Elijah Evans, 16, of Youngsville and Madison Waldron, 13, of Haughton
today were named Louisiana's top two youth volunteers of 2014 by The
Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring
young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. Elijah was nominated
by Comeaux High School in Lafayette, and Madison was nominated by
Haughton Middle School in Haughton. The Prudential Spirit of Community
Awards, now in its 19th year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in
partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals
(NASSP).
Elijah Evans, 16, of Youngsville, La., a sophomore at Comeaux High
School, works in his community to raise awareness of child abuse and
improve the lives of foster children by promoting and hosting an annual
Christmas party for children in foster care. Elijah knows from personal
experience what it’s like to be abused and to be a foster child. When he
was 2, his biological mother put him in a tub full of scalding water. “I
was burned from the waist down and lost all the toes on my right foot
and my toes on my left foot are webbed together,” he said. He spent
nearly three years in foster care until he was adopted by one of the
nurses who had cared for him during his many trips to the hospital. By
the time he was in eighth grade, Elijah decided he wanted to make people
more aware of child abuse, and do something special for foster kids.
“One of my dreams I had when I was 8 years old was to give a Christmas
party for children in foster care, because I knew what it was like to
not get gifts you really want,” he said.
Elijah estimated that he would need $5,000 to host his first Christmas
party, so he began fundraising. He spoke about child abuse prevention
and shared his story and his plan with local churches, schools, civic
organizations and the news media. He recruited volunteers, collected
donations, and sold raffle tickets and T-shirts that he designed. The
Department of Children and Family Services identified 72 foster kids for
Elijah to invite. Each child filled out a Christmas wish list and Elijah
went shopping for presents. “Seeing the smiles on the children’s faces
when they received their gifts and watching them enjoy the party made it
all worthwhile," said Elijah. Since then, his “Christmas of Hope” party
has become a yearly event; he has formed an official organization called
“No Use for Abuse” to pursue more initiatives to help abused children
and foster children “feel wanted and know someone cares for them.”
Madison Waldron, 13, of Haughton, La., an eighth-grader at Haughton
Middle School, works to improve the lives of homeless dogs by fostering
homeless puppies, fundraising, and giving presentations to local groups
on the importance of having pets spayed and neutered. A dog lover for as
long as she can remember, Madison never realized there were unwanted
dogs until her mother took her to visit an animal shelter when she was 9
years old. “I always thought that dogs at the shelter were just lost,”
she said. “My mom explained to me that some of these dogs would never be
adopted and that the shelter would eventually have to put them down.”
That thought broke Madison’s heart. “I left that shelter on a mission,”
she said.
Her first fundraiser was an iced tea stand, which raised $60 that she
used to buy treats and toys for the shelter dogs. She then organized two
penny drives and had friends bring dog treats and toys instead of
presents to her birthday party. In 2012, she began working as a foster
parent for Louisiana Baby Mommas (LABM), a nonprofit organization that
rescues pregnant canines and puppies. To date, Madison has acted as
foster parent to more than 100 puppies, helping with potty training,
vaccinations and worming medication. She is happy to say that all of her
puppies have been adopted. When Madison learned that LABM’s bank account
was low, she started the “Keep Your Paws Clean” campaign, selling
personalized hand sanitizers and raising $1,400 in just two months. Over
the years, Madison’s efforts have raised nearly $8,500 for homeless dogs
in her community. “The homeless dog population is an epidemic,” Madison
said. “I encourage people looking for a new pet to check the local
shelters and rescues first. Adopt Don’t Shop!”
As State Honorees, Elijah and Madison 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 2014.
Distinguished Finalists
The program judges also recognized four other Louisiana students as
Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service
activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion.
These are Louisiana's Distinguished Finalists for 2014:
Chase Brouillette, 16, of Baton Rouge, La., a sophomore at
Catholic High School, coordinated a team that produced mini-biographical
videos for more than 30 patients at a local nursing home for people with
Alzheimer’s disease. Chase, who had volunteered in nursing homes in the
past and developed an interest in helping dementia patients reclaim as
much memory as possible, recruited a team of friends who worked closely
with nursing home officials and patients’ families to create
long-lasting video memories.
Isabel Caballero, 14, of Slidell, La., a freshman at Mount Carmel
Academy, founded the “Care and Cure Foundation,” a nonprofit
organization that has raised more than $1,000 to benefit the American
Association of Cancer Research. Isabel, who wanted to honor her
grandmother, has made and sold rainbow bracelets and created a website,
and is now in the process of planning a festival to raise awareness.
Bryttani MacNamara, 15, of Sulphur, La., a freshman at Sulphur
High School, founded “Operation Hope,” an organization run completely by
teenagers with the goal of ending human trafficking and slavery. Since
its founding in 2012, Bryttani has organized a charity walk, coordinated
lemonade stands, held awareness events at hotels and truck stops, and
raised $500 to support the “End It Movement.”
Isaac McFarland, 16, of Keithville, La., a member of the Caddo
Parish 4-H and a junior at Caddo Parish Magnet High School, founded
“Game Changers Let’s Tackle Hunger,” a campaign that helped provide more
than 1,000 customized tackle boxes filled with healthy breakfast food to
children in need. Isaac also organized a food drive that yielded two
tons of items for his local food bank, made and served jambalya at a
soup kitchen with meat from his family’s farm, and created an ambassador
program where young mentors teach others about the benefits of healthy
eating and exercise.
“We applaud each of these young people for their exemplary volunteer
service,” said Prudential Chairman and CEO John Strangfeld. “They use
their time and talents to make a meaningful difference in their
communities, and we hope their example inspires others to do the same.”
“By going above and beyond in their volunteer service, these students
have brought positive change to communities across the country,” said
JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. “Congratulations to each
and every one of them on this well-deserved honor.”
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 HandsOn Network affiliates, 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 5, 10 of the State Honorees –
five middle level and five high school students – will be named
America’s top youth volunteers of 2014. 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 100,000 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 and China. 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 on
behalf of President Barack Obama.
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 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
Copyright Business Wire 2014