2023 Junior Person of the Year:
Scout Spadoni
Nominated by Corey Shoemaker
I first met Scout when she applied for a server position here at Fleming’s Café in 2021. Bringing Scout onto our team has been one of the best additions we could have ever asked for!
At 14 years old, Scout impressed us with how fast she learned the ins and outs of serving customers. Within weeks, it was apparent that she is a natural born leader. In the last 2½ years, Scout has learned the role of server and also moved on to being a staff trainer, mentor, and team lead. She has developed her culinary skills as well, becoming adept at kitchen prep, cooking, and baking. She never says no when presented with a challenge or something new to master. Scout is a conscientious, reliable, hard-working, fun, and bright young lady who is exactly the type of community member that Amherst and the Jensen Center is looking to recognize.
Not only has it been a joy to watch Scout develop in her job duties, but as a small family business, our employees do become like family to us. Week in and week out, Scout has shared with us her passions and the activities in which she participates, and succeeds, around our community.
To provide more detail to these activities, I reached out to staff members at Amherst High School. Some of their comments are as follows:
Shelley Swanson, School Counselor. “Scout is well respected amongst her peers, teachers, and staff at school. She is a leader in every form of the word. She is welcoming to new students. She is a gifted student academically. She is active in music/band (including musicals), clubs, and athletics. She has been Student of the Quarter several times while in high school. She is in the National Honor Society and on the Student Council. Further, she is a member of the Stevens Point Teen Leadership Program.”
Brandon Stremkowski, Math Teacher. “Scout has high academic achievement and standards. She received an A for AP Statistics as a Junior and passed the AP Exam where she was awarded college credits. She is currently taking AP Calculus, has an A in that course, and plans on taking the AP Exam at the end of the year.”
Steve Swan, Science Teacher. “I had Scout in Chemistry class last year, and she always went above and beyond with any creative projects we had. Her attention to detail and imagination really took her work to the next level. I know she’s got a lot of other awesome stuff going on as well!”
Leah Maves, SEL Integration Specialist. “Scout has participated in leadership of the Harleigh Games by attending meetings and recruiting contestants. As an athlete, Scout brought added insight to the Games that helped the organization make the event as athlete-friendly as possible.”
Other activities that Scout volunteers for include the school’s Santa Shop for elementary students and also the annual Blood Drive. Scout chose to be confirmed at Trinity Lutheran Church in Waupaca where she spent many hours with the youth group, doing community service projects and volunteering at Bethany Home. She assists as a scoring and timing official for the Great Northwest Basketball league for middle-school teams. Scout is a Falcons football team manager, a starting varsity Falcons basketball player, and was recently named Captain of the SPASH Girls Rugby team after her second year on the team.
With her Senior year just getting underway, Scout has been contacted by college recruiters for her academic and athletic talents. Scout has committed to attend and play rugby for Frostburg State University in Maryland.
With all that she has achieved in academics, athletics, and social and civic organizations, Scout has dedicated herself to success, not just for herself, but also the success of all of those around her. She is a special individual who deserves the recognition of Junior Person of the Year.