WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--North Dakota's top two youth volunteers of 2015, Nichole Hanzel, 18, of Killdeer and Lauren Knoll, 13, of Fargo, were honored in the nation’s capital last night for their outstanding volunteer service during the 20th annual presentation of The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Lauren – along with 100 other top youth volunteers from across the country – received a $1,000 award and personal congratulations from “Good Morning America” co-anchor Robin Roberts at an award ceremony and gala dinner reception held at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. Nichole, who was unable to attend last night’s events, was honored in absentia for her 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 Nichole and Lauren North Dakota'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.
Nichole, a senior at Killdeer High School, created a youth cadet program for a local ambulance service to raise money for emergency medical care in her small but booming town, to assist at the ambulance squad’s station house, and to give junior high and high school students a chance to learn about emergency medicine. Two years ago, Nichole moved from a place where there were almost a thousand students in her class to a small town in North Dakota where there were only 30 students her age. “I was very much against the move,” said Nichole. “But I’ve always been taught that when I feel sorry for myself, I should do something for someone else.” When she learned that the Killdeer Area Ambulance Service was desperate for more volunteers to handle
a sharp increase in calls due to the area’s oil boom, she started taking EMT classes with her parents. But she wanted to do more, and began thinking of other ways she could help while getting other young people involved as well.
Nichole proposed forming a youth cadet chapter to the ambulance director, who loved the idea. Her plan was then announced at school during halftime at a home football game, and several students came forward to join. Nichole’s cadets, who now number about a dozen, began by selling first-aid kits and checking blood pressure at a Christmas craft bazaar in exchange for donations. Members also have gone door-to-door soliciting funds to buy supplies for the ambulance squad. In addition, the cadets help out at the ambulance station by washing the vehicles, stocking supplies and serving meals at board meetings. “I can’t begin to describe how much I have grown personally,” said Nichole, who is now a licensed EMT. “It has certainly changed my outlook on living in a small town in North Dakota.”
Lauren, a seventh-grader at Park Christian School, has been volunteering once a month for the past nine years at a local homeless center, preparing and serving meals, and visiting with the homeless. She also has participated in several community service events sponsored by her church, school, the Salvation Army and a local animal shelter. Lauren was encouraged to volunteer by her mother, who also started serving her community when she was very young. One day Lauren’s brother came home from school and said he needed to find a community service project. Their mother made some calls and discovered a shelter that needed help for Thanksgiving. “We decided that we wanted to do this every month,” said Lauren. “It is important for me to do this because I need a constant reminder of my blessings and to take the spotlight off of me and put it onto others.”
Each month, Lauren, along with her grandmother, mother and two brothers, goes to the shelter to prepare a meal for people in need. She cuts up vegetables to make salads and vegetable trays, helps prepare and cook a main course, slices fruit, pours drinks and arranges trays of desserts. She then sits down and visits with the people who come to eat. “When I see their faces light up after receiving a warm meal or a big hug, it makes my heart soar,” said Lauren. “I love volunteering because I love planting that seed of hope in hearts that seem to be running low.”
“As we celebrate the 20th anniversary of The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, we are delighted to recognize the 2015 honorees for their exemplary volunteer service,” said John Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc. “These young people have demonstrated leadership, compassion and perseverance, and we look forward to seeing all they accomplish in the future.”
“These honorees represent the best of what America’s youth have to offer,” said G.A. Buie, president of NASSP. “They have set a powerful example for their peers by proving that one young person really can make a difference, and it is a privilege to shine a spotlight on their good works.”
Youth volunteers in grades 5-12 were invited to apply for 2015 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 33,000 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 20 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 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
For B-roll of North Dakota's honorees at the 2015 national recognition events, contact Prudential’s Harold Banks at (973) 216-4833 or harold.banks@prudential.com.
