Dunbar Scholarship awarded

Doug Dunbar Scholarship Awarded to Matthew Brownlee

MCKENZIE BRIDGE: Each year the employees of the McKenzie River Ranger District and the friends and family of Doug Dunbar award the Doug Dunbar Memorial Scholarship to a college bound senior at McKenzie High School. This year, the recipient of the $1,500 scholarship is Matthew Brownlee, part of the 2017 graduating class of McKenzie River High School.

Doug Dunbar was a 1990 McKenzie High School graduate and the son of Sandy Dunbar and former McKenzie River District Ranger, Randy Dunbar.  He began working on fire crews the year he graduated to help pay for college.  By 1993, his hard work and desire to be the best had led him to the elite firefighting ranks, as a member of the Prineville Hotshots.

In 1994, Doug was one of the 14 firefighters to lose their lives on the South Canyon fire in Colorado. This $1,500 scholarship is sponsored by a trust established in his name as well as fundraisers by McKenzie River Ranger District employees, and donations from the family and friends of Doug. In keeping with the mission of the Forest Service, it is given based on an essay about natural resource conservation.

Image: Doug Dunbar