Deer Park’s Cody Bollum takes advantage of every opportunity

If Cody Bollum had a motto during his high school years it would’ve been: “Get Involved.”

The Deer Park student laughed as he said, “I joined every club and sport you could, and I liked everything!”

He watched his two older brothers go through high school, and decided to do even more than they did – and that meant running faster.

His brothers ran cross country, so did Bollum.

“I passed their times at the end of my sophomore year,” he said. “It’s a sibling rivalry thing.”

He served as team captain, and for the past two years the Deer Park High School cross country team has won the state championship.

Bollum also coupled his love of running with his heart for community service. When former Deer Park teacher Loren Brown was diagnosed with lung cancer, Bollum, through his involvement with Key Club, launched a fundraiser he dubbed, “Run Around for Brown.”

“We have a couple roundabouts in Deer Park, so I organized a 5K run around them. We raised $2,200 the first year.”

It’s become an annual event. This year, they ran to raise funds for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

His efforts are appreciated by school staff. In an email, social studies teacher, Addie Frost, wrote, “As the headlines in the news concentrate on all that’s wrong, Cody stands out as a representative of all that is right in our world.”

In addition to his club and sports activities, Frost said that Bollum is a thoughtful and engaged student.

“He asks very good questions, not just to his teachers, but to his peers as well,” she said. “He expands on the topic and his questions are always relevant and thought-provoking.”

It’s no surprise that he’s a Running Start student, but he’s chosen to take those classes at the high school instead of Eastern Washington University , because he’s so involved in school activities he doesn’t have time to leave the campus.

Bollum, the current Associated Student Body president, said he’s really proud of launching an annual spirit game against Newport High School.

“We’ve done it two years in a row. I hope will continue after I’m gone.”

Then he laughed. “I come up with A LOT of ideas, but not all of them get acted on. There’s not enough time in school to do everything!”

When he said he’s tried just about every school activity, he wasn’t kidding.

“I even tried cheer for a year,” he said. “I liked it so much I joined the Spokane Wolfpack for a year.”

Wolfpack is a co-ed cheer squad for the minor league Spokane Wolfpack Football team.

He also found a new hobby when he walked by the school woodshop. He decided to try woodworking, and discovered he has a knack for carpentry.

“I love it,” he said. “I’ve started purchasing stuff to have my own shop someday.”

Bollum plans to attend Arizona State University and is interested in a career in law – either as an attorney or as a law-enforcement officer.

He doesn’t regret a moment of his hectic high school years and offered this advice to other students: “Get involved in everything you can. It opens up your social world and breaks up the monotony of school.”

Bollum will be missed by the faculty and staff at Deer Park, but they are eager to see what he’ll achieve after graduation.

“He has no limits,” said Frost. “Whatever he wants to accomplish, he will.”