|
|
Vootage Scholarship Winner
Caitlin Fitzgerald, the winner of the Vootage Scholarship sponsored by the Southern California Toyota Dealers.
|
|
|
|
The Vootage Scholarship Winner
|
|
| |
June 01, 2007
Untitled document
Vootage Scholarship presented by the Southern California Toyota Dealers
Throughout the Spring season of CIF Southern Section sporting events, Vootage and the Southern California Toyota Dealers have offered an opportunity to win a $1,000 scholarship to the college or university of their choice by writing about a high school sporting event. The theme of the contest is "Moving Forward", how does a sporting event affect the student body of a school. We have received hundreds of essays and would like to thank all of the participants for their wonderful entries and have finally chosen one essay that best exemplifies the all-encompassing affect of high school athletics.Congratulations to Caitlin Fitzgerald of Highland High in Palmdale, CA for her winning essay which you can read below. Thank you again to all of the students who sent in an entry and to the Southern California Toyota Dealers who have made this scholarship possible, please visit us again for more information on next year's scholarship opportunities.
Caitlin's Essay
School is such a conglomeration of people. It's a clash of cultures, races, and religions whose boundaries are all too clearly defined. Groups are labeled and differences distinct. At least, that is until one stops to contemplate the concept of a sports team. It is one aspect of school that consistently erases these barriers. I understand this notion well since I experienced it as a member of the cross country team freshmen year, and later, watched and guided it as captain. I saw runners of every ability and background drawn by an almost gravitational pull to a common interest. Perhaps it's battling the same hills, pushing past the same pain, or racing for the same glory. Either way, this common experience creates a sense of dependency on and responsibility for all team members; resulting in the creation of a cohesive unit striving for glory as a team. It molds "my" strength into "our" advantage. Thus, the purpose of a team is that each member understands the impact that his/her effort has on ultimate success. I believe that this reliance is what makes a team have such a positive impact on the student body. The realization of one's importance compels each individual to sacrifice their imagined limitations on pyres of self-confidence. It allows each team member to accumulate respect for a job well done and build pride in their accomplishments. Overall, it serves as a motivator, knowing that your peers are relying on you. Now as captain, I understand the significance of witnessing the transformation of my fellow runners. In the beginning, we all struggle to run faster merely to avoid disappointing coaches and teammates. Then one day, a personal record or other such goal is reached and all previously imagined barriers crumble. This newly converted runner begins to focus, form a sense of purpose, and become involved. When they have finally integrated themselves into the sport, they begin to care not only about their personal success but also about the team as a whole. This revelation creates a sense of belonging and leadership that is carried over into everyday interactions with the greater student population.
Therefore, as my experience on the cross country team has taught me, sports teams create a sense of selflessness and community that raises school spirit and destroys the normally deterrent boundaries. The team itself replaces the individual parts and pieces of the student body to make a whole. It is every ethnicity, every socio-economic background, and every labeled group in the popularity pyramid. It accepts people at face value and gives them a chance to shine. Thus do sports, especially cross country, help the school body to progress in both tolerance and athletic prowess. A team doesn't expect its members to excel, it just asks that they move forward.
All entries become the property of Vootage, Inc and the winner agrees to
appear in photographs and video promoting the awarding of the Vootage
Scholarship presented by the Southern California Toyota Dealers.
|
|
