“I did it, mom!”
You could not have drawn up a more sincere, raw and honest moment between a young man and his mother. Realization had just sunk in for Julian Campos that the biggest goal on his current checklist was now checked off, and he had earned it. Tears flowed as he sunk into his mother’s arms, Angelica Campos already way ahead of Julian on the tear count.
The Campos family had no idea what was going on when they were invited to West Noble High School on Tuesday afternoon. What they eventually found out was that Julian was selected to receive the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship, lining up his future in a big way.
The setup couldn’t have been better. Assistant principal Michael Reyes’ office was full of adults, all nervously attempting to pass by the time with elevated whispers while Margarita White, the president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Noble County, delegated laughs about knowing everyone in the room simply by proxy of her age.
Guidance coordinator Ashleigh Tippmann was the ring leader of the surprise, moving people out of sight so none of the Campos’ would catch on there was a moment coming.
As Angelica and sister Alejandra Vallejo arrived, they were whisked into a conference room, unaware of what was going on, and they were met by athletic director Tom Schermerhorn, who diverted attention with some light conversation while Julian also made his way to the room.
Once everyone was in place, Tippmann gave the cue to the dozen or so people stuffed in the office, and a half dozen others in another conference room, and all poured into the holding room, very Publisher’s Clearinghouse style.
Julian, sitting idly, caught on right away as 2024 Lilly scholarship recipient Eli Delashmit led the parade, holding the envelope that could direct the future of the Campos family.
“As you could tell by my reaction, I was ecstatic when I found out,” noted Julian Campos Tuesday evening. “I was so emotional because of all the stress and hard work that I put into the process, and how it paid off. I realized that all of the decisions I made since freshman year and all throughout high school had a huge impact on how everything turned out. The mindset I had throughout high school and the people I surround myself with gave me the opportunity to receive such a blessing like this. I cried tears of joy because it was great to know that God was showing me I was doing something right.”
White and Jennifer Norris, CNFC director of scholarships, were among those on hand to let Julian know that he had received the scholarship, which essentially pays for his college tuition at any Indiana college or university - public or private. The process to receive the scholarship requires a lot of backwork, including questionnaires, essays, interviews and a lot of prayer, as dozens of students from Noble County are also competing for the one scholarship.
This formally set into motion his decision-making process. Revealing that he had an order of choices he’d like to attend, that draft list was the University of Notre Dame, then Indiana University, then Purdue University. Showing that his faith was paying off, Tuesday afternoon in the conference room Julian mentioned his first choice was likely Indiana to pursue an accounting degree, they had already accepted him. That tune changed Tuesday evening after learning that his number one choice, Notre Dame, had just accepted his application and he could pursue his accounting degree in South Bend.
“I think Notre Dame is a place where I can grow the best through both my faith and academics,” Julian said just a couple hours after getting word from Notre Dame. “It’s close enough to home so I can keep family first, and it is a great school where I can find another home for life.
“I plan to study accounting even though my decision has fluctuated. I am finding what interests me more and more now and I believe that I will still do some of that searching in college. All I know is I love numbers and math and want to do something with it.”
For Julian Campos and his family, a blessing was bestowed upon them. Their appreciation and acceptance of the moment Tuesday was memorable, not just for those who were able to witness it, but for Julian’s entire circle of support and those rooting him on.
Julian’s perspective was on target. “My parents have been with me every step of the way, teaching me how to live every day, how to work hard, how to talk to people. They raised me to be the best version of myself and showed me how to use that for good.
“I want to thank West Noble. Everyone here helped me grow into the leader I am today and made this possible. West Noble will always be my home and I couldn’t ask for better staff and students. I am truly blessed.
“I also think of “we” as all of the Hispanics like me in Ligonier. This accomplishment goes to show you that it can be done if you put your mind to it. I didn’t just do this for myself, I did it to influence kids like me, who may feel trapped by their circumstances. Anything is possible if you work hard enough and have God help you along the way.”