This October, Outward Bound hosted one of our most successful National Dinners in New York City ever! Our wilderness programs aim to impact students’ lives, but it was truly inspiring to hear a recipient of our 9/11 Scholarship outline first-hand how Outward Bound helped him move forward in the face of seemingly insurmountable events. Here we present you a transcript of the speech Dylan gave to the packed crowd in New York City.
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Dylan Kilfoil.
Earlier this year, I was like many people I know and probably a lot like many people you know. I was your typical kid. I had my share of miserable chores at home. I had my material things too, like my phone and my TV.
It was my life.
But I knew it wasn’t me. It wasn’t everything I could do, wasn’t everything I wanted, wasn’t everything I needed.
I knew I could be more. I didn’t want to be just another kid wasting their life in front of a TV screen.
But my problem wasn’t simply time management. There were real issues and questions in my life. And most of all, I struggled with simply knowing who I was.
Like most of you, I also struggled and still struggle with the impacts of 9/11. My Father, a firefighter at the time, was one of the first-responders to the tragedy.
I remember that day like it was yesterday. It was just like any other day, until classmate after classmate was being taken out of class.
The first student leaving wasn’t anything unusual. Then another classmate left, and another. When my best friend left, I was worried and scared.
Before I knew it, I was being picked up by my brother. When I got home I saw my mom crying with the phone in her hand. The TV was showing the two planes crashing into the Towers.
It gave me the chills; it made me scared; it made me cry. So I ran into my dad’s room. But he wasn’t there. He had gone to work at the firehouse that day, and I immediately knew where he was.
Three days later my dad finally came home. Exhausted, with a bandaged hand, sore back and coughing up black mucus.
I asked him not to go back. He told me he had to, that he wanted to, and that people needed him. He took a shower, grabbed some tools, gave us all a big hug and kiss, then left.
My father showed me what it looks like to face challenge and adversity and to find the courage to “be more”.
He was my inspiration. He was my teacher.
But Outward Bound was my classroom.
I decided early in the year that I wanted to go on the 22-day rafting trip and mountain expedition in beautiful central Oregon.
My course took me places I never dreamed of! We hiked for miles every day. We got up early, REALLY EARLY. I didn’t even know 4:30 in the morning existed.
When I wasn’t battling 8-foot high freezing cold swells on the Deschutes River, I was learning to hydrate and prepare dinner over a small camp stove.
We climbed a mountain and took in views from 10,000 feet. At the summit, the whole group celebrated with one big hug. And when I signed the summit book, I wrote “life is about moments like this, being with a group of strangers accomplishing a task that is solely in the hands of these strangers.”
Sixteen hours later, when we returned to camp, I was not the same person.
Climbing that mountain forced me to dig deep. I can’t say I just “found” courage or motivation. I didn’t just find it there lying on the ground next to my sleeping bag. I formed it. I crafted it.
Late every night after dinner and camp was set, I made time to think back on what I had accomplished that day. I would be covered in dirt, sitting up in my tent that was usually half falling over and would write for hours in my journal.
I wrote goals for myself and outlined what is important to me. I discovered my desire to be a better son, a student with a GPA higher than just average, a traveler studying abroad in Italy.
After my course, the issues I struggled to face before no longer held me back. I had answers, real answers. Not just the ones you read in a book or hear from your parents.
Without the 9/11 Scholarship, my course would have not been possible. I will never forget the people I met, the breathtaking views and the amazing challenges I faced.
If you find yourself wondering where your contributions go and what they do, I ask that you look at me. The gifts that people made, the 9/11 Sholarship and scholarships like it, have a real impact on the lives of real kids.
I would now like to take a moment to ask my father Roger Kilfoil to stand so I can thank him for inspiring me to get out there on my course and so we can all thank him for his service on 9/11.
I am currently enrolled in Suffolk Community College studying Business Administration and have plans for this degree and beyond.
Without the 9/11 Scholarship and all of your support, I don’t what direction I’d be headed in today. But I’m certain of the direction I’m headed in now.
Thank you.
