Utah's Top Two Youth Volunteers Selected in 21st Annual National Awards Program
Orem and Draper students earn $1,000 awards, engraved medallions and trip to nation’s capital
Honors also bestowed on youth volunteers in Salt Lake City, Heber, Orem and Pleasant View
SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Barry Donakey, 18, of Orem and Sophia Goodwin, 13, of Draper today were named Utah's top two youth volunteers of 2016 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. Barry was nominated by Timpanogos High School in Orem, and Sophia was nominated by Girl Scouts Of Utah in Salt Lake City. The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, now in its 21st year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
Barry, a senior at Timpanogos High School, provides free lawn care and yard maintenance each week to two elderly couples and two widows in his community who are physically and financially unable to take care of their own yards. In 2014, Barry founded a landscaping company that served more than 50 clients in his and surrounding counties. Two of the lawns he mowed each week, however, belonged to senior citizens who could not afford his service. He found that he enjoyed cutting their lawns “because of the wonderful feeling I would get as I served them,” he said. He decided to expand his free service.
Barry estimates that he now spends about six hours a week mowing and trimming the yards of his four pro bono clients. When necessary, he also weeds, prunes, fertilizes, picks fruit from trees, cleans gutters, and takes care of whatever else needs to be done. Recently, for example, he cut down and hauled away five large spruce trees. Barry uses profits from his commercial business to pay for the gasoline, fertilizer and other materials needed to maintain these yards. He estimates that his labor saves each of these households about $1,200 a year. “I never grow tired of the time I spend in service to these elderly persons,” he said.
Sophia, an eighth-grader at Channing Hall, worked with a partner to make hygiene and school supply bags for 38 preschoolers from low-income families in a project they called “Supplies of Love.” A Girl Scout since kindergarten, Sophia has participated in many community service projects in the past. “These have helped shape me into the person I am today,” she said. “Service to your community not only helps out others but makes you feel good inside.”
After Sophia and her partner decided on their project, they began researching schools that had both a preschool program and a majority of students who qualified for free or reduced-price lunches. They then drew up a plan, recruited a mentor to help them, raised money, and shopped for items to promote good hygiene and supplies that would help the youngsters be more successful in school. “I love seeing how small amounts of work can make a big improvement in our community,” said Sophia. “It makes my heart feel all warm and fuzzy.”
As State Honorees, Barry and Sophia each will receive $1,000, an engraved silver medallion and an all-expense-paid trip in early May to Washington, D.C., where they will join the top two honorees from each of the other states and the District of Columbia for four days of national recognition events. During the trip, 10 students will be named America’s top youth volunteers of 2016.
Distinguished Finalists
The program judges also recognized four other Utah students as Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion.
These are Utah's Distinguished Finalists for 2016:
Allison Baxter, 17, of Salt Lake City, Utah, a senior at Skyline High School, worked with her school’s administrators and local law enforcement to start her school’s chapter of Backyard Broadcast, a movement led by young people to raise awareness about and reduce sex trafficking. Allison, who founded the chapter as a sophomore, recruited fellow students and sponsored an awareness campaign during National Sex Trafficking Awareness Month that included a showing of the movie “Taken” and a presentation by the Attorney General’s special task force.
Wayson Foy, 18, of Heber, Utah, a senior at Wasatch High School, has raised $5,000 to benefit the American Cancer Society since 2004 by collecting and recycling aluminum cans in an effort to help in some way after a family friend died from leukemia. Wayson runs the program with his brother and their family, and today many residents and businesses around town donate their cans, while a local recycling plant offers 25 cents more per pound because the money goes to charity.
Kelsey Hull, 18, of Orem, Utah, a senior at Orem High School, has been a passionate advocate for those who are homeless since she was a freshman, and collected toys and money to benefit children affected by Hurricane Sandy in the New York area. Since then, she has collected clothing and distributed it to shelters throughout Utah, and has also become a vice president in her school’s FCCLA club, where she works on a number of other service projects.
Haeli Rich, 17, of Pleasant View, Utah, a senior at Weber High School, helped to launch and currently serves as the co-president of the Weekend Warrior Food Pack Program at her school, which has raised $9,000 and tens of thousands of food products to prepare weekend food packages for 85 children attending local elementary schools. Haeli and a team of youth volunteers prepare the packages quarterly with granola bars, fruit cups, peanut butter, oatmeal, shelf-stable milk and ramen noodles, and school counselors distribute them discreetly to students in need.
“Prudential commends each of these young volunteers for using their creativity and compassion to bring positive change to their communities,” said Prudential Chairman and CEO John Strangfeld. “We hope their stories inspire others to consider how they can make a difference, too.”
“We are pleased to honor these students not only for their exemplary acts of service, but for the powerful example they’ve set for their peers,” said JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. “Congratulations to each of the 2016 honorees.”
About The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards represents the United States’ largest youth recognition program based solely on volunteer service. All public and private middle level and high schools in the country, as well as all Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and HandsOn Network affiliates, were eligible to select a student or member for a local Prudential Spirit of Community Award. These Local Honorees were then reviewed by an independent judging panel, which selected State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists based on criteria including personal initiative, effort, impact and personal growth.
While in Washington, D.C., the 102 State Honorees – one middle level and one high school student from each state and the District of Columbia – will tour the capital’s landmarks, meet top youth volunteers from other parts of the world, attend a gala awards ceremony at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, and visit their congressional representatives on Capitol Hill. On May 2, 10 of the State Honorees – five middle level and five high school students – will be named America’s top youth volunteers of 2016. These National Honorees will receive additional $5,000 awards, gold medallions, crystal trophies and $5,000 grants from The Prudential Foundation for nonprofit charitable organizations of their choice.
Since the program began in 1995, more than 115,000 young volunteers have been honored at the local, state and national level. The program also is conducted by Prudential subsidiaries in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Ireland, India, China and Brazil. In addition to granting its own awards, The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program also distributes President’s Volunteer Service Awards to qualifying Local Honorees on behalf of President Barack Obama.
For information on all of this year’s Prudential Spirit of Community State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists, visit http://spirit.prudential.com or www.nassp.org/spirit.
About NASSP
The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the leading organization of and voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and school leaders from across the United States and 35 countries around the world. The association connects and engages school leaders through advocacy, research, education, and student programs. NASSP advocates on behalf of all school leaders to ensure the success of each student and strengthens school leadership practices through the design and delivery of high quality professional learning experiences. Reflecting its long-standing commitment to student leadership development, NASSP administers the National Honor Society, National Junior Honor Society, National Elementary Honor Society, and National Association of Student Councils. For more information about NASSP, located in Reston, VA, visit www.nassp.org.
About Prudential Financial
Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial services leader, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential’s diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds and investment management. In the U.S., Prudential’s iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit www.news.prudential.com.
Editors: For full-color pictures of the Spirit of Community Awards program logo and medallions, click here: http://bit.ly/Xi4oFW
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160209005145/en/
Prudential Financial
Harold Banks, (973) 802-8974 or (973) 216-4833
[email protected]
Source: Prudential Financial, Inc.