Each year the Timber Producers Association of Connecticut awards $500 scholarships to two Connecticut high school graduates who will pursue studies in natural resources management. Meet this year’s awardees.

There are few outdoor pursuits Wethersfield resident Fejzo Daniel Akaratovic hasn’t mastered. He is certified in First Aid for Severe Trauma as well as Adult and CPR/AED and First Aid; Firearms Hunting; Archery Hunting; Basic Trapping; and Personal Water Craft. He has an endorsement for Coyote Land Trapping. And if that isn’t enough, he was Connecticut State Chair for the Carp Anglers group and a recordholder for a Bowfin catch in 2021 and 2022. A graduate of Glastonbury High School, Fejzo (pronounced Fey-zo) will be attending University of Connecticut to study Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Growing up in Norfolk, Noah Green is an avid fisherman. As a Boy Scout, he summitted each of the tallest peaks in New England. It took a couple of years but he made each climb: Bear Mountain in Connecticut; Katahdin in Maine; Greylock in Massachusetts; Mount Washington in New Hampshire; Jerimoth Hill in Rhode Island; and Mount Mansfield in Vermont. A graduate of Northwestern Regional High School, he will also continue his education at University of Connecticut.

We wish them both the best!

Fejzo below with prizewinning Bowfin.