Star athlete wins Distinguished Student Award

Basketball is just one of the sports in which Brandon Hamilton excels. He’s been a starter on the football and basketball teams all four years at Challis High School. Hamilton says sports has taught him a lot.

“It teaches you how to lose and how to win, how to take a loss that’s bad or how to take a win and be humble,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton has won numerous awards in sports, but one of the most rewarding aspects of athletics for Hamilton has been coaching the youth sports programs in Challis.

“It’s awesome,” Hamilton said. “I love basketball and other sports too, so it’s nice to see all the young kids that are going to come up and help out Challis High School. It’s pretty cool to know you can make a difference with that.”

Academics are also important to Hamilton. He’s currently taking some tough classes, like calculus and dual-credit English.

“If you work hard in school, it’s going to carry on later in life,” Hamilton said. “If you take easy classes, that’s not always going to benefit you, so it’s nice to have a challenge once in a while.”

Teachers at Challis High School say Hamilton is well-liked and a role model for other students. Hamilton has mixed feelings about graduating in a little over a month. He’s excited about the future, but a little sad about ending his high school experience.

“The best advice I could give anybody is enjoy it while it lasts, because it goes really quick,” Hamilton said. “Have fun, participate in as many things as you can and just enjoy it. It goes by really fast.”