James MacDougald, a retired Air Force colonel who grew up in Rumford, and his wife, Michaele, have donated a 600-volume collection of books exploring the life and accomplishments of President Abraham Lincoln to Saint Raphael Academy in Pawtucket.

MacDougald, who lives in Colorado, recently returned to his alma mater to participate in a ceremony to acknowledge the receipt of the gift.

After 30 years in the Air Force, MacDougald served for years as chairman and CEO of AMI Industries, which designs crew seats for the airlines and the space shuttle program.

To complete a graduation requirement, Scituate High School senior Justine Simone organized a fundraising event to benefit St. Mary’s Home for Children.

More than 100 individuals and local businesses contributed to the event and $7,400 was raised to help support educational and clinical programs offered at St. Mary’s.

Steve Flynn, a teacher at Tolman High School in Pawtucket who teaches an elective course called Studies in Racism and Diversity, has been named Genocide Educator of the Year by the Armenian National Committee of Rhode Island and the Armenian Martyrs’ Memorial Committee of Rhode Island.

One student, in a nomination letter, wrote: “Mr. Flynn has a delightful sense of humor which makes everyone in class feel at ease when learning about sometimes difficult subject matter and keeps the students interested and engaged.”

Mariel Guay, a senior at Salve Regina University and the captain of the school’s ice hockey team, and Corey Fitzgerald and Rachael Kerzer, students at the Lincoln School, were honored recently with the Herbert J. Kaplan Jr. Philanthropy Award for their efforts to raise money for Skate for Joy, a nonprofit skating organization that rewards inner-city children for their achievements both on and off the ice. Guay raised $225 and the Lincoln School team raised $265 for participating in a skate-a-thon.

Rachael O’Donnelly of East Greenwich High School has won first place in the annual creative writing contest sponsored by the Katie DeCubellis Memorial Foundation, created to honor the spirit of a young drunken-driving victim and her commitment to helping others.

Miriam Fitzelle-Jones of the Rocky Hill School won second place and Charita Mate of Shea High School was awarded third place in the competition, which drew 114 submissions.

Honorable mentions were given to Gregg Gelzinis of LaSalle Academy, Jen McGunigal of the Prout School and Katherine Young of North Kingstown High School.

The judging of the 16 finalists was done by Lisa Starr, Rhode Island’s poet laureate.

For assuring that HIV/AIDS patients received medication despite a computer glitch that made them appear uninsured, Bhaskar Vyas, a pharmacist at Rite Aid in Providence, has been honored by the state Department of Health. He was the only pharmacist to agree to a good-faith billing method proposed by state advocates working to fix the glitch.

Maryellen Butke, director of organizational development for the Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center, is the recipient of this year’s Paul V. Sherlock Award in recognition of her commitment to providing educational opportunities for children, especially those with disabilities. The award was established in 2001 to honor the late Paul V. Sherlock, professor of special education at Rhode Island College.