Dale Thistlethwaite and her husband Stuart Holloway were passionate about the outdoors and snow sports, in particular skiing, mountaineering and rock climbing, and in teaching others. They travelled the world climbing and skiing, favouring the European Alps and the South Island of New Zealand. They were two of Australia’s most experienced mountaineers and successfully summited Mt Cook and Mt Tasman, the two highest mountains in NZ, on several occasions. Together they established several new difficult routes on Mt Cook and Mt Tasman.
Dale and Stuart volunteered their time teaching outdoor education to secondary school students, running weekend rock climbing, canyoning and outdoor leadership trips. They were also heavily involved in teaching and mentoring university students in skiing and rope sports. Dale and Stuart were the “go to” people for advice; they were not just friends but also mentors and leaders. Stuart was an internationally accredited Mountain Guide and, having passed many arduous exams, he achieved the highest qualification available. This is exceptionally rare for an Australian to achieve. He guided backcountry ski mountaineering and ice climbing trips in winter as well as traditional alpine climbing in summer on rock, snow and ice. He also ran avalanche awareness courses and trained new mountain guides.
Dale was an active member of USC and regular Hotham lodge user. Both she and Stuart always attended work parties. They provided ropes, climbing and safety equipment that were needed to obtain access to difficult parts of the Hotham lodge for maintenance. Dale was passionate about the club and introduced several of the newer members to USC.
Dale and Stuart died suddenly and unexpectedly in a mountaineering accident in December 2015. To recognise their contribution to and passion for USC and the development of young people’s skills in skiing and the outdoors, USC is offering a scholarship in their memory.
USC’s Commitment
The USC Committee will offer a scholarship to the value of $2000 to young members and members’ children on an annual basis. The purpose of the scholarship is to assist them with training, competing and/or otherwise pursuing their interest or outdoor sport.
As USC has a strong commitment to the development of young people in alpine sports, successful applicants may be involved in skiing, competition snowsports and/or other related activities, such as coaching.
Guidelines
Eligibility criteria
- Applicants must be 25 years or less at the time of application.
- Applicants must be either (a) full members or (b) a member’s child.
- The applicant must be financial (i.e. membership subscriptions paid and no outstanding debts) at the time of application and award.
- Applications must be submitted by 30th June 2019, to be considered for this year’s
scholarship. - Applications must include a timeframe, proposed budget and goals/projected outcomes.
Successful applicant/s must give a 5 – 10 minute presentation (including photos) at one
of the annual USC social events the following year after being awarded the scholarship.
The presentation must include the final outcomes of their project. The specific social
event at which they are to present is to be determined by mutual agreement between
the USC Committee and the applicant.
Selection Criteria
Applicants should apply using the online form. See the link below.
The application should address the following points:
- Why they want the scholarship
- What they hope to achieve and plans for how they will achieve this
- What they have done so far to pursue their dream, such as their current state ranking
and what their training program involves - A stepwise timeframe and budget proposal and
- Projected outcomes/goals/benefits.
Awarding the Scholarship
The USC Committee will read and assess all of the applications and project proposals. The award of the scholarship will be at the discretion of the Committee. An application will be deemed successful based on their individual merit. This includes, but is not limited to, the quality of their proposal, the applicant’s effort in completing their application, the steps they have already taken to pursue their dream and the projected benefits of their proposal.
Quality of Applications
The scholarship is not necessarily limited to one successful applicant per year. The scholarship may be divided between 2 or more applicants at the discretion of the USC Committee, should several applications be impressive.