Mayors honor excellent students

Sultan Mayor Carolyn Eslick and Gold Bar Mayor Linda Loen presented their Mayor's Youth Achievement Awards last week during the Sultan High School Academic Achievement Awards ceremony.

The event took place on Thursday, May 28, at Sultan High School.-á

Eslick explained that the achievement award program was started roughly 10 years ago and recently grew to include two recipients: one from Gold Bar and one from Sultan.-á

"We're looking for young people that have been outstanding in all the following areas: community service, politics, arts and entertainment, athletics, academics, citizenship and overcoming obstacles,GÇ¥ Eslick said.-á

Students were selected during a nomination process that was announced in April. It was up to the mayor of each community to select the recipient.-á

Eslick's Mayor's Youth Achievement Award went to Sara Salazar. Salazar is an honor-roll student who has volunteered extensively in the community, including for the Volunteers of America Western Washington (VOA) food bank, the Sultan Library, the Dave Wood Giving Tree, Winterfest and in a kindergarten classroom. She was also selected as the most inspirational cheerleader.-á

Salazar will not only be the first person in her family to graduate from high school, she will be the first person in her family to ever attend college.-á

Loen presented her award to Matt Baller.

"These awards are very hard because the ones that are submitted are all outstanding students,GÇ¥ Loen said. "We had to choose one, and this one stood out just a little bit above the others.GÇ¥

Baller is a 3.9 GPA student who has excelled in football, baseball and wrestling. A two-time varsity baseball captain, he recently finished eighth at the Washington State Wrestling MAT Classic Championships. In addition to serving on the Sultan High School's link crew, Baller has volunteered for the Sultan School District's fifth-grade camp and has coached youth baseball.

As one of the Monroe Rotary Club Students of the Month, Baller helped raise $1,023 in donations and more than 2,000 pounds of food for the VOA food bank in Sultan.

He will attend Central Washington University this fall and hopes to pursue a career in petroleum engineering. He will spend his summer in Indonesia learning more about the profession.-á

"Whether on the field, in the classroom or around the community, Matt Baller has proven himself a leader among his peers,GÇ¥ Loen said. -á -á