Ronan’s Madeline McCrea named TATL award recipient

Madeline McCrea, a senior at Ronan High School, is the latest recipient of the Today’s Achievers, Tomorrow’s Leaders award (TATL) from Kalispell Regional Healthcare and the Lake County Leader.

Madeline wants to be known as a “hard worker,” and it looks like that attitude has paid off in many ways. Carrying a full load of solid coursework, including anatomy and physiology, Spanish III, economics and a medical terminology class at Salish Kootenai College, she still maintains a 4.0 gpa while working a pharmacy internship at St. Luke’s Hospital. She has also recently begun an internship at Family Health Pharmacy at the Gift Gallery.

Besides academics, Madeline is an award-winning athlete, playing basketball and volleyball for Ronan. She is also a member of the Montana Volleyball Academy club team in Missoula, which recently qualified for nationals, to be held in Ohio at the end of April.

TATL recipients receive a $250 donation from Kalispell Regional Healthcare to direct to anything within their school that they choose. Despite Madeline’s extensive academic and sports interests, it is Michelle Mallon’s art program that she has chosen to receive the grant.

“I have always been really into school and textbooks, math, science. Sports is also a big part of my life,” Madeline said. “Art kind of gives me that release from everything. It’s so different from the textbook stuff. You get to be creative and just kind of release your mind.”

Last year the Art Club had raised funds toward visiting art galleries in Seattle. The trip was cancelled when the pandemic hit, and won’t happen this year, either. Madeline hopes her contribution will help the program in the future.

Many other changes came about at school due to COVID-19, Madeline said.

“Last year, I wasn’t really a big fan of finishing the year online. I prefer being with everyone and learning hands on.”

“The school has done a good job of still making it fun and memorable for us,” though there may have been fewer opportunities available this year than normal, and many traditional events such as prom and graduation have been very different.

Madeline will attend University of Providence in Great Falls on a volleyball scholarship this fall, studying pre-pharmacy biology. For the summer, though, she will be playing more volleyball, including a tournament in Las Vegas, and hiking and boating in the outdoors.

In nominating Madeline for the TATL award, Michelle Mallon wrote: “Madeline consistently steps up to take the lead in any situation. She is reliable, accountable for her actions, has an excellent sense of humility [and] integrity. Despite the challenges our students face during this challenging time, Madeline continues to persevere in everything she does both academically and in community-based activities.”

Madeline’s advice for anyone in life: “Devote yourself fully to anything and everything you do. If you put your mind to it, you can achieve that.”