Two high school seniors were recognized Wednesday as the 2012 recipients of the Cape Coral Police Department’s Do The Right Thing scholarships.

Ashley Gosling, 18, of Ida S. Baker High School, and Tyler Silcock, 17, of Mariner High School, were each awarded a $1,000 scholarship at the 14th annual luncheon. A committee picked them from a pool of 18 applicants.

“It means a lot,” Gosling said of winning the scholarship.

Others that she has received were based primarily on scholastics.

“This shows that I can step up when a problem arises in my community in a positive way,” she said.

Gosling was a winner in the monthly Do The Right Thing program, and she was named the winner of the year. When a neighbor’s 2-year-old girl fell in a pool, Gosling performed CPR on the toddler until emergency crews arrived.

“Honestly, I didn’t think anything. I just knew what to do – it took no thought,” she said. “I just figured I was going a good deed.”

Gosling will attend the University of South Florida, where she intends to double major in pre-med and biochemistry. She currently wants to become an anesthesiologist, but definitely wants to do something in the medical field.

“It’s always fascinated me,” Gosling said of her chosen field.

Silcock also wants a career in the medical field, but physical therapy.

About a year ago, he had two of his vertebrae fused during back surgery because of a pinched nerve that was the result of sports, including football and hockey. Silcock had hoped to be a helicopter pilot in the Coast Guard.

“It sucked,” he said. “I really wanted to do it.”

The surgery and therapy, however, opened the door to a new future.

“I thought it was really cool to help other people in that situation,” he said, adding that he experienced an unexpected side of the medical field.

“It caught my attention,” Silcock said.

With plans to first attend Edison State College, he wants to transfer to the University of Central Florida later on and continue his studies. Unlike Gosling, Silcock simply learned about the Do The Right Thing scholarship and applied.

“I needed money for college,” he said, adding that he was surprised and excited to learn he had been selected as a winner. “It means a lot.”

Cindy Naumann, community outreach program coordinator for the Cape police, said the department is glad to help local students by offering the scholarships. Not all applicants are recognized by the monthly program.

“We know that every student that’s doing positive things may not be nominated,” she said.

Those who attended the luncheon included the winners and their families, members of the CCPD and Cape Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 33, the Cape Coral Ladies Lunch Bunch, former and current council members and more.