WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Delaware's top two youth volunteers of 2014, Julia Murphy, 17, of Newark and Natalie Onesi, 14, of Wilmington, were honored in the nation’s capital last night for their outstanding volunteer service during the 19th annual presentation of The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Julia and Natalie – along with 100 other top youth volunteers from across the country – each received $1,000 awards and personal congratulations from Academy Award-winning actor Forest Whitaker at an award ceremony and gala dinner reception held at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program, sponsored by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), named Julia and Natalie Delaware'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.
Julia, a junior at Newark High School, played an instrumental role in running a statewide sleeping bag drive that provided bags to more than 1,000 homeless children in Delaware. Julia became involved after learning that there are more than 5,000 children in her state who live in shelters, cars or abandoned buildings. “Before I got involved in this project, I thought of homelessness as an adult statistic,” said Julia. “There is often not much children can do about being homeless. I wanted them to have something of their own that would also keep them warm.”
Julia and a group of students at Newark High joined with the Governor’s Advisory Council for Exceptional Citizens to recruit schools and businesses across the state to serve as collection points where residents could drop off new or gently-used sleeping bags. To get the word out to potential donors, Julia and her team created flyers, issued press releases, arranged a press conference and gave interviews to the news media. Julia met with politicians and business leaders throughout Delaware to garner support, and got a big boost when Walmart made a donation and agreed to provide sleeping bags at wholesale prices. By the end of the drive, volunteers had collected over 1,000 sleeping bags, which were distributed through homeless liaisons across Delaware. Julia hopes to collect even more sleeping bags in future drives, for there is still much work to be done, she said. “This problem is large and will take years and the support of the entire state.”
Natalie, an eighth-grader at Ursuline Academy, devotes a week every summer to repairing homes for people with injuries or disabilities who otherwise would have to live with leaking roofs or peeling paint. Natalie said she is inspired to volunteer by her church, which teaches its members to “help those who cannot help themselves.” Two years ago, a family friend suggested that Natalie and her brother join a religious retreat that draws 400 students from across the nation to a designated city to work on up to 60 homes whose owners cannot afford to hire workers to make repairs.
During the summer, Natalie gets up at 6 a.m. during her retreat week and heads off to work with other students on their assigned repairs. She then spends the day painting, roofing, building rails, installing siding – whatever repairs are needed. An important part of the program besides the repairs is building a relationship with the people she is helping. At the end of the week, Natalie feels as though she’s made a difference in people’s lives. “I remember leaving the house I was working on for the last time,” she said. As she and her coworkers drove away, the homeowner flashed a wide smile. “I saw him kiss his wife on the head and turn around to stare at his ‘new’ house. Then I saw him waving and crying.”
“These honorees are shining examples of what is possible when young people use their energy and initiative to help their communities,” said John Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc. “We are proud to recognize their accomplishments, and look forward to seeing the great things they achieve in the future.”
“Through their service, these students have not only made a difference in the lives of others – they’ve provided their peers with a powerful example of what it looks like to be an outstanding youth volunteer,” said Barbara-Jane (BJ) Paris, president of NASSP. “Congratulations to each of the 2014 honorees for a job well done.”
Youth volunteers in grades 5-12 were invited to apply for 2014 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 30,000 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, too. In the past 19 years, the program has honored more than 100,000 young volunteers at the local, state and national level.
For more information about The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards and this year’s honorees, 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 national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and all school leaders from across the United States and more than 36 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
