MANSFIELD — The Mansfield Rotary Club recognized some of Richland County’s most courageous and resilient teenagers during its McGowan Courage Awards ceremony earlier this week.
The McGowan Courage Award was named for Brigadier Bill McGowan, who served for 40 years as Commander of the Salvation Army.
McGowan created the scholarship, originally named the Mansfield Rotary Club Courage Award, to recognize and honor local high school students who have faced life experiences of adversity and hardship with extraordinary courage, tenacity, and fortitude.
Ten high school seniors received this year’s $1,000 scholarship. Below are their stories as submitted by nominators, which have been edited slightly for length and clarity.
Ben Gehrisch, Clear Fork High School
Ben Gehrisch has Autism Spectrum Disorder, but family and friends say that’s not what defines him.
Like many people with autism, Gehrisch finds conversation and eye contact challenging, but he’s relentlessly cheerful and welcoming to those around him.
“Ben might be the happiest and friendliest young man I’ve ever worked with,” said Allison Hahn, a special education teacher at Clear Fork High School.
“When he walks into school each day, he makes sure to greet each person he passes, and I mean each person he passes, with a signature elbow bump.”
Gehrish even goes out of his way to say hello, stopping by the central office each morning to greet the principals, school resource officer and secretarial staff by name.
Hahn described him as a young man of impeccable character and manners, as well as a bright and hardworking student. Gehrisch has a 3.4 grade point average and has met all of his graduation requirements, including earning the citizenship and science seals.
“He doesn’t lie, he doesn’t cheat and he definitely doesn’t pass judgment on other people,” Hahn said.
“He shows courage daily as he struggles to maintain relationships. He has to work hard with his organization. Sometimes he overthinks and he has worrying thoughts. Comprehending ideas and concepts that are not concrete, however, through all this, Ben has persevered.”
Gehrisch demonstrated that signature courage Tuesday to briefly address the crowd of Rotarians, school personnel and fellow nominees.
“I would like to thank Mrs. Hahn for nominating me,” he said. “I would like to thank Principal Brown and all of the teachers at Clear Fork High School for all their help and support through my high school career.
“I am honored to be selected for this award to represent Clear Fork High School.”
Miranda Waidler, Crestview High School
As a child, Miranda Waidler watched addiction wreak havoc on the lives of her family members. Waidler’s parents were in and out of her life due to addiction, so she often moved in and out of different family members’ homes. Some of her adult family members have died from drug use.
Lisa Brown, a math teacher at Crestview High School, said Waidler has faced those obstacles with spunk, fight and determination.
“She has overcome more obstacles in her 18 years of life than most adults will ever encounter,” Brown said.
“She could have used the circumstances of her childhood to make excuses for herself. Yet she refuses to let these experiences define her and she is determined to make the most of her life.”
When she was younger, Waidler was on an individualized education plan. She stopped receiving special education services in the ninth grade due to her improved test scores.
“These last four years of high school Miranda has hustled. Talk to any of her teachers and we will all say the same thing — she is a hard worker that never gives up,” said Brown, who had Waidler in her Geometry and Algebra II classes.
“The only grade on a test or quiz that (Waidler) found acceptable was a 100 percent. The day after taking a test or a quiz, she would come bouncing down to my room, begging to see what she got. Almost every time she was beaming after seeing the 100 percent written at the top of the page.”
In addition to earning good grades, Waidler has been a Crestview cheerleader for the last three years and works part time.
“When she told me that she was accepted to college for nursing, I couldn’t help but cry a little bit because I was incredibly proud of her,” Brown said.
“I consider myself very lucky to have been a small part of Rachel’s life. She’s overcome so much and continues to thrive despite what life has handed to her. We can all take a lesson from Miranda about resilience and determination.”
Adison Delp, Lexington High School
Sally Weaver has taught English to thousands of students over the years, but Adison Delp stands out.
“I will never forget him, especially his easy smile and joie de vivre,” Weaver said. “It was my privilege to have him as a student, it is an even bigger honor to know him as a person.”
Delp was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, a condition that causes appendage weakness due to stiffness and decreased mobility in the joints. Arthrofibrosis also leads to underdeveloped muscles. Delp navigates independently on an electric wheelchair, operating the joystick with subtle chin movements. He also uses a moutheld stylus to operate his computer and phone.
Delp was homeschooled through the fourth grade. When he began attending public school for the first time in the fifth grade, he was very nervous.
“Adison Delp is a young man who doesn’t know the meaning of the word can’t,” said Katie Glaze, who served as Adison’s one-on-one aide for five years.
“Adison is intelligent and wanted to be involved in all aspects of his schooling, although every day presented a new challenge.
“Adaptations to particular class situations like gym and art were made on the fly. It was as simple as taping a pencil to his mouth stylus or taping a hockey stick or a golf club to the footplates of his wheelchair. These types of adaptations gave Adison confidence that he could do almost everything other students were doing.”
While in junior high school, Delp served as waterboy for the high school football team. New technology allowed him to do his school work on a tablet, limiting the amount of help he needed. By the end of his sophomore year, he no longer needed a one-on-one aide to attend school.
Over the years, Delp has flourish both academically and socially, making new friends and developing a reputation as the class clown. Delp is in Lexington’s National Honors Society chapter and competes on the school’s academic challenge team.
“He is one of those rare students with a perfect blend of curiosity, intelligence, humor and humility,” Weaver said.
“He is thoughtful and he enjoys a sense of camaraderie in the classroom. He is supportive to his peers, always encouraging them to do their best. In addition to insightful participation and excellent grades, his writing skills are also outstanding.”
He’s also a devoted big brother.
“He has four younger siblings, and he talks about them often,” she said. “They are lucky to have him as a role model. In the classroom, he has proven to be a positive force.”
Upon receiving the award, Delp thanked God, Lexington schools and his family and loved ones. Delp plans to attend Wright State University.
Alex Milligan, Lucas High School
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Alex Milligan kept to himself.
“He was just shy. He wouldn’t communicate with you,” Lucas High School Principal Jim Metcalf said.
After schools closed, Milligan’s teacher Laura Swank spent hours with him on Zoom, helping him complete his lessons. Over time, the two built a strong bond and began to open up.
When schools reopened, Milligan decided to complete his freshman year online. Metcalf said he noticed a shift in Milligan when he returned as a junior. When Metcalf greeted him in the hallways, he said ‘Hi’ back.
“His teachers even noticed that Alex spent more time communicating in class, he had a lot more interpersonal interaction with his classmates,” Metcalf said.
Milligan went to his junior prom, then his senior homecoming and prom. Now, he hopes to inspire others to step outside their comfort zone.
“When I asked him if I could nominate him for this award, he came to my office, sat down with me and said, ‘You know, I wish I would have done this years ago,” Metcalf said.
“I wish I would have communicated with my classmates,” Milligan told him.
“I have so much I wish I could share with them. I would love to tell them you know, don’t worry about things that I used to worry about.”
Milligan told Metcalf he hopes to mentor other students who go through their day trying to hide from everyone.
“Alex has truly blossomed into one of the finest individuals that walks the hall at Lucas High School,” Metcalf said.
Milligan plans to attend Ashland University in the fall.
Macey Slonaker, Madison Comprehensive High School
When Macey Slonaker was 11 years old, there was a pounding like thunder on the door of her home. It shook the house. It was 6 a.m.
Slonaker had discovered her father shooting up heroin just hours earlier. Now, the police had arrived to arrest her parents. After a six-hour standoff, Slonaker watched both her parents get handcuffed. She was taken away by Children Services.
Slonaker would go on to live in more than a dozen foster homes, where she experienced years of neglect. One family even used her as a drug mule. Those years wore down Slonaker’s self-esteem. She started to believe that she was unlovable and a bad person.
“One night while in the group home with nine other girls, trauma talks began to filter throughout the room, Macey realized that there were other stories that rival hers,” said Adolf Hathaway, a Career Based Intervention teacher at Madison Comprehensive High School.
“She was not alone. And in that moment, she realized that sharing her story could influence others. She could be that message of hope for those around her.”
In December 2020, Slonaker was placed in another foster home and told it was her last chance.
“Macey found a family who worked at understanding her past, who accepted her sometimes questionable decisions, who forgave her for her mistakes, allowed her growing pains,” Hathaway said.
After turning 18, Macey was emancipated from the foster system. She plans to attend Ashland University to study psychology. She’ll attend on a full-ride academic scholarship.
“Never let people tell you that you can’t,” Slonaker said.
“I’ve been stereotyped. I’ve always been told that I’ll be like my parents. It’s always been my goal to prove that I’m nothing like them. I’ll be the first person in my biological family to graduate high school and go into college and become better and do better. I hold that through everything.
“You always need a little bit of rain to have a rainbow.”
Slonaker thanked Hathaway and Madison Comprehensive Principal Sean Conway for their support since she transferred to the district as a sophomore.
“They have really helped me come out and be the better version of me,” she said.
Slonaker also recognized Renee Herndon, who took her in after she turned 18.
“I moved in with them and they took me in and they treated me better than any foster family I’ve ever had,” she said.
“She took me and showed me that even though my parents had other plans, she could love me just as much as any other parents could.”
Robby Voegel, Mansfield Christian School
Robby Voegel was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at age 5. He can still remember his peers in early elementary school staring at him, avoiding him and whispering about him.
He didn’t understand what was wrong or how to interact with others. His parents eventually chose to homeschool him.
Voegel returned to school in the seventh grade when his parents enrolled him at Mansfield Christian. Coming to school included one painful challenge after another. Loud noises in the halls and schedule changes caused him incredible anxiety and led to outbursts and panic attacks.
Voegel didn’t understand why others treated him the way they did or their reactions toward him. Several times a day, he had to leave class and go to the office to cool down. He often felt his heart racing and anger swelling up inside him.
Little by little, he began to acquire the tools that he needed to face these challenges. He paid attention to those around him, watching how they interacted with one another. He began to learn what was socially acceptable in the classroom, in the hallways and at lunch.
“Robby says he was forced to adapt, to grow, and then learn through trial and error to adjust to change with self control and acceptance,” said school guidance counselor Charlene Eder.
“He began to learn what self-awareness was and was willing to talk about autism rather than just trying to ignore it.”
Since Voegel’s early junior high years, he has become an integral part of his class. Fellow students love Voegel for his quick wit, incredible mind, limitless energy and cheerful ways. He excels in his classes and has even taken college courses.
Voegel enjoys spending time with friends and playing baseball. He was recently voted Prom King.
“I’d like to thank my family for making the wise decisions to homeschool me and then send me to Mansfield Christian. It was a safe place to learn how to exist around other people,” Voegel said.
Voegel also thanked his teachers for allowing him to take cool down time when needed. He plans to attend North Central State College to study engineering and become a draftsman.
Sean Putt, Mansfield Senior High School
Putt was diagnosed with a chronic blood disorder in the second grade. He often has to miss school due to the debilitating pain it causes.
“What impresses me most about Sean is his work ethic,” said Michelle Williams, a Language Arts teacher at Mansfield Senior High School.
“When he has to miss school, when he is in suffering and pain on a regular basis, I have never had to compromise any educational standards for him. I have never lowered the bar for him and every time it has been raised, he has met it.”
Putt is a kicker for the Tygers’ football team and has broken game, season and career records at Mansfield Senior.
“Everything he does, he does well,” Williams said. “He’s an excellent student, diligent and completing his work seeking extra help as needed, and applying what he learns to his future endeavors.”
“In the past I’ve had students who excel in one or more academic areas, but he’s passionate regarding all he decides to undertake. You never catch him without a smile on his face.”
Putt will attend Ohio Wesleyan in the fall, where he’ll be a member of the football team.
Nicholaus Shaum, Ontario High School
The mark of Nick Shaum’s character is his caring nature. Adolescence is often marked by self absorption and outward trappings.
Shaum embodies the opposite of that sentiment, outwardly focused with a genuine personality and a willingness to help others that seems to come naturally.
Shaum enjoys sharing his faith and teaching children about Jesus. During the summer months, he attends training classes at Cedarville University with Child Evangelism Fellowship so that he is able to assist in leading a local five-day club for children over the summer.
He also assists in leading Good News Clubs for elementary children and Generation of Youth for Christ club for middle school children during the school year.
These accomplishments speak loudly about Shaum’s character, but it’s important to note that he has demonstrated these qualities in the face of personal hardships.
Shaum was faced with a significant amount of rejection throughout his early childhood years. He was taught to engage in many negative and illegal activities as a young boy. He trusted no one, yet yearned for love so badly.
Shaum’s mother was heavily involved in substance abuse and was in and out of treatment during his childhood. His mother passed away on March 5, 2019, at the age of 32.
When he was 4, after a visit with his biological father, Shaum told his grandfather, ‘Pap Pap, you’re the only one that wants me.’ Nick’s Pap Pap was later incarcerated.
Around the age of 13, Shaum went to officially live with his adoptive parents, Jim and Melinda Shaum. He had been attending church with them, forming positive relationships with them and finding his faith. Even after years of being let down by others, Shaum trusted them.
After about three months of consistency and strong love, he told the Shaums he wanted them to adopt him. They did.
In the midst of grief, tragedy and rejection, Shaum is a portrait of the courage that comes from a caring heart. Shaum plans to continue working with the Child Evangelism Fellowship after he graduates from high school.
Kanija Green, Mansfield St. Peter’s School
Kanija Green is a senior honor’s student at St. Peter’s.
“Unfortunately, her story of a scary, unstable, dysfunctional and abusive childhood is more common than we would like,” said head of school Laurie McKeon. “However, her tenacity, determination, grace and fortitude are incredibly uncommon.”
Green brings a joy, a willingness and a work ethic to every situation. Moreover, her ability to get out of her comfort zone and try new things is beyond impressive. McKeon described her as whip smart, very kind, super savvy and really stylish.
“She increases the energy in every room, group, class or activity she’s in,” McKeon said.
As a child, Green often escaped her reality by dreaming of being a straight A student who lived in a nice home surrounded by a loving family. This dream not only provided her a much-needed respite, but also fueled her desire to overcome her extreme adversity.
Green was born to a teen mother who suffered from addiction like her mother before her. She was immediately placed into foster care, where she would remain on and off for the next 13 years, like her mother before her.
Though there were times she found stability with her grandmother, it was only temporary. After her grandmother died, she found herself back in an unsafe, unstable and abusive living situation until it became unbearable.
In 2017, her life changed when she was placed into the home of Felicia Montero and her son Gianni. Around that same time, she came to St. Peter’s school.
Prior to being a part of Felicia’s family and coming to St. Peter’s, school was not high on Green’s priority list. However, once her living and school situation stabilized, she flourished.
She went from an F student to an A student. She went from being a distrustful, closed-off student to an active member of student council, Key Club and math club. She is the senior class vice president. She participated in the St. Peter’s musical and has earned every single Girl Scout badge imaginable.
“Most impressively, Green holds not an ounce of resentment for her past, but lives in gratitude for her present and excitement for her future,” McKeon said. “She’s been admitted to several colleges and wants to go into education and/or social work.
“Kanija made her seemingly impossible childhood dream come true. She is now a straight A student living in a loving, stable, safe, supportive family. I have no doubt as she moves on, she will continue to make all of her dreams come true.”
Sam Alonzo, Shelby High School
While food, water, air and shelter the four basic human needs, human interaction and communication are also extremely important for survival and mental health. Communicating with others allows us to demonstrate our wants and needs and to start and maintain relationships with people. The ability to communicate with others is also influenced by our confidence to actually have conversations with people around us.
Sam Alonzo has had a lifelong speech impediment that has sometimes negatively impacted his confidence and ability to communicate with others. Alonzo has had the impediment for as long as he can remember and it varies in severity. At times when he was younger, it was so bad that he could not verbally communicate with others.
For years, he kept quiet because of the embarrassment and the anxiety that was brought on by his stuttering.
In August 2019, Alonzo and his mother moved to Wuhan, China. A move the family thought would open their eyes to new experiences and opportunities to meet new people. But it was not to be. Soon the COVID virus was spreading throughout China and the Alonzo family was trapped in their apartment.
The family spent some time with family in San Francisco before moving back to Shelby. Sam enrolled in Shelby High School for the 2020-2021 school year. His confidence was extremely low and his social anxiety was near an all-time high.
It felt strange to be in high school since he was not used to being around so many people.
Alonzo’s anxiety was so great that was very difficult for him to find friends and engage with others. But Sam found something that he was passionate about: his classes. He really enjoyed American history and geography, as well as his English class.
Suddenly his confidence grew and he began to put himself in more social situations and engage with others. He began to be more involved in his classes and his confidence increased even more.
Then Sam decided to join the academic challenge team. He became a vital member of the team, specializing in history and geography questions. He showed amazing confidence during the matches and didn’t shy away from even the most difficult questions. He recently earned high marks at a national academic challenge tournament in Chicago.
Alonzo will graduate in the top 10 percent of his class and plans to attend the Ohio State University next year. He is contemplating a degree in world politics and possibly journalism.
He is also the winner of a Horatio Alger Scholarship, which is awarded nationally to students who have faced and overcome great obstacles in their lives.
“That is a great way to describe Sam,” said high school principal John Gies. “He has faced and overcome obstacles. Through therapy, being involved and pushing himself, Sam no longer has a diagnosis of social anxiety. He’s a bright, confident young man who will continue to grow stronger.”
Alonzo even gave a brief speech during the McGowan Courage Awards.
“Growing up with a speech impediment and mental health concerns, I relied on others throughout much of my life,” he said. “After a period of devastating isolation through the pandemic, I discovered that my saving grace, my stabilizer, was the presence of and connection to other people.”
“I plan to dedicate my life to others, to fight for those without a voice, to fight from those who are outcast,” Alonzo told the crowd.
“I’d like to share a quote from another one of my inspirations, Mahatma Gandhi — You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”