Imagine a big, beautiful tree with leaves made out of dollar bills.

You can walk up to the tree and pluck those dollars right off to help pay for your college tuition.

But before you can take the free dollars, you have to write a letter, outlining why you deserve the money. A committee reads the letter, sees impressive aspirations and decides to let you take cash from the money tree.

All you have to do is write an impressive letter, and in some cases keep a good grade-point average.

That’s essentially how easy it is to obtain a college scholarship. Once you have the letter written, you can retrofit it for other scholarships. It’s free money, with no interest, no debt attached — free.

So why is it that so few students apply for scholarships?

A number of scholarships are offered on the local level, and oftentimes, less than five students apply for the money.

Is it fear of rejection? Lack of knowledge that the scholarships exists? Whatever the reason, it’s vitally important to know that money is out there for a college education.

All you have to do is put a little effort into making yourself seen, and — voila — the money is yours.

Scholarships also are available through universities. It may be a lot of work to apply, but the reward is worth the effort.

So we ask, are you really too busy to put forth the effort for free money? Parents, encourage your students to apply. It will save you money, too.

A commitment between parents and children should be made to put your name in the game. Heck, anything you can do to lower your child’s debt after graduation should be scooped up, embraced and nourished.

We also challenge students to make themselves stand out in scholarship applications. Do you play the piano well? Do you like to paint, help with school plays, or are you an avid reader? Let those offering free money know who you are, what you want to be and where you want to go in life.

It’s an awesome opportunity to train yourself on how to be a young professional.

Please apply, and when you do, make sure you know a little about the organization that’s providing money for your education.

We’d like to shout out to Moffat County High School’s guidance counselor Paula Duzik. She provides students with robust information about scholarships that are available. She also runs a Facebook page called “Moffat County High School Guidance Office News.”

Check it out, apply and grab that free money.