Retired counselor wants to start scholarship to honor former student
One time of tragedy was on Nov. 24, 2007, when Danny Lash, a senior at Garaway High School who was known to friends and family as The Dan, died unexpectedly from an undetected heart problem. The sadness was far-reaching. His death devastated the school, the community and residents throughout Tuscarawas County. How could a healthy 17-year-old just die? Acceptance allowed Gallagher to understand it was simply not something that could be explained at this time.
Lash was a member of the wrestling and baseball teams. He was also a member of the Journalism Class, Trail Club and the Industrial Tech Club. He was an office aide at Garaway High School. He was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church at New Philadelphia, where he was baptized and confirmed. He was also a member of Young Life.
One of his favorite activities at Garaway was hiking the Appalachian Trail with the Garaway Trail Club, then headed up by Tim Immel and assisted by Leslie Yoder and Allen Patterson. Several weeks after Lash returned from that year's hike, he collapsed in the family home after a morning at wrestling practice.
"It is difficult. Any death is difficult. I can't imagine what it must have been like to watch your child collapse and die in your arms," said Gallagher.
In his memory, Gallagher wrote a Pepsi Refresh Project proposal to create a scholarship fund so that other Garaway students could have the opportunity to do what Lash loved, hiking the Appalachian Trail.
"It is a time of personal growth while building friendships and being one with nature, enjoying the beauty and grandeur of the Appalachian Mountains," said Gallagher.
The Pepsi Refresh Project is an ongoing contest where applicants submit their idea, promote it and get votes. Pepsi funds the project that gets the most votes. The top 20 vote-getting proposals in the $5,000 level receive funding.
"When I first submitted the proposal it wasn't accepted," said Gallagher. After only one rewrite, her proposal was accepted to be posted on the Pepsi Refresh Project website to receive $5,000 to start a scholarship fund in Danny's name.
To participate, it's as simple as going to the Pepsi Refresh Project website via http://www.refresheverything.com/hikethetrail, the direct link to the scholarship proposal. Once there, people can log in via their Facebook account or create a Pepsi Refresh account. They can vote one time each day. They may also text their vote to 73774 and type in the code 107750. Texting allows everyone to vote two times per day. Purchasing Pepsi products with Power Vote codes can boost their voting power. The Power Vote codes give five to 100 extra votes and are found on specially marked boxes of Pepsi products.
"We have gotten more organized. We have started dumpster diving in search of more Pepsi boxes with Power Vote codes. Danny's brother, Brian, has been dumpster diving in Bowling Green where he lives and is sending me the codes to enter," said Gallagher. "We started a Facebook page to stay organized and connected. It's a group simply called, the dan. The effort has snowballed."
Voting is open until August 31, at midnight, for this round of grants.
"I retired after 30 years as a teacher and counselor. I have been looking forward to volunteering and this is how I intend to spend my time now, helping others," said Gallagher.
"Danny's mom, Cathy, and I grew up together in Ashtabula. I am very close with the family. They are very excited about the Pepsi Refresh Project to honor Danny and life is going on for them. Right now, Danny's sister Caren and her husband Wes are in Indonesia doing mission work. They are very spiritual people and their strong belief in God helps them," said Gallagher.
For more information about the project, call 330-447-5431. The same number can be used to text Power Votes directly to Gallagher.
Published: August 9, 2011
