Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness announces scholarship winners

School is out for summer — and that means a new class of budding scholars is on its way to bigger and better things.

Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness officials said they are happy to support college-bound students graduating from North Idaho and northwestern Montana high schools. And seven regional students are heading to college with a little extra support thanks to their winning essays in the FSPW scholarship program.

“Nature helps me to see our world from a different perspective,” wrote Isabelle Kapan of Libby High School in her essay. “… It reminds me to never take the wilderness we are surrounded by for granted.”

This year, our winning students are Isabelle Kapan of Libby High School, Gabrielle Pallister of Troy High School, Josey Laine Neesvig of Thompson Falls High School, Wesley Simko of Clark Fork High School, Olivia Lynch of Sandpoint High School, Madeline Wuthrich of Forrest Bird Charter School, and Halie Moore of Priest River Lamanna High School.

Students earned their scholarship awards by writing essays about wilderness- or nature-related experiences. The essays demonstrated a good understanding of wilderness values. That means topics centered on activities like hiking, hunting or fishing that don’t rely on motor vehicles or other disruptions to the natural world. Winning writers also reflect on how those outdoor experiences shaped them as people.

“Lots of us today like to be in control and in our comfort zones, but what exploring the backcountry has taught me is that the unplanned things make you feel alive,” wrote Wesley Simko of Clark Fork High School.

This year, essays covered a diverse range of themes. They capture the experience of getting caught outdoors in a hail storm, embarking into the wild for conservation education and hitting the lake in search of largemouth bass — just to name a few. Selected students will record themselves reading their winning essays for episodes of FSPW’s Your Wild Place podcast.

Congratulations to this year’s winners! If their wilderness writing is any indication, a promising scholastic career awaits them in higher education.

Information: scotchmanpeaks.org