To this point of his life, the majority of Crestwood Red Devils’ Josh Delaney’s traveling experience has been taking vacations on the west coast. He will broaden his horizons by spending the month of July traveling across Europe as Crestwood’s first Global Experience Grant winner.
“It means the world to be able to have this experience which is cost-free before I go to college. It is going to be life-changing,” Delaney told The Weekly Villager on July 3 before he departed for Europe. “It means so much to me and I am super proud that my hard work on my application paid off.”
For the first time in school history, Crestwood offered a $10,000 grant that allowed a student to travel across the globe. The scholarship grant was open to Crestwood students scheduled to graduate in 2024. It was sponsored by Red Devils’ 2012 graduate Andy Auble, a multi-business owner who is paying for all costs through one of his companies; GlueTread, an offroad tire repair business based in Hiram. GlueTread and Class4Labs, an incubator and holding company for ecommerce products owned by Auble, partnered with EF Gap Year to facilitate Delaney’s travels.
Having left in the first week of July, Delaney will travel to four different countries in Europe; England, France, Italy and Switzerland. He will spend a week in each country and is expected to return to the United States in the first week of August. Delaney will travel with a group of college age adults that come from different colleges or high schools in the United States and Canada.
In each country, Delaney will go sight-seeing and take in popular tourist attractions such as the Big Ben clocktower in London, the Louvre in France, and the Vatican City in Italy.
While taking in the sights, Delany will chronicle his travels by daily updating through social media on an Instagram account, the Global Experience Grant. When he returns, he will create a video report discussing his experience.
According to Delaney, when he heard of the Crestwood Global Experience, he did not hesitate to apply.
“It has always been something I wanted to do but it didn’t seem like something that would be feasible or realistic until I am older and then I heard about the Global Experience Grant,” he noted. “It was a lightbulb moment so this was a huge opportunity so obviously I jumped on it right away.”
Requirements for the grant did not include GPA or extracurricular activities but determined candidates based on a questionnaire that quizzed applicants on what aspirations they would have if selected for the grant. Delaney recorded his answers by filming a video and was selected as one of four finalists. He then sent a pre-recorded video interview to a panel of judges and was announced as the winner on Jan. 31.
“I think that just the effort I put into it,” Delaney said. “I just tried to put my best foot forward preparing for the interview and application process. I worked really hard on it and have a general desire to take full advantage of this opportunity.”
Delaney, who has already chosen to continue his studies at Bowling Green State University after graduation, added that he viewed this trip as a great way to prepare being on his own when he e begins the college lifestyle.
In addition to getting a sneak peek on what it will be like being independent, Delaney said he was also excited to broaden his view of the world. Although he is proud to hail from a small community like Mantua, he acknowledged there was a lot more to life beyond his home village.
“It makes for a good community atmosphere for sure because a lot of people have a lot of things alike but I also think that having some cultural diversity is definitely important for me,” Delaney said.
Delaney said he planned to pursue a degree in psychology with a focus on family and marriage counseling with a minor in sports broadcasting but acknowledged that this trip could help him put his life goals into perspective.
“I know a lot of people come back from being abroad and they see different problems that they think need to be solved or they discovered their passions seeing life through a different lens,” he said. “Any number of things could happen or I could see a number of things that could inspire me while I am overseas that will help clarify my direction.”
