2023 RBS&F Scholarship Recipient

Darrell Miller will graduate in May and has applied to the Red Rocks Community College Fire Academy.

The Ray Barron Strength & Honor Fund is proud to announce the recipient of its second-annual scholarship. Established in 2020 in honor of legendary Colorado wrestling Coach Ray Barron, the scholarship intends to recognize Colorado wrestlers—male and female—who demonstrate strength and honor in all they do, on and off the mat.

The 2023 scholarship goes to Darrell Miller of Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, nominated by CHS assistant wrestling coach Gary Miller (unrelated). Darrell Miller is a multi-sport athlete, playing football and wrestling for the Rebels. Miller started wrestling in fourth grade, and in the 2022/2023 season, he served as a team captain and placed sixth in the Colorado High School Athletics Association State Wrestling Tournament at 165 pounds. Miller has applied to the firefighter academy at Red Rocks Community College and aspires to follow in his coaches’ footsteps to serve his community as a firefighter.

“Wrestling has shaped me to be who I am today,” Miller shared in his application. “It’s helped me grow into a man who is disciplined and diligent. It has encouraged me in forming connections and friendships with individuals I never anticipated doing so. Wrestling has developed my mindset in ways I didn’t know I needed. Wrestling has made me tougher physically and mentally. Because of wrestling, I have obtained a never-give-up attitude that I can apply to everything I do.”

Miller rose to the top of a tough class of 14 wrestlers, each nominated by their coaches. The selection panel and fund’s board expressed overwhelming positivity about each applicant and noted how difficult it was to select just one individual. In the end, they examined the top candidates for who most emulated Coach Barron’s character and who became a better person through wrestling, representing the values of strength and honor.

“Strength and honor are all about building character and becoming the person you aspire to be,” Miller continued. “Wrestling will aid in creating that mental toughness, which is one of the many things I love about the sport. Living with honor is doing the right thing when no one is looking. If you want to live with honor, you must be selfless and put others before yourself in certain situations to help them succeed, even if it does not benefit you.”

The 14 applicants came from all over the state and included both boys and girls from all kinds of backgrounds. They’ve all overcome adversity in their own ways, including persevering to wrestle even when there wasn’t a program accepting of them, when difficult home situations could have caused them to make negative choices, and when medical-health obstacles could have caused them to step away from the mat. All are deserving of applause for their commitment to striving to be the best they can be, under all circumstances.

“It’s difficult for me to express how proud we all are—the RBS&HF Board and my family—of the 2022/2023 class of scholarship applicants,” said board president and Coach Barron’s daughter, Jennifer Paulson. “It was a great privilege to learn about each athlete and what they’ve overcome, how they contribute to their communities, and what wrestling has taught them. The future of Colorado wrestling is bright with programs producing individuals of this caliber. My dad would be excited to congratulate each of the nominees.”

The Ray Barron Strength & Honor Fund is a 501(c)3 organization that raises funds to provide scholarships to universities, junior colleges, and trade schools to graduating Colorado wrestlers. Ray Barron was a wrestling coach for nearly 50 years, leading teams in Fort Lupton, Colorado; Worland, Wyoming; and Littleton, Colorado, at Heritage and Columbine High Schools. He received numerous honors, including being inducted into the National Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame and being named the 2020 5A Wrestling Coach of the Year. He passed away in 2020 due to glioblastoma brain cancer. Learn more about the Ray Barron Strength & Honor Fund and Coach Barron at www.RayBarronStrengthAndHonorFund.com, by following the fund on Facebook, and by donating at https://gofund.me/9ec2ba72.