DAV (Disabled American Veterans) has named Noah Omura of Columbia, South Carolina, as the recipient of the 2026 DAV Scholarships’ top prize of $30,000. Omura was recognized Aug. 1 during the 2026 DAV and Auxiliary National Convention in Orlando, Florida.

The DAV Scholarships honor 15 students each year for their volunteer support of veterans through the Department of Veterans Affairs Voluntary Service (VAVS) Program and through DAV’s Local Veterans Assistance Program (LVAP).

Omura, 18, is a 2026 graduate of Dreher High School in Columbia and is entering his freshman year at the University of South Carolina Honors College to study biology. Since 2021, he’s volunteered within the Columbia Veterans Affairs (VA) Health Care System, a seed that was planted when he attended a local veterans charity ride when he was 8.

Omura said he volunteers because veterans’ stories he’s heard give him strength, and he wants to “be a person who can take pride in my own story and push forward in the same way.”

His goal is to become a physician and return to the VA as a doctor.

“Each one of our scholarship recipients has done significant and meaningful work helping our nation’s veterans, and we are so proud of what they’ve done,” said DAV National Commander Coleman Nee. “We hope their spirit of volunteerism inspires other students to spend time helping veterans, too.”

Additional scholarship recipients include:

$20,000   Faribah Nuha of Glen Allen, Virginia
$15,000   Jackson Walls of Clarksburg, West Virginia
$10,000   Ayla Zook of King George, Virginia
$10,000   Elana Lofton of Fairmont, North Carolina
$7,500   Brycen Davis of Robinson, Texas
$7,500   Cami Wolles of Dell Rapids, South Dakota
$7,500   Eyal Traeger of West Hempstead, New York
$7,500   Aayush Khanna of Ellisville, Missouri
$5,000   Alexander Horne of Bossier City, Louisiana
$5,000   Aria Jones of Clinton, Mississippi
$5,000   Aidan Armenti of Monroe Township, New Jersey
$5,000   Christopher Bailey of Rohnert Park, California
$2,500   Lauren Ecker of Makanda, Illinois
$2,500   Jahnavi Doddapaneni of Louisville, Kentucky

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