Our featured Alumna for September is June Conley. June spoke at our 50th Anniversary Bash at Point Lookout Resort in Lincolnville, ME on August 22, 2014. Here is what she had to say:
“Everybody is born with different strengths and different weaknesses – and Outward Bound helps people recognize the potential they are born with. It is our decision how we use our skills to enjoy it all. The feeling of success and accomplishment is what we really strive for and Outward Bound has helped me see that. I received a leadership award from Deering High School and was thrilled to have the opportunity to embark on a 22-day Hurricane Island Outward Bound School course. Some people looked at me like I was crazy and didn’t understand why I wanted to do this.
On course, there were days when we only had 3 hours of sleep on the middle of a mountain. There was often a feeling of not knowing how much farther your body could go. Outward Bound taught me that I need to fight – we need to fight – we need to work for the beautiful things in life. I never understood why people would put in such effort for a 5 minute look at a mountain. Hiking for 12 hours through the mud, pouring rain, and scorching hot sun for a view is much more than that. It is the moment that you look down on the mountain, river, and trail and realize you have just accomplished something amazing. Having an injury in my group and moving about 2.7 miles in twelve hours, you could say that we were pretty worn out. But when you are out there you realize that you have to fight for everything you want. And we fought. I was able to apply this tactic in life back and home and it really helped.
Returning from Outward Bound my ability to deal with life challenges has greatly improved by utilizing the skills I learned during my course. I have more patience and don’t let the stress of everyday life control me. We get handed a chance to fix our mistakes and take the skills we have learned and use them in our real lives. The transition for me was wanting and craving that at the end of the day. I want to thank everyone who contributes to the School because I would not be the woman that I’m going to be if it wasn’t for all of you.”