Joe Pete, Dana Schulte and the people at ESPN Radio 970 WFUN has been raising money for the last 12 months all with eye toward giving it away.

The time has finally come for the station to do exactly that. Monday, Pete and Schulte will host a special four-hour edition of “The Sports Report” in which the station, as well as Dr. William A. Seeds, will award a number of scholarships to worthy Ashtabula County high school seniors. The duo will also induct Denny Allan, Mark Debevc and Wash Lyons into the ESPN 970 WFUN Hall of Fame.

The event will be from 3 to 7 p.m. at Los Compadres restaurant.

“We’ll try and give each of the winners about 10 minutes on the air between 3 and 4:30,” Pete said. “We’ll award the scholarships and get the reactions on the air. Then at about 5, we’ll bring on Denny Allan and Mark Debevc and we’ll do the inductions of those two and Wash Lyons live. We’ll interview (Debevc and Allan) on the air, too.”

Pete has had the opportunity to talk with all three inductees on previous occasions. He’d also researched all three in writing stories for the Star Beacon in the past. That research, in part, led to all three being inducted.

“I had the chance to write some stories and research these guys in the past,” Pete said. “Those were three names that kept popping up as three of the best players in the area. Any time you talk about the history of the area, the names of those three always come up in the conversation.

“(Debevc) played for Woody Hayes at Ohio State on a National Championship team. He was a starter for Woody Hayes, that’s big time. Denny Allan played at Notre Dame. They don’t play patsies over there. That’s pretty big time. They play the giants of college football. Wash Lyons was an incredible athlete on both sides of the football. He went to Ohio U and if not for a freak industrial accident and a foot injury, I’m told he was headed to the NFL. He was that good. He was that good on both sides of the ball.

“Those were three guys that, in our opinion, were no-brainers.”

It means a lot to Pete that he’ll get the chance to talk to Debevc and Allan.

“It’s definitely an honor,” Pete said. “When you know what they went through and what they’ve done and the way they represented the county while playing at places like that, it really is an honor. These guys are getting older and Wash is no longer with us.

“It really is an honor. You’re talking about the best of the best that ever played in the area. I’ve been fortunate enough to talk with the guys of the past. They’re very humble men. The competed against each other when they played. They’re friends and they’ll be happy to see each other once again. You couldn’t find two better guys.”

Though Lyons won’t be in attendance, Pete had the opportunity to speak with him before he passed away. He’s just the kind of guy Pete described Debevc and Allan to be.

“He was a fantastic guy,” Pete said. “He gave all the credit to his linemen and coaches. He didn’t want to take any credit. He wanted to talk about other people.”

The scholarships, apart from the one Dr. Seeds gives, that will be given away are funded strictly from the radio station’s fundraising efforts throughout the year.

“A lot of that money comes from the Cleveland Indians Press Tour luncheon,” Pete said. “These scholarships are basically funded by all the money we raise.

“It’s our way of giving back to the kids. There are so many talented athletes that are really good students.”

Choosing the scholarship winners was not an easy task. There were more than 45 applicants from the county schools.

“We always wish there was more money to give,” Pete said. “The way we do it, the applicants have to be nominated by someone in the school district, not their parents. They have to have at least a 3.0 grade-point average and they have to be a letterwinner. It’s really been difficult to pick the winners.”

Pete hasn’t been alone in the process to put the event together. He’s had some help.

“Dana has really been a big help,” Pete said. “He’ll help with interviews and he’s helped in the selection process. He oversees the fundraising. He’s been great.

“I’m proud of how far the station has come in such a short time.”

Pete also wants to make sure Los Compadres knows they were an important part in this year’s event.

“I want to thank the people at Los Compadres for letting us host this event at their establishment,” Pete said. “We hope to have our listeners come out and support Los Compadres and all the student-athletes we’ll be recognizing. It’s also a great chance to meet to good guys in Denny Allan and Mark Debevc.”