2021 Cresson memorial scholarship awarded to Declan Burke
This year’s Jim Cresson Memorial Fund scholarship recipient is Declan Burke of Dagsboro. The award is named after the late Cape Gazette reporter and photographer.
Declan is a recent graduate of Indian River High School, where he was a four-year varsity member of the cross country, swimming, and track & field teams. Throughout his sports career, Declan received All-State, All-Conference, All-County, Academic All-Conference and DIAA Academic Awards. He also holds eight school records and serves as a Middlesex Beach Patrol guard.
Declan is vice president of the National Honor Society and a graduate of the Academic Challenge program, where he won two excellence awards. Along with being named valedictorian, Declan was also honored as one of Delaware’s Secretary of Education Scholars and received the AP+PLTW Engineering Award from the College Board.
Declan plans to attend Salisbury University, where he will study actuarial science and participate on the cross country and track & field teams. This summer, he plans to once again participate in the Molokai2Oahu race.
His award-winning essay is below:
As a beach lifeguard for the past three years, I spend a majority of my summers watching and studying the ocean. During this past summer, I found out about an event called Molokai2Oahu which is a 32-mile prone paddling race in Hawaii that takes place every year. In 2020, the race was cancelled and moved to virtual and the length was changed to 16 miles. As a competitor in local and national Surf Lifesaving events, I have had race experience competing on a prone paddle board in the past. Prone paddling is essentially paddling in the prone position (laying down) on a stand-up paddleboard; however, the board is slightly different as it is made for speed and there are knee pads and handles on the top of the board. My goal was to complete this 16 mile race in under 5 hours. I designed a course on the ocean which was a 4 mile loop (completed 4 times) that went from South Bethany to North Bethany.
When paddling on a prone board you are literally face to face with the ocean and the water around you. Paddling alone and far away from shore is a freeing experience, as it truly is just you and the ocean below. You are far away from the bustling noisy life of the main landers; and the houses and buildings appear small and insignificant.
When I began the race on the morning of July 25th, the first thing that began to fatigue was my neck. Holding up my head and looking forward became very uncomfortable so I rested face first on the top of the board and not looking where I was going. The great thing about the ocean is that it does not matter where you are going, the fish and animals below have no highway system or “rules of the road.” The ocean is an open waterway and seemingly never ending road. Although I had a route planned, it could be changed and molded to however I saw fit.
At about mile 4, my arms began to fatigue. They screamed in agony as I trudged along, just throwing each arm in front of the other in order to go forward. As my body was tiring, my mind remained clear. I drew strength from the ocean and began to think of myself as part of its ecosystem. I thought about the time I heard that if sharks stopped swimming they would die. That’s ironic because it's probably true for most fish, if they stop swimming they would probably be eaten by a shark. In order to motivate myself to move forward, I became the shark and thought that if I stopped moving, I would be eaten. Each time I placed my arm in the cool ocean water, I became more and more connected and part of it.
At about mile 10, my whole body was beginning to become jello. My eyes stung from the salt water splashing from the nose of the board plowing through the water. My arms have switched from sharp knives cutting through the ocean to merely soft noodles flopping in it. I began to hope that the ocean would bring a current to help guide me along and make it easier to paddle. I hoped that maybe a dolphin would come to swim underneath the board to help propel me along. Neither of these things ever came to be, I was on my own. I was alone just like every other animal in the sea. Nothing was going to help me survive except for myself. Perhaps that is what is so freeing about the ocean. The truth in knowing that you are 100% accountable for yourself and everything that happens is because of your actions. There is no one to blame but yourself and no excuses.
The front of my shoulder had been rubbed raw by the saltwater and the strap of my board. I cursed myself for not wearing a rashguard with sleeves. It was too late for any regrets or second thoughts, the finish is near and I can feel it. The race was never about whether I was strong enough or physically fit enough to complete it, I knew I was, it was about if I had the mental strength and fortitude to stay the course. As I closed out the last agonizing mile, I realized that I should probably be making the turn to head into shore. As I turned the paddleboard to free myself of the torture I had put myself through, I realized, am I really free on land where the constant struggles and problems of everyday life affect me? Did I possess more freedom when I was in the solitude of the ocean without a thought in the world except for the primal instinct of survival and completing the race?
As I ran up on shore and finished the race in a time of 3 hours and 48 minutes and 34 seconds, I was met with the euphoria of having completed an important goal and a newfound appreciation of the ocean. I still have the scar of where the paddleboard strap rubbed me raw and everytime I see it, I think about the race and the freedom and the lessons I learned from the ocean.
