By Tracy Downey HUNTSVILLE, TX— On Monday, December 1, IMSPIRE LLC CEO Megan Billnoske, a former SHSU student, presented Julie Muñoz, a first-generation Bearkat at Sam Houston State University and a member of BOLD, with IMSPIRE’s inaugural Mely Sehic $500 Scholarship. Sehic, a mentee of Billnoske and a former business major at the University of Houston, passed away on September 24 after a six-year battle with stage IV brain cancer. She was 21. After 12 years in corporate roles, Billnoske, a graduate of Advertising at Texas Tech, wanted her business to support students because it plays a big part in their journey. “I’ve had a profitable year and really didn’t want to give Chatzky Christmas presents to clients, so I decided to do something more impactful,” said Billnoske. “I think Mely exemplified everything that my company is about, so today will be about keeping her light shining.” For Billnoske, the decision involved interviewing over a dozen candidates, but when she read Muñoz’s essay, she felt confident. Once Muñoz received the news, it was a humbling experience for the first-generation junior, majoring in Human Resources Management. “It is such an honor and a privilege,” said Muñoz. “Go for any opportunity, you never know what is on the other side unless you open the door.” SHSU’s Julie Muñoz Awarded Inaugural IMSPIRE Mely Sehic Scholarship (contd) Sehic battled pineal blastoma, a rare brain cancer affecting fewer than one percent of the population. The Mely Sehic Scholarship was created to honor Sehic’s compassion, leadership, and dedication to service. Billnoske and Sehic’s family members united to inspire others while remembering her. Samir Sehic, Mely’s older brother, provided Bearkats with valuable insights on their path to the corporate world. “When you do good and put good out into the world, trust that it will come back to you.” Business Oriented Ladies of Distinction (BOLD), a new SHSU organization supporting women in business, celebrated its first annual milestone by presenting purple cords to its upcoming winter graduates and honoring Sehic’s legacy with its first scholarship recipient, Muñoz. Senior Madillyn Phillips, president of BOLD, invited Billnoske to speak last spring. That speaking engagement inspired Billnoske to reach out. “Megan reached out to me about the scholarship to see if we’d be interested,” said Phillips, who graduates in December and aims to expand BOLD through COBA — the College of Business Administration — by engaging as many students as possible. Cassidy Phillips, another BOLD member, was runner- up and received a gift card and free coaching sessions with Billnoske at IMSPIRE. The Sehic family started a non-profit called “Little Boz,” also Mely’s nickname, a foundation that helps kids and families affected by brain cancer. Mely’s love for supporting nature inspired the logo for “Little Boz,” a baby turtle, playing with a purple butterfly to spread good energy into the world through community service and helping others. "To receive energy, you have to give [and] release it," said her father, Yasmin Sehic. "It's the cycle of life." Sehic, a proud father, businessman, and immigrant from Bosnia, relocated his family to US in 1996, where Mely was born on August 12, 2004. "Mely was a true believer in protecting nature and influencing people to celebrate [life] every day," said Sehic, who passionately expressed his daughter's love for collecting toys for Texas Children's Hospital. The family attended the ceremony, helping Billnoske present the check to Muñoz while sharing stories about Mely's love for spreading positive energy. The scholarship aims to motivate future Bearkats to "put good into the world" by carrying forward Sehic's message of making a difference and ensuring Mely's legacy "inspires positive change for years to come." To learn more about Mely Sehic's journey, visit www.littleboz.org