SCC student website promotes scholarship to honor slain trooper
Couch asked Scott Cline, program coordinator for SCC’s web technology program, to recommend a student for the project.
“I thought of Paige Christie right away,” said Cline. “Paige is a web technology student from Bryson City who plans to graduate in December of 2009. As I expected, she was more than happy to take on the project.”
Southwestern Community College web technology student Paige Christie of Bryson City, right, demonstrates the website she designed for slain trooper Shawn Blanton to his dad, Dave Blanton of Webster, left, and Scott Cline, program coordinator for SCC's web technology program.
Christie contacted Dave Blanton to see exactly what he wanted on the site and to see what the timeline was for the project. The project was to design a website for a scholarship in his son’s name. Christie had two weeks to complete the project, along with still doing her school work.
“Paige did a super cool job,” said Dave Blanton. “She created stuff on the computer I never imagined you could do… and she made it easy to navigate for somebody like me who is computer illiterate.”
“It was a joy once I met Dave,” said Christie. “I knew about Shawn, his son, the first enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to serve as a North Carolina State Trooper, who was shot on Interstate 40 June 17, 2008 during a routine traffic stop. He was just 24.”
The website includes information on the Shawn Blanton Scholarship Fund and the Shawn Blanton Memorial Ride June 20 that will support that fund. There are also links to the Officer Down Memorial Fund, YouTube tributes and photos.
“It was nice to work on something that will really make a difference,” said Christie, who learned a lot about the Blanton family during the process. “I learned of the Blanton family’s long connection to this area and to SCC. Shawn received his in-service law enforcement training at Southwestern, his dad graduated in 1990 from the paramedic program. Shawn’s mother, Jeanell Youngblood, graduated from SCC with an associate degree in business and his step-mother Jennifer is one of the first graduates of SCC’s physical therapy program. His sister Natalie graduated from SCC with a degree in nursing in July.”
“You can see why I thought about Southwestern to do this project,” said Blanton, who has been a paramedic with Cherokee EMS for 20 years.
“Paige did a great job on this project. Her work was very quick and professional.” said Cline. “This was a great opportunity for Paige to put her web design skills to work in a real world scenario.”
Smoky Mountain High School plans to build an indoor baseball and softball training facility in Shawn Blanton’s name. The advertising and graphic design program at Southwestern designed the graphic for the training facility. Christie designed the rest of the graphics on the website and the pictures were taken by different members of the Blanton family. “It was a real team effort,” said Christie.
To see the Shawn Blanton Scholarship website visit: http://troopershawnblantonscholarship.com/.
For more information about the web technology program at Southwestern Community College, contact Cline at scline@southwesterncc.edu or 828-58-4091 ext. 494.
Tags: Cherokee, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, north carolina state trooper, officer down memorial, Southwestern Community College, technology program
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