Scholarship applications are available at www.wallowaresources.org.
The fund’s advisory committee will review the scholarship applications in early May and hold interviews the week of May 15. Awards will be announced ahead of the county’s high school graduation dates.
The scholarship, open to Wallowa County high school graduates, gives preference to college students with at least sophomore status, but high school graduates starting a degree in forestry, natural resources, or agriculture will be considered.
In the summer of 2022, Ellyse Tingelstad, Catherine Zeigler and Ian Goodrich were awarded scholarships from the Fund and their accomplishments recognized at Wallowa Resources’ Blue Barn Dance fundraiser in August.
This is the second year Tingelstad received the award. The Joseph Charter School graduate is a junior majoring in environmental studies and minoring in criminal justice, philosophy and professional foundations at the College of Idaho in Nampa, Ida. In her application she said she is considering either law school or attending a game warden academy after she completes her undergraduate studies. She eventually plans to return to Wallowa County.
Catherine Zeigler is a freshman studying forestry at the University of Idaho in Moscow, Ida. She stated on her application that growing up in the Wallowas near the Eagle Cap Wilderness had much to do with her decision to study natural resources. She graduated first in her 2022 Joseph Charter School graduating class and was an intern at Wallowa Resources last summer.
Ian Goodrich is studying natural resources at Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario, Ore. A member of TVCC’s cross country team, Goodrich said after earning an Associate of Science degree he intends to study range management at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, with the eventual goal of returning to Wallowa County. This past summer the Joseph Charter School graduate worked for the U.S. Forest Service as a wildland firefighter.
Each of the three award winners participated in Wallowa Resources youth programming, a building block for local kids to explore the natural world in the classroom and outdoors through experiences with OWL, the weeklong outdoor school, WREN, a Friday program for middle school students, HAWK, an internship for high school students, and summer adventures that take kids into the backcountry.
Bruce Dunn and his wife Jane had long talked about starting a scholarship fund to support forestry students. Shortly after his death in August, 2018, a group of friends and colleagues got together to help the Dunns realize that dream by starting the scholarship and Wallowa Resources agreed to serve as the fund’s fiscal sponsor.
Donations from organizations and private individuals have supported the scholarship awards for the last five years.
To contribute, checks can be written to Wallowa Resources with “Bruce Dunn Scholarship Fund” in the memo line, and mailed to 401 Northeast First Street, Suite A, Enterprise, OR 97828.
