Giving back to Terrace

From a Hawk to an Eagle Scout

By Hawkeye Staff

Maude Alsept-Beaty is an MTHS 2020 graduate who joined the BSA (Boy Scouts of America), in July of 2019. Since then, she has become one of the first generations of female Eagle Scouts.

Before college, Alsept-Beaty led the all-female Troop 319 out of Edmonds. She was the Senior Patrol Leader and the youth leader, being elected three times by her troop. She planned troop meetings, ran meetings with her Assistant Senior Patrol Leader and was a mentor to the girls in her troop. Although she currently cannot lead the troop because of her current status as a college student, she looks back fondly on her days leading the troop. “We do everything from working the food bank and holiday drives at the Edmonds United Methodist Church, to beach clean-ups, to clearing trails for recreational use,” Alsept-Beaty said. “There are lots of ways we help. We try to go where our community needs us.”

Last year, Alsept-Beaty and her troop had to adapt to remote meetings over Zoom. The troop adapted impressively to the remote experience, meeting weekly over Zoom every Monday at 7 p.m. Occasionally, games like Kahoot or Jeopardy would be hosted during meetings.

Guest speakers would also be brought in to talk to the scouts, such as veterinarians, bird scientists and foragers.

“We learned a lot from the folks who took the time to come in and teach us about their specialties,” Alsept-Beaty said.

Alsept-Beaty’s journey to becoming an Eagle Scout was challenging, as joining the BSA near her 18th birthday meant she was given only two years to achieve Eagle. A scout couldn’t become an Eagle after they were 18, and it usually took four to seven years.

“This required intense planning and time management. I worked so hard to get here, and came out a stronger person and a better leader because of it.” Alsept-Beaty said.

While an accomplished Eagle Scout, Alsept-Beaty also had to handle graduating in a worldwide pandemic.

“It’s weird, high school graduation is one of those things you get psyched up about, but being a 2020 graduate was sort of like expecting someone to pop out of a cake, and instead, you cut it open and there’s a note that says ‘Sorry, couldn’t make it,’” she said.

Alsept-Beaty’s biggest concern after graduation was attending online classes in college. She felt uncertain about the future, everything shutting down when her life was meant to begin.

Being a female Eagle Scout, Alsept-Beaty was not treated any differently by the male scouts. She received support from everyone and felt like everyone wanted to see her achieve Eagle. Juggling Running Start and BSA, Alsept-Beaty gained many necessary skills.

“I had to learn how to become a leader who worked with others and got down in the mud. Time management was also a big part. I did lots of hiking and camping, learned so many new skills, and actually learned to work with kids, too,” Alsept-Beaty said.

Alsept-Beaty attributes much of her success to Lisa Battern, the Scoutmaster of Troop 319.

“She [Battern] was such an important support structure

in helping me earn my ranks and badges. I also had to learn how to be cognizant of long-term goals, how to think 10 steps ahead and how to keep chugging even when I got tired.” Alsept-Beaty said. Before she joined the BSA, Alsept-Beaty had a turbulent high school career and suffered from mental health issues. The only reason she joined originally was because her best friend took her to a troop meeting. “At the time, I was sort of aimless. It was the summer after my junior year, and my mental health had been so bad I almost dropped out,” Alsept-Beaty said. The BSA and her family were excellent support systems and provided a distraction from her mental health problems. After high school, she took a much-needed gap year, allowing herself to recover and breathe. Much of her time was spent achieving Eagle rank and stabilizing her mental health. Alsept-Beaty’s most memorable project as a scout was when she and the troop did some trail cleaning while it was pouring rain. She had to huddle down underneath a tarp for the night and was freezing cold. The storm turned into a thunderstorm, and her Assistant Scoutmaster brought her back Maude Alsept-Beaty and had to scream over the rain hitting her tarp. Alsept-Beaty is confident in the future of female troops, and that being in the BSA is a good way for people of any gender to learn and grow. “There are so few opportunities for girls and women that focus on leadership building and outdoor skills, and that’s really what we’re all about. It’s a safe environment to learn, struggle and be mentored by other girls in applicable skills,” Alsept-Beaty said. “It’s not just a troop, it’s a community that can aid and support you in other ways, too, and I’d love to see more girls coming in.” H

CASH AND CANS FOR THE COMMUNITY

By Kaylee Miyamoto

Throughout the month of November through Dec. 1, the MTHS community comes together to collect money and donate non-perishable canned and boxed food for those in need. Food will be collected up until Dec. 1 from each advisory class to donate to Mountlake Terrace’s local food bank, Concern for Neighbors.

Organized and run by ASB, this annual food drive has helped over 100 families every year get through the winter months. As the food bank relies heavily on MTHS to help the community, the last year has been a struggle for many families and the community as a whole, so this event offers an opportunity for students and our school to help out this season.

This year, demand is expected to double due to the pandemic, so it’s especially important to donate to the community, as food banks are an important part of our safety net systems. Through online learning and an isolating pandemic, our community has been through it together, and will continue to rise and grow together as well.

“[I hope that we’re] still successful, and that people remember that we still have Terrace Hawk spirit to help the community,” Principal Greg Schellenberg said.

Typically, MTHS provides 5,000-10,000 pounds of non-perishables to Concern for Neighbors. The goal for this year, according to ASB adviser Jeannie Brzovic, is to have 5,000-7,500 pounds of non-perishables donated this year in addition to cash donations from parents and students.

The ASB has been trying to bring attention to the food drive online and through social media with the MTHS Instagram account, posting updates and seeing students repost them on their stories. They’ve also been setting up and making posters to hang up throughout the halls of the school.

Typically, there are competitions between clubs and classes to help encourage students to donate, the winner getting a prize. This year has been no different, with multiple competitions being implemented that offer rewards of different scales to incentivize student donations.

One of these competitions was between freshman and sophomore advisory classes, whichever class collecting the most donations on Tuesday, Nov. 16 getting a food prize.

Donation bins this year are to be set up in front of the local QFC for the community to help do their part. Online donations have also been set up to collect money in a way that’s more convenient for some.

There will also be a ‘one-day blitz’ to collect as much food and donations as the school can in a single day, but the date is still to be determined.

To get more families and parents involved, there was a drive-through food drive on Saturday, Nov. 13 where anyone in the community could drive by the MTHS parking lot and drop off food and any possible donations to help support the cause.

Additionally, each year MTHS competes with Lynnwood H.S. in an effort to collect more food and money for our communities. Last year’s competition was a bit complicated, as Terrace won by the deadline, but Lynnwood extended their deadline and ended up beating Terrace in the end. ASB hopes that this year, we can pull through to beat them after our loss at the homecoming game.

Not only does this annual event serve as a competition between rival schools, but also a competition between graduating classes as well as individual advisory classes.

By the end of the food drive, the class with the most donated cans and money will be awarded $300 to put toward their senior prom.

As students bring more cans to their advisory classes, the individual class that collects the most cans will also be receiving a donut and hot cocoa party provided by the school.

With a couple weeks still remaining to donate, it’s critical that students and other members in the community do all that they can to contribute to the food drive, whether that be by bringing in cans, donating money or encouraging others to do the same. H

NICO FRANCOIS | HAWKEYE