Everett, WA – August 20, 2022 - Trinity Education Foundation is honored to announce that Ella Hubach and Emma Ortiz have been awarded the Dave Ellingson Scholarship for Environmental Studies for the 2022-2023 Academic Year. This undergraduate scholarship is focused on students who are deeply concerned with environmental creation care and have declared a major in the field of Environmental Studies or similar.

The scholarship, named for Dave Ellingson - The Paddle Pilgrim, is a scholarship initiated by the many people who have been influenced through Dave's writing and teaching.In case you are not familiar with Dave, he is known for kayaking the world’s most beautiful and challenging rivers and documenting them in his Paddle Pilgrim series of books. As a former professor at Trinity Lutheran College,Dave has seen first-hand the positive impact people can have on the lives of young adults. He understands how these initial investments of time and resources contribute to the long-term success of students.

Ella and Emma will each receive a $5,000 scholarship award in addition to personal mentoring with Dave Ellingson.

Ella Hubach: Environmental Studies - Carroll College, Helena, MT

"My passion for environmental issues is driven by my deep concern for the well-being of the planet and the abundance of wildlife that lives in correspondence with us. It is quite evident that humans are not as troubled by the issues we are facing as a society as they should be, and something needs to change before it is too late. My awareness of the threats to the environment and the extensive research I have found myself doing is not only what keeps this passion to conserve and preserve flourishing, but what has moved me to inform others of the matters at hand. As cliche as it sounds, I want to make a true difference by learning more about what humankind needs to do to protect God's creation and ultimately,teach others to do the same."

Emma Ortiz: Biology / Ecology - George Fox University, Portland,OR

"It is one of our greatest duties as rational creatures endowed with God's image to take up the humble mantle of stewardship. When I was very young, I would spend hours in our suburban backyard looking for bugs to marvel at and others to save. I had as mall patch of our backyard to plant seeds in and nurture. I found the world deeply fascinating. As someone who grew up in a Christian home, I found caring for creation a wonderful blessing and responsibility. As I grew, I was continually falling more in love with nature, but I couldn't escape the news of whole ecosystems being destroyed by human actions. The feelings of anger and despair that I felt due to my inability to make things better is transforming into a resolve to change the world and reestablish harmony between humanity and the rest of nature."

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