 1965 Kaua‘i High School graduate and Saldana’s classmate.

Similar programs are sponsored by the U.S. Army West Point wrestling group and the 1965 “Strength and Drive” West Point class alumni.