Lucy Hiller, Southport High School – Purdue University, University of Michigan, or Stanford University
| We are pleased to introduce our 2024 Erika Wells Memorial Scholarship winners, who each received a $1000 scholarship towards their college education. Please enjoy reading their personal essays, in which they discuss how running has made a positive impact on their lives. Erika Wells was a beloved member of the Indy Runners who tragically passed away in October 2016. Her dedication to service, personal growth, social engagement, and an overall use of running as part of a healthy lifestyle and a way to help support the community were unparalleled. We believe these winners each exemplify these characteristics as well. We are thankful that these young people were willing to share their unique stories of how running has influenced their lives. We hope that they will continue to make running a cornerstone of their life. |
“Despite the common idea that running is an exclusive sport, I’ve found the complete opposite to be true during my seven years competing in it. The constant support and love from the running community has allowed me to gain confidence and enabled me to help others do the same.From the course to the shoe store, runners are always lifting each other up. When I ran my first marathon, countless people noticed my “First-time marathoner” bib and gave me encouragement that fueled me through the race, and working at a shoe store myself, I know that my coworkers and I strive to empower our customers during each interaction.I began my own running journey as a shy seventh grader. I created friendships and uncovered my identity during each run with the team, and my confidence grew with every race I completed. As my training progressed and my times got faster, I felt an immense sense of accomplishment. Now I’ve traded out the jitters I felt on the starting line as a 12-year-old for the collected yet excited mentality I have toward races now.In my own running career, I’ve had highs and lows. At the beginning of my senior season of cross country, I got a stress fracture that kept me off of the course for the rest of the year. Even though having my season ended prematurely was incredibly disappointing, I had to stay upbeat and be there for my teammates. Instead of contributing to the team my running, I became the resident cheerleader, hair braider, and peptalk giver. What started out as a devastating injury ended up teaching me an important lesson. I’ve always placed so much of my self-worth in my athletic performance, and this injury forced me to reevaluate. Just because I wasn’t physically running didn’t mean that I wasn’t still part of the running community or making a valuable contribution to my team. In both areas, my injury helped me realize that I wasn’t valued because of how fast I ran or how many points I scored but rather because I brought personality and encouragement to everyone on the team.Drawing on my own experiences, I’ve had the opportunity to mentor younger girls on my cross country and track teams. Whether it was empowering teammates to speak up for themselves or showing them that they are worth so much more than their performances, each chance I’ve had to guide my teammates has made me more empathetic and allowed me to pass on the lessons that I’ve learned. Conversations like these make all of the hard work worthwhile because I know that I’m making a positive difference for the1next generation of runners by sharing my own wisdom.The running community has given me the space to grow as an individual, as a teammate, and as a leader, and I wouldn’t be where I am today without it.”
