A self-described perfectionist, Josephine Abbott loves to challenge herself with new projects, and this year she became an award-winning filmmaker, creating work on the ride of Sybil Ludington in a contest sponsored by the Sons of the American Revolution

Paul Valencia
Clark County Today

If Josephine Abbott has 100 things going on in her life, she is always looking for the 101st thing to conquer, as well.

A senior at Seton Catholic, Abbott challenged herself to becoming a filmmaker.

And then she became an award-winning filmmaker.

A history buff among her many talents, Abbott created an animated video showcasing a woman who became an American hero in 1777. Abbott won first place in the state of Washington in a video competition put on by the Sons of the American Revolution for capturing the not-as-famous ride of Sybil Ludington. 

“She was kind of lost in time until the late 1800s. Everyone always remembers Paul Revere. She got the nickname the female Paul Revere,” Abbott said.

And what a story to tell.

“Her family lived off the Long Island Sound. Her father was a leader in the militia. She caught wind that the British were coming to burn the town to the ground,” Abbott explained. “She hopped on her horse in the middle of the night.”

Ledington would ride 40 miles that night, through forests, in the rain, shouting at soldiers to wake up and help.

“They were able to defend their town, their homes, from the British,” Abbott said.

Sounds like an action hero in a movie. So Josephine Abbott made that movie.

Creating the video was Josephine’s way to challenge herself, as well. Already a talented writer — she had placed high in many essay competitions through the years — she had a vision of making a video for this project.

“I’m not a very technologically advanced person,” Josephine acknowledged.

Still, when she sets her mind to something, her focus goes into superdrive.

“I really just started sketching out on Procreate on the ipad. Once I had the basic stuff down, I started adding the animation,” Josephine said.

She colored her work.

Josephine also wrote the script and recorded the voiceover for her project.

“Do I like it? Do I not like it? It took months because it was such a tedious process,” she said. 

She also is blessed with the perfectionist tag.

“There’s always something I can do better,” she said. 

She took her time with the project, and it paid off, first by winning the Southwest Washington chapter and then the state competition. Last month, she learned she finished third in nationals.

Beyond history and movie making, Josephine is also a performer with Seton Catholic’s drama department. She is on the school’s faith council, plus a leader of the school’s Prayer Team. Oh, and there’s more: She is a member of the National Honor Society, she sings with the school choir, and she is in the knitting club. This year, she also was a member of the Seton Catholic track and field team.

“I am very much an overachiever,” Josephine said. “That earns a lot of teasing from friends and parents.”

And a lot of respect from her teachers. 

“This kid is committed to her craft. She is die-hard, will do anything to improve, to help. She loves what she does,” said Kendra Brislawn, who is Abbott’s drama and choir teacher. “She has made a big impact. She sets the tone of committing 110 percent to what she does. She has been a standout as a supportive person to the underclassmen.”

The Class of 2025 of Seton Catholic is set to graduate on Saturday. 

Abbott has been an overachiever long before high school, though.

A few years back, this history buff made history of her own. 

When Josephine was younger, she tagged along with a younger brother who was in the Cub Scouts. Not officially part of the Cub Scouts, she still helped out with projects. By the time girls were allowed to join the Cub Scouts, Josephine was too old. Soon, though, she joined Scouting America, formerly the Boy Scouts of America,  and immediately went to work on becoming the best version of herself.

She was hoping to be the first in her troop to earn the rank of Eagle Scout. Instead, she was the first female to earn Eagle Scout in all of Southwest Washington. That was back in 2021, when she was 14 years old.

Her project was a Buddy Bench at a local school. 

“I spent a lot of recesses standing by the wall by myself or sitting off in the corner of the playground,” Abbott recalled. “I didn’t want kids to go through the same thing I did.”

A Buddy Bench is labeled as such. The idea is that when a child is feeling lonely or down, the child can sit on the Buddy Bench, and … 

“If a kid sits down, other kids walk up and say, ‘Hey, do you want to play with us?’ Or, ‘Hey, are you OK?’” Abbott explained. “The reaching out is so important because it lets people know you actually care.”

After graduating from Seton Catholic, Abbott is planning to attend Carroll College in Montana, to study theater and psychology.

“If I’m looking really far into the future, I’m hoping to come back local, work as a theater director or a teacher in the area,” Abbott said. “I just want to get more involved.”

More to do from this overachiever? Absolutely.

“I’ve learned about perseverance and work ethic,” she said of growing up with a muliti-task personality.

In the conclusion of her Sybil Ludington video, it is Abbott’s voice as Ludington: “One thing is for certain: my story is one of encouragement and patriotism, demonstrating that even the little folk can do great things and have an impact on their world.”

Sounds a lot like a history buff from Seton Catholic. 

Note: Here is a link to Abbott’s video highlighting Sybil Ludington: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCmYFcrpQYc