Scholarship Fund and Stories

The Ingwe Memorial Scholarship Fund

Norman (Ingwe) Powell made it his life's work to connect children to themselves and the earth. His commitment to this vision led him to co-found Wilderness Awareness School at the wise age of 70.

You can continue his commitment through a contribution to the Ingwe Memorial Scholarship Fund. Contributions to Ingwe's Fund will be used exclusively for scholarships for adults and children to attend courses, for which there are many requests (read some of these stories below). Your donation will have a direct impact on a person’s life...just as Ingwe did for so many.

Stories of Scholarship Recipients

We have received many requests for scholarships over the years. Here are a few of their stories as a snapshot of the scholarship fund in action...

Dear Wilderness Awareness School,

My son attended the Teen Wolf Tracking Expedition. I wanted to again thank everyone for the generous scholarship that made it possible for him to attend. He clearly had an amazing time - loved everyone, opened new parts of himself, and had the importance of nature in his life re-affirmed. His dad and I are grateful for the new spark we see in his eyes.

- Carol T.

Dear Wilderness Awareness School,

As a single mom, it feels sometimes that your child has lost their sense of childhood. Wilderness Awareness School gave our family a chance to have a little bit of childhood for a while and experience the things that remind my son of his father and the good time we spent walking and hiking to the beach.

I want to share my appreciation for the scholarships we received for these camps! We would not have been able to do it without this consideration, and as our family grows stronger, it gives us a chance to give back as life takes a turn for the better. Thank you again.

- Little Deer's Mom

Dear Friends at Wilderness Awareness School,

You gave me a gift of the greatest value when you invited me to attend "The Mind of Mentoring" in Santa Barbara and extended a scholarship my way. I hope you realize that your gift goes beyond me, the individual, and reaches all with whom I come into contact.

Of course, as director of a summer course for high school students, I extend your principals of mentoring to my students. I have found, though, that these teachings have permeated into all my relationships - family, friends, and community.

Please accept my sincere gratitude for the scholarship you gave me.

- Jessica Land, Co-Director, Blue Academy Ocean Experience

Dear mentors and friends,

I had been a naturalist for six years before coming to Wilderness Awareness School. I knew the names of the plants and birds at the places I worked, and I could quote a list of facts that I read in a book about them. For example, a Chickadee was a bird with some interesting adaptations.

The problem, however, was that I was incredibly disconnected from the life around me and no amount of knowledge could satisfy that aching void. I searched for a way to feel a heart-connection to the earth, and I found that through the teachings of Wilderness Awareness School. What made that possible for me was a generous scholarship - a gift that changed my life.

Chickadee is no longer just a name and a list of associated facts to me, it is a friend I have seen daily, in all seasons. They have perched on the branches of the Alder at my sit spot in a little flock, seven inches from my face. I have seen chickadees in the depths of my sadness, and in the times my body has been as light as theirs with joy.

I feel very thankful for this new level of connection.

-Phil Bennett

p.s. Phil decided to "pay his scholarship gift forward" by riding 3,700 miles across the country from June-August 2005; he raised $38,575 for scholarships to Wilderness Awareness School!

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Wilderness Awareness School is a division of the Awareness Society, a not-for-profit organization, recognized as Federal Tax Exempt Organization under IRS code section 501(c)(3).