CORVALLIS, Ore. – Bushnell University’s Samantha Silver and UBC’s Shaan Hooey were named the 2021-22 Cascade Collegiate Conference Les Schwab Champions of Character of the Year, announced Thursday morning by the conference office.
The annual award recognizes one male and one female athlete who represent the five aspects of the Champions of Character – Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Sportsmanship and Servant Leadership. The award is voted on by the conference athletic directors based on nominations from member schools.
Silver, a senior from Mount Vernon, Wash., is a strong representation of Bushnell's "Tri-Athlete Model" as she thrives in all aspects as a holistic student-athlete on the field, in the classroom, and as a champion of character. Originally recruited as a utility player for the Beacon softball team, Silver stepped up to fill a gap in the pitching staff her first season and remained in that role to become Bushnell's top pitcher this year as the team missed the playoffs by just one game.
Academically, Silver owns a 3.94 GPA in communication and graduated Summa Cum Laude. She was named the Gardepiey-Peloquin Outstanding Speaker Award winner, given to the top graduating communication student.
Silver’s character speaks for itself. She is passionate about life, passionate about learning and passionate about helping others on and off the field. Working part-time jobs in the library and coffee shop on campus and running her own coffee-mug design company, Silver balances those multiple jobs outside of her academic and athletic commitments and continually made time for those in the community and peers on campus.
Silver interned with the Bushnell counseling office this year and began developing a program that would have a team counselor for every Bushnell athletic team, as well as a peer counselor. She will assume that role of Peer Counselor this fall when she begins her master’s program in clinical mental health counseling. As part of her capstone project this spring, she met with different spring sports teams about student-athlete mental health issues, providing resources, and getting feedback on what can be improved for the teams.
Silver also gives private softball lessons, serves as a leader in the Bushnell chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes, was a team captain and the softball SAAC representative. She had a leading role in the team’s community service efforts, especially during Bushnell's "Embrace the Community" day where the team worked at a local park, clearing and mulching walking paths and pruning overgrown blackberry bushes. Silver also spearheaded the effort to have the team do a Letter of Intent signing for a "medically retired" middle school softball player, who has since become an adopted member of the team.
Other female nominees: Eastern Oregon University’s Taylor Dow, Lewis-Clark State College’s Heidi Sellmann, Northwest University’s Sam VanLoo, UBC’s Shania Remandaban, and Warner Pacific University’s Courtney Jackson.
Hooey, a freshman from Toronto, Ont., Canada, has been a big advocate for the Thunderbirds, where he runs cross country and track. Despite bouts with illness and injury, Hooey has been a leader in the space of equity, diversity and inclusion. While he does not work alone on these important topics, he has been the leader in both learning and actioning. Specifically, Hooey created a Movement Challenge fundraising event in the summer which raised $18,000 for scholarships that encourage diversity and leadership.
Hooey has also consulted with groups on campus to learn how our team can be more inclusive in policy setting, and has been working to get workshops set up that will make us more aware of our own biases and blind spots.
Other male nominees: Bushnell University’s Jaron Carter, College of Idaho’s Collin Glass, Corban University’s Robert Swoboda, Lewis-Clark State College’s AJ Davis, Northwest University’s Dawson Andrews, Vanguard University’s Armon Fayyazi, and Warner Pacific University’s Matias Castano.