Arizona Is My Home Schloarship
Glendale, Arizona – November 3, 2006 – Two Arizona college students were named winners of the “Arizona Is My Home” scholarship. Carrie Johnson and Roxanne Roud were selected from a pool of over 800 applicants. Each student received $2,500 to be used for tuition, books, and materials.
College students from across the country applied at www.arizonan.com for the “Arizona Is My Home” scholarship.
Carrie was raised in Childs and Payson, Arizona. She attends the University of Arizona. She studies agriculture education and plans to become a teacher. Currently, Carrie lives in Marana, Arizona where she trains her horse and practices roping. She is also an active advisor for Future Farmers of America in Payson. This scholarship money will help further her education.
Carl Chapman of Glendale, Arizona presented each student with a check for $2,500. “Arizona Is My Home” scholarship was created to promote and preserve Arizona’s traditions, history, and rural lifestyle. Having grown up in Parker, Arizona, Carl has experienced the advantages of growing up in a small town. He believes that education is important. As a successful entrepreneur, Carl plans to offer scholarship money annually to any student attending a public Arizona college or university.
Roxanne grew up in Show Low, Arizona. She is studying finance and interior design at Northern Arizona University. She is an active member in the Tri Delta sorority on campus. Roxanne spent the previous summer working on development of a computerized bookkeeping system for her family’s business. This scholarship money will help further her education.
Students were asked to write an essay about what is special and unique about their Arizona hometown. The winning essays revealed personal thoughts and feelings about living in their hometown. Applicants out of state were given the option of choosing an Arizona town and to explain the benefits of living there.
Winning essays of “Arizona Is My Home”
2006 “Arizona Is My Home” Scholarship Winning Essays
“Arizona is My Home”
by Carrie Johnson
Once the air had cooled and the chores were done, on any typical summer night you could find my family fishing on the banks of the Verde River. My name is Carrie Johnson and I grew up at Childs Power Plant, close to where Fossil Creek and the Verde River meet.
My father worked for Arizona Public Service. This provided my family the privilege of spending 25 years, a full quarter (the last quarter) living among the uniqueness and rich history of the place I call home.
I learned at a young age that my family was my best friends in our tiny settlement (in the boom as I knew it), population 13. The entirety of our “hometown” was six small houses, the hydroelectric plant, an office and one small room that served as the post office, library and medical supply nestled among the huge cottonwoods on the Verde.
I learned very quickly that school was a privilege. The drive to town was long and difficult. Grade school was a full hour away! A journalist once described the journey as “an arduous trek not to be taken lightly”. This put education to a much higher importance to me knowing the effort it took to get there. I also had greater respect for my teachers and began early bringing them our garden’s harvests and the wildflowers along the way. Lucky for me, they were very understanding when mud slides and snowfall prohibited our travel.
As I got older I began to learn and appreciate the history of my home. In 1907, construction of Childs Power Plant began lead by a woman engineer, Iva Tuft. Utilizing 250 men and 450 mules for mule trains, supplies were brought from as far away as Germany. Despite the great topographical difficulties, her work was a success. The plant went online June 18, 1909 and transmitted power for the first time over a long distance in Arizona. These facts were easy for me to remember even as a young child because she was one of the first women engineers and June 18th is my birthday. This historic marvel is believed to be greatly responsible for the progress and growth of Arizona. Childs supplied electricity to Jerome and other small mining towns. In 1993, my home was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This was an event that I will not soon forget. I was ten years old to the day and many important people came for a great celebration. If there were ever a town known for rural life and Arizona traditions I believe we were in it.
Agriculture has always played a major role in my life. The vision I have of my home was swallowed by large fruit trees, grapevines and grass. We grew and canned our own vegetables from the garden, made our own bread and even butchered our own beef and fish. My sisters and I were all involved in 4-H and FFA. The location of our home made it possible for us to experience the responsibility of raising market animals. Our best friends were a ranching couple that lived just on the other side of the river. They were as pioneering as the settlers in 1909 and taught me about life and true happiness. I always felt special when kids at school asked me where I lived. I loved taking my new friends from town down to my home to have a sleep over, and every girl in my class was invited to my birthday parties. There are really no words I can use to describe the pride and love I have of my “home town.” I learned so much just about life, taking responsibility and how to believe in my abilities. The beauty of the desert is captivating, and hidden in the canyons are some of the most unforgettable riparian areas. If I had not seen it my self I would believe such a place existed.
My motivation to continue my education comes from the experience of living in rural Arizona. I am currently studying animal science at the University of Arizona. The technology available today in agriculture has opened a new era in possibilities. I am extremely interested in animal reproduction and the advancements in genetics. By artificial insemination and embryo transfers we have the ability to advance herd production and bring the animal industry, one of our state’s longest standing traditions, to new heights. Education is still one of the greatest privileges I am enjoying and am thankful for the background that growing up in Childs has provided.
Just as time changes all things, and going home is never quite the same, Childs now is only a memory. My home has been removed and the lush green of great trees and grapevines is gone. In my mind on summer nights once the air has cooled and the work is done I still feel the urge to be on the banks of the Verde.
“Arizona Is My Home”
by Roxanne Roud
Raised in Pinetop-Lakeside, no matter how far I travel, I always know that it is my home. Pinetop-Lakeside is a small town in Arizona where many people come to visit and enjoy the scenery, but only for a short time, then they must pack up and go back to the hustle and bustle of the large city. I, on the other hand, am fortunate enough to call this beautiful town home. From the Friday night football games to the Fall Festival held every year, Pinetop-Lakeside is the typical cliché of a small town.
I was born in Phoenix and lived there until the summer after my fourth grade year. For a 9 year old, the excitement of moving was overwhelming. Sure I would be leaving all of my friends, but I understood that I would soon make new ones. I was counting down the days until we moved, but my older brother and sister were dreading it. My sister, 6 years my elder, and my brother 5 years my elder, were being forced to leave the friends they had grown up with all of their lives. Arriving in Pinetop, it was clear to our entire family that we would be starting over. It has been quoted that “to take one step up, you have to take two steps back,” and that was the story of our family for the first year and a half that we moved here. Having both of my parents sell their businesses in the city to share a partnership in our new town sounded like a wonderful opportunity, until we had to give up everything we had to start this wonderful life. Our first home was our 5th wheel camper, which we ironically stayed in just 2 years prior to our move to the mountains for a family vacation. Now, the same recreational vehicle that gave us so many wonderful memories was giving us a place to call home. Struggling does not quite cover what my family and I went through before we were back on our own two feet, or should I say ten feet. For my parents, establishing a business in a small town was not what they had expected. The businesses that are in this area have history and family ties. People had shopped at these stores for years. Their grandparents shopped there, their parents the same, and now they too would be faithful to the businesses that had been there for years. So how did my parents do it? With hard work and determination. My parents are a true inspiration to me and they have always taught me to strive for what want and dream of what will be. They provided a wonderful small town life for me and I would not trade any of my time here for the rushed city life that I hear is so great.
From fifth grade until graduation day when I stood in front of my class awaiting to give them the cue to turn their tassels, I could name anyone of my classmates first and last names and probably what their parent’s did for a living. I could tell if they had an older brother or sister, or if they were a member of any of the clubs on campus. Some may say that so “small town” to know everybody’s business, and it is and that is why it is so great. It is not about knowing the bad about everybody in Pinetop, but rather it is about announcing the good in people’s lives. Getting congratulated on a new baby, recent engagement, or a college graduation. In my town, if you have to go to the grocery store, you know that it will not be a simple trip to the store. You will always see a familiar face at our local Safeway.
Blue Ridge High School, known state-wide for our numerous 3A State Football Championships was where I went to high school. And trust me, when it was football season on a Friday night, there was not another care in the world. The community comes together for our boys on the field and gives them tremendous support, but it is not only about the game. It is also about seeing everybody. During a football game, Pinetop-Lakeside, for the most part, shuts down. And if you miss a home game, it is for a good reason. If you have a son playing or not, Blue Ridge Football is in your heart. But, in the “off-season”, we have plenty of other wonderful athletes to watch, and the Blue Ridge Yellow Jackets are always a strong contender making every state tournament for every sport. Our talent is well beyond the field though, we also participated in academics with State Championships in Academic Decathlon and Speech and Debate. Blue Ridge “raises” fine individuals. Not redneck country boys and girls, but cultured, well rounded men and women. In high school I was involved in Volleyball, Softball, Spanish Club, Bible Club, Ski Club, Mock Trial, Physics Club, and Student Council where I held the office of Class President for my sophomore, junior, and senior years. I had a lot of wonderful experiences in high school and I truly believe in my heart that I would not be the same person that I am today if I would have grown up in the city. I have met many people in college and when they ask where I’m from and I tell them Pinetop, they just laugh and call me a small town girl, but that’s ok because that is who I am. The city kids that I have met in college do not understand the importance of community like I do. I grew up in a true community and with true friends. Not just a group of friends like many have, but a class of friends, all 200 of them.
After graduation, it’s always the same story: everybody cannot wait to leave for college. I was no different, but unlike many of my classmates, I did not go to the city, I instead went to Flagstaff because it reminded me of home. I still love coming back to Pinetop for the weekends, and making a “quick trip” to the grocery store for my mom. I love seeing my friend’s parents and hearing about how they also miss home. We all become butterflies once we graduate. We are given wings, and we do what we have dreamed to do, but we always come back because it’s our town, it’s our family, it’s our home.
