Outstanding High School Leader Happiest in the Wilderness
A leader at school and in her community, high school senior Eleanor Asma of Lake Bluff, Illinois, says she is happiest “anywhere near a mountain.” Reflecting on her Wind River Wilderness course, she highlights the importance of teamwork to her group’s success in the face of adverse weather conditions. Eleanor plans to continue her outdoor education with a Wilderness First Responder course this summer.
“Plop Asma anywhere along a mountain range, at any time of the year, and she’d be able to fend for herself…‘There we were in tents, relying on teamwork,’ says Asma, who was voted one the group’s leaders for the expedition and intends to complete an out-of-state course this summer to earn certification as a wilderness first responder.
‘Everyone rallied,’ adds the sister of Clemson University sophomore Charlie Asma, an industrial engineering major. ‘Anywhere near a mountain is my happy place. I once told my parents [Ben and Leann], “I could live in a tent.” I’ll never forget my first camping trip, up in Wisconsin as a fourth-grader. Being outside all that time, carrying a canoe and traveling in it, being active with others…I loved it, loved every part of the experience.”
Topics: News, Wind River Wilderness
