"Going up to Montana every summer allows me to get off the grid and enjoy connecting to nature again. My favorite part is sitting around the campfire at night, listening to someone play the guitar, and count shooting stars flash through the sky. During the days, there's something deeply satisfying in knowing that I am helping to create a building that will store countless memories and maybe even survive beyond my own life. I come back feeling refreshed and connected. There's nothing else to that I can compare it."

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Lauren Komer Shawnee, KS

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(Lauren is a poet, writer, and french hornist and is a senior at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School)