SALT LAKE CITY, Feb. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Armani McFarland, 15, of Farr West and Gabbie
Lundberg, 11, of South
Jordan today were named Utah's top two youth volunteers of 2019 by The
Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program
honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. As
State Honorees, Armani and Gabbie 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 2019.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, now in its
24th year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in
partnership with the National Association of Secondary School
Principals (NASSP).
These are Utah's top youth
volunteers of 2019:
High School State Honoree: Armani McFarland
Nominated by Weber High School
Armani, a sophomore at Weber High School, has conducted 27
collection and fundraising drives over the past seven years that
have yielded more than 6,000 backpacks stuffed with school supplies
for children from low-income families, as well as food, books,
toys, clothing and hygiene items for other individuals and families
in need. When she was in the third grade, Armani heard from her
teacher that there were kids in their own community who went to bed
hungry at night. "That thought broke my heart," she said. Her
response: a food drive that collected 1,000 pounds for a local food
bank.
Shortly thereafter, Armani began collecting backpacks and school
supplies for kids in need. Many other projects followed, and in
2016, Armani founded a nonprofit, "One Can Make a Change." To
conduct her collection and fundraising initiatives, she seeks
donations through her website, solicits support from local
businesses, and arranges activities such as raffles, bake sales,
barbecues and lemonade stands. In addition to her food drives and
annual backpack project, Armani has provided books to kids, stuffed
animals to traumatized and injured children, and clothing and
toiletries to the homeless. Recently, Armani helped pay for a new
$12,000 roof on a teen shelter in
Ogden. She also has traveled to
Ghana with an international
nonprofit to help install a water tank and to spend time with
children at an orphanage. "Volunteering is not always easy,
exciting or fun," said Armani. "Sometimes it's really hard. But it
has always been worth it. I am constantly motivated by the smiles
that the much-needed items bring to so many
faces."
Middle Level State Honoree: Gabbie Lundberg
Nominated by North Star Academy
Gabbie, a sixth-grader at North Star Academy, organized a day
camp in her basement for children in her neighborhood in order to
raise money for refugees in Utah.
Gabbie has loved babysitting kids for as long as she can remember.
Watching her mother volunteering on behalf of refugees, she tried
to think of a way that she could help, too. Then an idea came to
her in the middle of the night: She could combine her love of
children with her desire to assist refugees by hosting a daycare
event and then donating the
proceeds.
The next day, Gabbie began making a flier to advertise her "Camp
Awesome" for kids 4 to 7 years old. She distributed it around her
neighborhood, tidied up her basement, and gathered toys, games and
music. Soon her phone started ringing with calls from parents
wanting to enroll their children. "I had a whopping 38 kids who
wanted to come to camp!" Gabbie said. Realizing that that was too
many kids for one person to handle, she recruited a friend to help
supervise. The camp featured dancing, singing, game-playing and
other fun activities, plus certificates and awards that Gabbie
spent hours preparing. She also had to make sure that all the
children got along and that those who were sad being away from home
got special attention. Camp Awesome raised almost $200, which Gabbie donated to a Utah organization that supports refugee
families. She plans to hold her camp again this
summer.
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 2019:
Raymond Briener, 18, of
Kanab, Utah, a senior at
Kanab High School, led a search team in his local community,
helping his local police force to look for a 19-year-old man who
had gone missing. Using social media to spread awareness of the
situation and to recruit more than 30 volunteers, Raymond
distributed maps to the search team, outlined the areas where the
man had last been seen and then led a nearly 12-hour search.
Noah Dansie, 17, of
Provo, Utah, a senior at
Provo High School, serves his high school community in a variety of
ways, including through his involvement in student government,
National Honor Society, Hope Squad and marching and jazz band.
Currently serving as student body president, Noah also helped
organize a drive that collected more than 77,000 cans of food for
Utah's Food & Care Coalition,
and played a leadership role planning his high school's first-ever
homecoming parade and tailgate.
Caleb O'Neill, 18, of
North Ogden, Utah, a
senior at Weber High School, served as a builder during a
humanitarian trip, teaching English and working with local
residents to complete a new school building in Battambang,
Cambodia. To prepare for his trip,
Caleb learned about Cambodian culture and history, prepared English
lessons, and raised money to finance his trip by making and selling
bath bombs and completing odd jobs in his community.
McCall Tebbs, 18, of
Panguitch, Utah, a senior
at Panguitch High School, raised more than $70,000 to help offset the medical expenses not
covered by insurance for her nephew, who received surgery for
spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. McCall raised money by
organizing fundraising events such as a basketball tournament, bake
sale, rodeo and auction, as well as by selling T-shirts and
spreading awareness about her nephew and his story.
"These young volunteers learned and demonstrated that they
can make meaningful contributions to individuals and
communities through their service," said Prudential CEO
Charles Lowrey. "It's an honor to
recognize their great work, and we hope that shining a spotlight on
their service inspires others to consider how they might make a
difference."
"Each of these honorees is proof that students have the energy,
creativity and unique perspectives to create positive change," said
JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director
of NASSP. "We commend each of the 2019 honorees for their
outstanding volunteer service, and for the invaluable example
they've set for their peers."
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 affiliates of Points of Light's HandsOn
Network, 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 6, 10 of the
State Honorees – five middle level and five high school students –
will be named America's top youth volunteers of 2019. 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 125,000 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.
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 principals and other
school leaders across the United
States. NASSP seeks to transform education through school
leadership, recognizing that the fulfillment of each student's
potential relies on great leaders in every school committed to the
success of each student. 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 Student Council. Learn
more at 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.
For Spirit of Community Awards
program logo and medallion
graphics, please visit
https://spirit.prudential.com/resources/media
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