BISMARCK, N.D.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cara Mund, 17, of Bismarck and Lexy Grenier, 12, of Grand Forks today were named North Dakota's top two youth volunteers for 2011 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. The awards program, now in its 16th year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
Cara was nominated by Century High School in Bismarck, and Lexy was nominated by Schroeder Middle School in Grand Forks. As State Honorees, 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 several days of national recognition events. Ten of them will be named America’s top youth volunteers for 2011 at that time.
Cara, a junior at Century High School, has raised more than $10,000 over the past three years to grant wishes for six sick children through the Make-A-Wish Foundation by organizing an annual fashion show that has won a great deal of support in her community. In 2007, two of Cara’s classmates were diagnosed with cancer. At the funeral of one, Cara learned that the Make-A-Wish Foundation had granted her friend’s wish for a trip to Walt Disney World. The other friend, Kayla, however, was still waiting to have her wish granted because of its higher than usual cost. “I knew there had to be some way to help her,” said Cara. “I brainstormed for a few days and came up with the idea of a fashion show to raise money for Kayla’s wish.”
After she had the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s permission to hold the event, Cara scheduled a date, secured a site, and found a boutique to supply clothes for the models. She developed posters, programs and tickets, and contacted the media to publicize the show. She wrote 88 letters to area businesses seeking support, and then wrote a script for the show, choreographed the event, and recruited volunteers to sell tickets, hand out programs, and provide entertainment. In addition, she invited all “Wish Kids” in her area to be part of the show, and selected several – including Kayla – to be models. Several major companies and organizations – including the NBA’s Dakota Wizards – have signed on to provide support, and each year, all of the tickets for the event have sold out. Cara is now firmly committed to the Make-A-Wish Foundation and has also participated in other fund-raisers for the organization. “The most memorable part of being a volunteer is seeing the kids’ faces light up when they hit the stage,” said Cara. “It is a brief moment in their life where they can forget about their illness and be a normal kid.’’
Lexy, a seventh-grader at Schroeder Middle School, volunteered four days a week last summer at St. Vincent Thrift Store, and still found time to contribute to her community in several other ways. Lexy was inspired to volunteer by her sister. “She volunteered for three years and she enjoyed it,” said Lexy. “I wanted to try it out, too, and loved it.” At the thrift store, which provides food, clothing, and household items at a discounted price, Lexy sorted and tagged clothes, and cleaned and organized shelves. When customers came in, she helped them shop. She also helped unload the trucks of donated items. “I felt doing these activities was important because others are less fortunate than I am and I wanted to help those in need,” said Lexy.
During the summer, Lexy also volunteered at an American Cancer Society Relay For Life fund-raiser, made sure car seats were installed properly for an organization called Safe Kids, helped make and serve meals for the homeless at a mission, and cleaned up garbage and painted tables at a state park. “The most difficult part was trying to figure out how I could fit it all in my schedule,” she said. “Otherwise, I enjoyed every part of it. I can’t wait to do it again!”
In addition, the program judges recognized two other North Dakota students as Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion:
Kristen Meland, 17, of Harvey, a junior at Harvey High School, raised nearly $2,300 to support medical expenses for her friend Nick who struggles with epilepsy. Kristen, who raised more than $2,000 for Nick with a special event last year, raised funds this year by selling T-shirts designed by her and Nick that read, “HOPE for Nick.”
Annika Vernon, 17, of Hazen, a senior at Hazen High School, coordinated the making of nearly 50 sleeping pallets made from plastic shopping bags to benefit homeless people through her “Pallets-a-Plenty” project she created in the spring of 2010. Annika arranged bag collections and coordinated hundreds of volunteers of all ages to help cut and crochet the plastic bags into pallets, arranged bag collections, and kept 34,000 plastic bags out of landfills.
“These award recipients have proven that young people across America are critical to the future of our neighborhoods, our nation, and our world,” said John R. Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial. “Each and every one of these honorees deserve our respect and admiration, and we hope by shining a light on them, they will continue to serve as an example for others.”
“The young people recognized by the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards demonstrate an enormous capacity for giving and reaching out to those in need,” said Gerald N. Tirozzi, executive director of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. “NASSP is proud to honor these student leaders because they are wonderful examples of the high caliber of young people in our nation’s schools today.”
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 affiliates of HandsOn Network, were eligible to select a student or member for a local Prudential Spirit of Community Award this past November. More than 5,000 Local Honorees were then reviewed by an independent judging panel, which selected State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists based on criteria such as personal initiative, creativity, effort, impact and personal growth.
While in Washington, D.C., the 102 State Honorees will tour the capital’s landmarks, attend a gala awards ceremony at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, and visit their congressional representatives on Capitol Hill. In addition, 10 of them – five middle level and five high school students – will be named National Honorees on May 2 by a prestigious national selection committee. These 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.
Serving on the national selection committee will be John Strangfeld of Prudential; Jana Frieler, president of NASSP; Michelle Nunn, president and CEO of the Points of Light Institute & Hands On Network; Marguerite Kondracke, president and CEO of the America’s Promise Alliance; Donald T. Floyd Jr., president and CEO of National 4-H Council; Pamela Farr, the American Red Cross’ national chair of volunteers; Elson Nash, associate director for project management at the Corporation for National and Community Service; Michael Cohen, president and CEO of Achieve, Inc.; and two 2010 Prudential Spirit of Community National Honorees: Shannon McNamara of Basking Ridge, N.J., and Benjamin Sater of Plano, Texas.
In addition to granting its own awards, The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program will be distributing President’s Volunteer Service Awards to more than 2,800 of its Local Honorees this year on behalf of President Barack Obama. The President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of their time to serve their communities and their country.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards represent the United States’ largest youth recognition program based solely on volunteer service. Since the program began in 1995, more than 95,000 young volunteers nationwide have been honored at the local, state or national level. Many prominent public figures have assisted in saluting these honorees over the years, including Jimmy Carter, Barbara Bush, Magic Johnson, John Glenn, Madeleine Albright, Rudy Giuliani, Whoopi Goldberg, Colin Powell, Peyton Manning, Laura Bush, and Condoleezza Rice. The program also is conducted by Prudential subsidiaries in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Ireland and India.
For information on all of this year’s Prudential Spirit of Community State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists, visit spirit.prudential.com or www.nassp.org/spirit.
In existence since 1916, the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the preeminent organization of and national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and aspiring school leaders from across the United States and more than 45 countries around the world. NASSP’s mission is to promote excellence in school leadership. The National Honor Society ®, National Junior Honor Society ®, National Elementary Honor Society™, and National Association of Student Councils ® are all NASSP programs. For more information about NASSP, located in Reston, Va., visit www.nassp.org or call 703-860-0200.
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Editors: Graphics depicting the award program’s logo and medallions may be downloaded from spirit.prudential.com.