His name is Lucas Shelton. He’s an 11-year-old sixth grader. He has lived in Omaha all of his life. He likes video games and playing football.

He’s also a person who should be of great interest to those students who are going to be participating in this year’s Jaywalk.

Lucas goes to the Jesuit Middle School of Omaha and is the recipient of this year’s Jaywalk scholarship. The proceeds of the Jaywalk, in addition to going into a general fund for the school, will be used to fund Lucas’ tuition at JMSO, which is $6,000 a year.

Tony Connelly, JMSO’s principal, said Lucas is very deserving of the scholarship because his family is in financial need, he is hard-working, has an exemplary behavioral record and is willing to lead.

“Lucas is a fine leader in that he manages time very well,” Connelly said. “He is sought out by his classmates, all of his classmates. He’s respected by all of the students in this school.”

Lucas lives at home with his mother, Jessica Carroll, his brother, Kevin Shelton, and his younger sisters, Georgia and Sydney Carroll. Kevin is a past recipient of the scholarship.

When asked about the JMSO, Lucas said, “It’s alright.” He has lots of friends, he likes his teachers and he likes to play basketball at school.

Lucas said he wants to play professional football and his favorite team is the New York Giants. His uncle, Adam Wright, played football at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, where he was an All-American.

Lucas also said he has a number of role models, including Connelly, his uncle, his father and, of course, his mother because “she pushed me out of her belly.”

Jessica, in addition to working at Vitalcare, which provides home health care services, studies nursing at Kaplan University. She hopes to graduate in October.

“Grateful” and “humbled” were the words Jessica used to describe her reaction upon hearing Lucas had won the scholarship. Lucas also said he was excited to receive the sholarship and plans on attending the Jaywalk, which he does every year.

Jessica said she appreciates the people in the Jaywalk who go out of their way to help other people – lessons she tries to pass on to Lucas and his siblings.

She agreed with Connelly that Lucas is a leader. She also said some of his best qualities are his organizational abilities.

“He has a very old soul. He’s one of those people who takes his time,” Jessica said. “He takes pride in things and very good care of things, and we don’t have a lot of money, so that makes me feel good about giving him things because I know he won’t take them for granted.

“He’s just a good kid,” she said.

Connelly said the Jaywalk is beneficial to the JSMO because the school’s goal is to put all of its students on scholarship. The Jaywalk, he said, goes a long way toward accomplishing that goal. He also said it sets a good example for the students of JMSO of men and women for others and is a symbol of the unity among Omaha’s Jesuit schools.

“We appreciate more than expect it,” he said.

“It tells me the energy of the Creighton Students Union, and the greater Omaha community really wants to make an impact on the lives of these young men.”

Jessica echoed Connelly’s sentiments, saying that she appreciates the effort that is put into the Jaywalk.

“We’re grateful for everything that people do to make the Jaywalk successful and to help my son and other people’s children,” Jessica said.