Mitch Evich made his mark at The Western Front in the early 80s as an up-and-coming reporter and editor with a knack for principled news writing and inspiring the same in others, including one of his life-long friends.

Coming into the program, Jeff Kramer knew of Evich’s reputation as a highly disciplined news editor before meeting him in person. The pair became fast friends after working on The Western Front together and building a bond over their support for Western’s football team (a newsroom rarity at the time). 

“When he found out I could write, he found that I had a pretty good head on my shoulders,” Kramer said. “We became almost immediate friends.”

After graduating from Western Washington University, Evich and Kramer remained close. They roomed and worked together on New England’s Middlesex News, and Evich was a groomsman at Kramer’s wedding.

On Christmas Day, 2021, Mitch Evich died due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease after a seven-year diagnosis. 

“We had a great friendship,” Kramer said. “I miss him. I really miss him every day.”

After Evich’s death, Kramer knew he wanted to honor the man that pushed him toward a career as a newspaper humorist. Thus, the Mitch Evich “Bellringer” Memorial Scholarship was created. 

The $1,000 scholarship is intended to honor a newcomer to The Front — a breakthrough journalist — carrying on a rich tradition of giving encouragement when it’s needed most. 

“These little awards, they really can get you going,” Kramer said. “Suddenly, you have to start thinking about yourself seriously, as somebody who has ability and talent.”

For Kramer, it was Evich who pushed him to pursue his dreams and seriously consider his own talent and ability in journalistic satire, rather than public administration. 

“I was telling Mitch where my head was on this issue, and he looked at me and he said, ‘Do you want to write satires about bureaucrats? Or do you want to be one?’ And, boy, I never looked back after he said that,” Kramer recounted.

They kept in contact over the years and various positions they held. Evich became a fiction writer as well as a journalist and settled down with his wife and two kids near Boston; Kramer settled in New York with his own family.

“He was cheated of so much time and now we are cheated of all he would have done with it,” Kramer wrote in a touching eulogy for Evich, delivered at his memorial service April 2, 2022, at the Saint James Episcopal Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. 

Two months later, Kramer honored Evich’s legacy once again by presenting the scholarship to the first-ever recipient at the annual journalism department picnic at Fairhaven Park in Bellingham.

“I wanted to do some kind of an award for him that was tied into the Western journalism department because that was the roots of our friendship,” Kramer said.

Kramer flew from New York to personally hand the award to English and journalism news-ed double major Katie McNabb.

He said the experience filled him with emotion. While he initially felt out of place being so long removed from Western and its students, seeing McNabb in person reminded him of the passion that Evich carried with him. He knew the trip had been worth it. 

“You can’t turn off that little spark in a person that wants to do journalism,” Kramer said.

As the first recipient, McNabb felt the emotion from Kramer and the legacy behind the scholarship. 

McNabb said The Front was critical to her future interest in journalism.

“I feel like that was where I really fell in love with journalism and learned the most was my first quarter at The Front,” she said.

After her time as a reporter, she continued working with the publication as an advanced reporter and managing editor.

Although Kramer started the scholarship, others have also contributed. Kramer’s goal is to keep the fund “percolating” to ensure the awarded amount holds the same value over time. 

Those who would like to contribute to keeping Evich’s values prevalent in the Western journalism community by honoring an up-and-comer to The Front can do so here.

Students who were new to The Front this year and demonstrated their individual value can apply to receive the Mitch Evich “Bellringer” Memorial Scholarship for the 2023-24 academic year. Applications are accepted from April to mid-May. Learn more about applying for departmental scholarships here.