Three $2,000 Higher Education Scholarship recipients have been awarded after a record 39 applicants applied.
- Cortney Copeland of Lewistown, Ohio was presented with the K&K Higher Education Award.
Copeland, a graduate of Jackson Center High School, is a freshman at South Dakota State University, where she has a 4.0 GPA and is a member of Sigma Alpha. In response to the essay question, “What person(s) has made the biggest impact on you through truck and tractor pulling?” she wrote:
The person who has made the biggest impact on me through truck and tractor pulling is my aunt, Melissa Graham. As the Secretary for the Ohio Truck and Tractor Pullers Association, and entry clerk for the NTPA, she has dedicated countless hours to ensuring that every pull runs smoothly and that competitors, officials, and fans feel valued. But beyond her official title, it’s her passion, work ethic, and heart for people that have truly influenced me.
Growing up, I watched how Aunt Melissa approached every event with professionalism and pride. She’s shown me that success in this sport isn’t just about horsepower; it’s about teamwork, organization, and the relationships built along the way. Her ability to balance leadership and kindness inspired me to bring the same attitude to everything I’m involved in, from showing livestock to serving in leadership roles.
Her dedication has taught me that making a difference often happens behind the scenes, and that true leaders are those who serve others with humility and heart.
- Kalli Shambour of New Prague, Minnesota, was granted one WPI/NTPA Higher Education Award.
Nominated by her father, Pro Farm competitor Marty Shambour, she has achieved a 3.957 GPA at New Prague High School and participates in National Honor Society, Link Crew, and Summer School Assistant Teacher along with being a dance teacher at To The Point Dance Academy to just name a few. She plans on attending Gustavus Adolphus College to study Biology to become a Physician Assistant. Most notable among her submissions to the application’s essay submissions was her response to this prompt, “How has truck and tractor pulling shaped your character and developed your leadership, teamwork, and organization skills?”:
Truck and tractor pulling has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. I grew up watching my dad work late nights in the shop, fine-tuning every detail of his tractor. Over the years, I realized that the sport isn’t just about power; it’s about patience, teamwork, and pride in hard work.
Being raised around pulling has shaped my character in countless ways. From helping load the trailer, packing coolers, passing out t-shirts, and delivering water to the crew on hot summer nights, I’ve learned that success depends on everyone doing their part. Tractor pulling has taught me leadership through example, staying calm under pressure, and encouraging others even when the results don’t go our way. I’ve seen how my dad treats every competitor with respect, and I try to carry that same attitude with me in everything I do.
Organization is another skill that tractor pulling has strengthened in me. Planning for a pull means keeping track of schedules, packing tools and parts, and making sure everything runs smoothly on pull day. I’ve learned how to communicate clearly and problem-solve quickly, skills that help me in school, teaching and leadership roles.
Most importantly, the pulling community has shown me the value of teamwork and perseverance. It’s a place where families and friends come together to support each other, win or lose. Being part of that has taught me that leadership isn’t about standing in front; it’s about lifting others up beside you.
- Baleigh Denton of Benson, North Carolina, received one WPI/NTPA Higher Education Award.
Nominated by her father, Larry Denton, crew chief of the No Words Pro Farm Pulling Team, she has achieved a 3.5 GPA at Triton High School and participates in basketball, Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), Prom Promise, school blood drives and works at a local steakhouse. She will be attending either Wake Tech Community College or Sampson Community College to study Nursing or Radiology.
She caught the judge’s attention with her answer to the question, “How do you promote the sport of pulling to others and represent the pulling community in a positive way?”
Upon first observation of the sport of pulling, you see one driver and one vehicle, but in all reality, it is a team sport. A team that consists of one driver and one vehicle, but from preparation and travel to the main event, there are team members behind the scenes making it happen. All of the team members attend the pulling events and though we are in competition, the atmosphere is loving, encouraging, and a welcome space for all ages. This community promotes itself because of the family environment that you experience at these events. Personally, I am aware that when I am representing No Words Pulling Team, I am promoting my family and friends by my actions and attitude but also our mission to promote Autism awareness and acceptance at every pull.
Serving a dual purpose to expose spectators to truck and tractor pulling, but also promoting individuals with autism, I find myself inviting extended friends and family to these events with pride. Tractor pulling has contributed to my personal growth and development over the years and by example, I hope to inspire traits of kindness, patience, teamwork and acceptance in all people around me at school, work and home. I have been on many teams over the course of my life but being a part of the pulling community and seeing how working together to make these events successful with positive and friendly competition, I have learned that you can both aim to succeed and win but also hope for the best for the teams around you.
By promoting healthy competition through teamwork and support of those around you, spectators come to trust that they are in an environment that is friendly to all people, of all ages, and even those of us that may look and think differently. There is truly no other community like that of the pulling community that promotes itself by positive actions and attitudes. In turn, I promote the sport of pulling by living out those tenets that have been instilled in me through the exposure of pulling.
WPI/NTPA thanks K&K Insurance and all of the Scholarship Fund donors for their support of higher education and the pursuits thereof by members of our greater pulling family.
The 2026 K&K, WPI/NTPA Scholarships portal will open on September 1, 2026 and close October 15, 2026.