The Dallas-Wilcox Bama Club has started a scholarship in honor of club president Ronnie Leet and his wife Barbara.

Leet has served as the president of the club for over a decade and throughout that time he’s had Barbara by his side. Together the couple has helped keep the Bama Club on course to complete its main mission — providing scholarships for local students that will be attending the University of Alabama.

“This will go on when I’m done and through with the Bama Club,” Ronnie said of the scholarship. “This will be here for the future. That’s what really makes it special is that beyond our time the Barbara and Ronnie Leet Scholarship will always be there as the others are there and that’s special.”

The scholarship was announced by the Bama Club committee at a banquet in Camden earlier this month. Ronnie said the news came as a complete surprise.

“We have worked hard,” Leet said. “It’s been a lot of fun obviously because certainly the University of Alabama is a passion for both of us.”

The club currently has seven endowed scholarships and Ronnie expects the newest scholarship to be endowed within the five-year window allotted. The scholarship has to reach $25,000 to be endowed, but Ronnie said the club is already making progress in reaching that goal.

In May, the club awarded six local students scholarships totaling $14,000.

“[We] wouldn’t have been able to do this on our own,” Leet said.

“It’s an honor and a privilege and certainly it represents the appreciation of our Bama Club committee for the work that Barbara and I have done for the Bama Club.”