KETCHUM, Idaho — Ordinarily, Audrey Bashaw would have never met Cesar Ocampo.
She's a wealthy retiree who lives in an exclusive subdivision south of Ketchum and summers on ranches in Bellevue and Picabo with her husband, Gerald.
Ocampo is the son of a poor Mexican laborer who rotates sprinkler systems near the farming community of Carey. But Ocampo considers himself forever in Bashaw's debt.
Bashaw writes letter after letter and makes phone call after phone call on the behalf of young men and women like Ocampo, raising scholarship money so they can go to college or trade schools.
Her vehicle: Dollars for Scholars, one of 700 local, volunteer-operated, community-based scholarship foundations throughout the nation.
"We all enjoy living here in this beautiful valley but, despite the appearance of wealth all around us, there are some people who can't afford to send their kids to college," Bashaw said.
"Many of these people are the people who keep things running for the rest of us — they're the lift operators who work for Sun Valley Co., the chefs who work in the restaurants, the gardeners, etc. I just wanted to do something for the community and I thought what better way than to help make sure our young people here get an opportunity to make the most of themselves."
Bashaw, a former home economics teacher at a Glendale, Calif. junior college, set up the local chapter four years ago. One of five in Idaho, it is affiliated with Citizens' Scholarship Foundation of America, an organization founded by a Massachussetts optometrist in 1958 to involve the private sector in encouraging educational achievement.
By asking for contributions of $1 or more from community residents, the organization was able to award 24 scholarships for the children in the poor textile manufacturing community of Fall River, Mass., the first year it was organized.
Similarly, Bashaw's Wood River program gives out about $25,000 to 25 students each year. The scholarships range from $500 to $3,000. And they're good for kids going to culinary or vocational technical schools, as well as colleges and universities.
"Most agencies only fund traditional colleges so it's real exciting to have something like this that helps kids with other types of higher education, as well," said Barge Levy, principal of Silver Creek Alternative School in Hailey.
"Without the help of Dollars for Scholars, many of our students wouldn't even get their foot in the door. Five hundred dollars is a lot more than a pat on the back for the kids in my school."
Bashaw and her board of directors make their selections from about 60 applicants each year. The selections are based on leadership abilities, academic considerations, students' involvement outside school and the students' declared goals.
Some of the students have hardships that figure into the equation, such as a disabled brother or sister that has maxed out Mom and Dad's pocketbooks.
Hailey restaurant owner Brian Ahern went to bat for a young employee of his who had been physically abused by his alcoholic parents.
"His potential has not been reflected by his performance during his high school career," Ahern told Bashaw. "But he has the desire to do well, to help others and to do a good job. He has been accepted at a school in Portland. All he needs is the financial support to get him there. There is no one to send him care packages or some extra cash if he gets strapped for money. His family is so wrapped up in its own problems, it cannot provide even the rudiments of family life for this young man."
Upon receiving a scholarship, the student wrote Bashaw to express his "utmost gratitude" for receiving an assist with his "life's dream."
"You've given me so much more than anyone has. In return, I will make you more than proud," he said.
Cesar Ocampo spoke little English when he began attending Carey High School as a sophomore. Now he is attending the College of Southern Idaho at Twin Falls, where he is studying computer graphic design, a skill he didn't even know existed when he was living back in Mexico.
Without his Dollars for Scholars scholarship, Ocampo says he couldn't have gone to college this year.
"Dollars for Scholars is going to make a complete difference in my lifestyle," said Ocampo, who saves money each day by driving back and forth 120 miles round trip between his home and Twin Falls.