By Paul Greeley
817-578-6324, Paul@NewsBlues.com

WSFA, the NBC affiliate in Montgomery, Alabama, and Gray Media announced a new scholarship for journalism students on Wednesday in memory of a beloved colleague.

Desmond Wingard, WSFA news director, died in late October following a battle with cancer.

He was just 46, but dreamed of working at WSFA since childhood. He lived his dream for more than 25 years.

In Desmond’s honor, WSFA and our parent company, Gray Media, have set aside $25,000 in seed money to create a scholarship.

WSFA 12 News General Manager Mark Bunting joined William Filmore and Caroline Hale from Troy University to discuss the scholarship during WSFA 12 New at Noon.

Members of Desmond’s family were also in attendance, and it was revealed they will seed another $10,000 to the new scholarship.

Bunting said Troy University has one of the top journalism schools in the nation and that Desmond was a product of that program.

Having a hand in organizing the scholarship to help the next generation of journalists holds special meaning for the WSFA family.

Des was loved as a colleague, boss, and friend.

It is our hope that this scholarship with grow, and that it will continue to fuel Desmond’s legacy for generations of journalists to come.

You Need to See Del Rodgers Emotional Goodbye About Covering Sports at KCRA

https://newsblues.com/2025/12/03/you-need-to-see-del-rodgers-emotional-goodbye-about-covering-sports-at-kcra/