MIDDLETON, Wis. — Ellen Close is a senior at Middleton High School and a member of the varsity girls golf team.
“I started as a freshman and I started off on junior varsity and really enjoyed my freshman year,” said Close.
Close made it her goal sophomore year to get on the varsity team.
“I worked hard during the off season and ended up making it and continued working ever since for the next three years,” said Close.
Becky Halverson is the head girls varsity golf coach at Middleton High School and she said Close’s hard work and dedication stretches far beyond the golf course.
“She has such a kind heart. She is a great golfer, and she does so much for the community,” said Halverson.
Close has put in 700 volunteering hours at the National Honors Society, The Balance and Believe Foundation and as a Special Olympics basketball coach.
Derek Schnarr is the founder of the Balance and Believe Foundation. He said Close has been a great volunteer and friend.
“We promote junior golf while we raise money for the community and she jumped at the chance to get involved and I would say our relationship from there just took off,” said Schnarr. “Ellen took my daughter under her wing and showed her the way. She just has it all figured out, and that comes from good parenting.”
In the classroom, Close maintains a 3.88 GPA.
Tim Simon is a physics teacher at Middleton High School and has been Close’s teacher for four years. He said she puts everything she has into her academics.
“Ellen is the type of student that whatever class she is in, she embraces the class,” said Simon. “I have really gotten to know her and she is just a wonderful young lady.”
Close is in the process of applying for colleges with the goal of studying neuroscience. It’s a field of study that hits close to home for her.
“I actually had brain surgery when I was six,” said Close. “I have this condition called Chiari malformations where my cerebellum sinks into my spine and it blocks blood from getting to my brain.”
It is her dream to go to Northwestern University and help others struggling with the same condition.
“To just know how well I was treated by my doctors and how my story was a success, I want to have that for kids like me,” said Close.