As I play volleyball this season, I know that my success on the court is not without the support of so many in this community. I would really like to thank my coaches Beth Trowbridge and Pam Rugloski for coaching me last volleyball season and for nominating me for the 2013 Alice Witte Memorial  Volleyball Scholarship. I especially want to thank Joy Steward and The Homer Foundation for offering me this scholarship and an opportunity of a lifetime. 

I used the scholarship money to go to the Marv Dunphy Volleyball Camp at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif. I was so honored that I was  chosen and that I was given this opportunity to play volleyball with some of  the best girls in the nation. This camp was one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had in my life. I was able to compete with the best of the best, while also being coached by the best of the best. 

There was so much I took away from the five-day camp, but also so much that I will never be able to duplicate. For example, I was fortunate to study under  Marv Dunphy, Pepperdine University’s head men’s volleyball coach, coach of  the 1988 Men’s volleyball Olympic Gold medalist team, and a member of the Volleyball Hall of Fame. My other coaches included Dan Ahiers, assistant coach at Seattle University, and Jonathan Winder, a four-time All-American from Pepperdine University. Three-time Olympian Heather Bown also was a coach at the camp. 

I got to experience this remarkable opportunity with a team member of mine, Zoia Basargin. We were given the chance to play outside all-day long in the beautiful California sunshine at one of the most beautiful campuses in the  country. I know we both feel so blessed to have participated in this outstanding camp and are so thankful to everyone who made it possible. It was an experience neither of us will ever forget. 

Larsen Fellows 

Recipient of the 2013 

Alice Witte Memorial Volleyball Scholarship