WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nevada's top two youth volunteers of 2013, Konner Robison, 17, of Reno and Anthony Schrecengost, 14, of Las Vegas, were honored in the nation’s capital last night for their outstanding volunteer service during the 18th annual presentation of The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Konner, along with 100 other top youth volunteers from across the country, received a $1,000 award and personal congratulations from Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Spacey and Olympic gold medalist Allyson Felix at an award ceremony and gala dinner reception held at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. Anthony, who was unable to attend last night’s events, was recognized in absentia for his outstanding volunteer service.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program, sponsored by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), named Konner and Anthony Nevada's top high school and middle level youth volunteers in February. In addition to their cash awards, they each received an engraved silver medallion and an all-expense-paid trip with a parent to Washington, D.C., for four days of recognition events.
Konner, a junior at Sage Ridge School, created a fund that provides grants to local schools so they can provide technology-based learning tools to students who cannot afford them on their own. The idea came to him when he discovered that a classmate could not complete her physics homework because her family could not afford to buy her a graphing calculator. “I realized that technology is crucial in education,” he said. “All students, even those who can’t afford the technology, should have access to sophisticated learning tools.”
Konner spent a couple of months researching how he could make a difference, and decided to set up the “Scholastic Gateway Fund” in partnership with the Community Foundation of Western Nevada. He produced literature about the fund, invited respected community members to sit on an advisory board, met with potential donors, and visited schools to determine their needs. He also drew up business and marketing plans, created a website, planned a fundraiser and designed a competitive grant application process. Konner has raised tens of thousands of dollars, and delivered his first grant in September to a public high school so that it could make advanced graphing calculators available to every student who needs one.
Anthony, an eighth-grader at Sig Rogich Middle School, has been a committed volunteer for the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) for the past three years, raising both money and awareness to help those who, like him, suffer from food allergies. “Food allergies are a great public health concern in America,” said Anthony, who discovered at age 2 that he was severely allergic to many foods. His allergies, he says, motivate him every day to work on behalf of others who share his condition.
Anthony has participated in three fundraising walkathons for FAAN, recruited family members to walk with him and raised more than $2,000. He also has devoted many hours to hanging awareness posters in local businesses, doctors’ offices, libraries and other locations. He wrote a children's book about food allergies to educate classmates at school. And he helped create an “allergy-friendly” food wish list for a local food bank. Anthony said he believes his work is not only helping to protect allergy sufferers by making more people aware of the dangers, but is also helping to advance medical research. “Hopefully, with all of our combined efforts, doctors can figure out why children like me have food allergies and can learn how to better treat them,” he said.
“We commend these honorees not only for the impact of their service and their spirit of giving, but also for inspiring others to consider that they can make a difference, too,” said John Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc. “We congratulate this extraordinary group of youth volunteers.”
“These students are fine examples of what is possible when young people roll up their sleeves and commit themselves to helping others,” said Denise Greene-Wilkinson, president of NASSP. “They have learned early that their contributions can make a real difference, and there is no limit to the great things they can achieve.”
Youth volunteers were invited to apply for 2013 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards last fall through schools, Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and affiliates of the HandsOn Network. More than 28,000 middle level and high school students nationwide participated in this year’s program.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program was created in 1995 to identify and recognize young people for outstanding volunteer service – and, in so doing, inspire others to volunteer as well. In the past 18 years, the program has honored more than 100,000 young volunteers at the local, state and national level.
More information about The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards and this year’s honorees can be found at http://spirit.prudential.com or www.nassp.org/spirit.
NASSP (National Association of Secondary School Principals) is the leading organization of and national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and all school leaders from across the United States and more than 38 countries around the world. The association provides research-based professional development and resources, networking, and advocacy to build the capacity of middle level and high school leaders to continually improve student performance. Reflecting its longstanding commitment to student leadership development as well, 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.
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 http://www.news.prudential.com/
[Editors: For full-color pictures of the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program logo and medallions, click here: http://bit.ly/Xi4oFW]
