The Borgmann Inspiration Fund Selection Committee is proud to announce the recipient of 2024 fund is Sycamore MS Science teacher David Schuth. David, who has taught at Sycamore since 1999, is planning a trip to New Zealand this summer. There he will explore the local wildlife, culture, and people. Schuth is planning this once-in-a-lifetime trip for mid-to-late June.
The Borgmann Inspiration Fund award is given to a Sycamore staff member each year. Grants support creative, intellectual, and personal growth, and fuel a personal, purposeful interest. The Borgmann Inspiration Fund is above and beyond the many professional development opportunities available to Sycamore staff members each year.
"I plan on visiting New Zealand and seeing as much of it as I can in just over two weeks," Schuth says. "I have been interested in the Pacific Rim countries for a long time, ever since I could read a National Geographic Magazine."
Schuth says the four goals of his journey are to visit his best friend from middle/high school who moved to New Zealand a decade ago; to see flora and fauna that he has never seen before except in National Geographic photos; to experience nature different from Indiana; and to soak up new cultural knowledge to broaden his perspective on the world.
"As I have grown older, I have concluded that relationships with other people are one of the most meaningful things a person can experience," he says. "I love the opportunity to visit my friends in New Zealand, to spend time visiting and having them show me around, sharing their life experiences, places they haunt, and why they fell in love with New Zealand."
I have always loved and been fascinated with animals," Schuth says. He recalled that once as a young boy, he was frustrated at another child throwing rocks at a squirrel - the only time he was ever frustrated to the point of resorting to fists. "I am excited to have the opportunity to travel to New Zealand during the best time to whale watch for humpbacks, southern right whales, and pilot whales. There are also glowworm caves and penguins and albatrosses and New Zealand’s kiwis, none I have seen in person before."
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The 2023 recipients were Sycamore teachers Jennifer Hendry (1st Grade teacher), and Julie Clawson (4th Grade teacher). Jennifer traveled to the Galápagos Islands while Julie explored Australia.
Growth of the Borgmann Inspiration Fund is dependent entirely upon the support of Sycamore parents, graduates, and other friends. Please consider a gift to this Fund.
Give online at sycamoregiving.org