2021 Thornton Academy/ Old Orchard Beach Alternative Education and Youth Program
$2500 Scholarship Sponsored by Saco Biddeford Savings Institution, Paquin & Carroll Insurance and the Mainely Character Board.
I will help lead my generation towards a kind, healthy, and environmentally friendly future.
Passionate about animals and environmental issues, Suzanne walks dogs at the Animal Welfare Society. At Saco River Wildlife Center, she rehabilitated ill, injured, or orphaned Maine wildlife. She supports Gen Z 4Trees, a non-profit that fights deforestation and helps indigenous communities in Ecuador and Peru.
During her sophomore year, she was home-schooled. Fighting a tendency to social isolation, she searched for the right learning situation, and blossomed at the Old Orchard Beach Alternative Education and Youth Program. She completed three college-level courses in her senior year and joined an emerging leaders program at Southern Maine Community College.
Suzanne reaches out to others. She has served meals in soup kitchens and volunteered to tutor an autistic girl who was struggling with writing. She reached out informally to other students who struggled, sharing her own experiences. She confronted classmates who bullied others.