Hunter Gandee, 15, of Temperance and Caleb White, 12, of Commerce
Township today were named Michigan's top two youth volunteers of 2015 by
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring
young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. Hunter was nominated
by Bedford High School in Temperance, and Caleb was nominated by
Clifford H. Smart Middle School in Walled Lake. The Prudential Spirit of
Community Awards, now in its 20th year, is conducted by Prudential
Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary
School Principals (NASSP).
Hunter, a freshman at Bedford High School, carried his 8-year-old
brother, who has cerebral palsy, on a 40-mile walk to increase awareness
of the disease, and raised $115,000 to support research and build an
all-inclusive playground at his brother’s elementary school. Hunter said
he had been looking for a way to let people know about the challenges of
cerebral palsy because his brother “needed better equipment, better
medical practices, and better support from the world around him.” But
nothing came to mind until his mother told him she had a dream in which
Hunter was carrying his younger brother. “We decided to turn that idea
into reality,” said Hunter.
Hunter spent three months talking about his planned walk to the news
media and to students at other schools. Then, on June 7, he put his
brother, Braden, on his back at 8 a.m. in front of 250 supporters in his
school’s wrestling room and began walking. Every three hours they took a
break, but the day was hot, and when Hunter stopped walking for the
night, it was 11 p.m. The next morning, the boys pushed on and finally,
to cheers and applause, arrived in the middle of the afternoon at their
destination – the University of Michigan wresting center. “Both my
brother and I were physically and emotionally exhausted,” said Hunter.
“I was sore and stiff but I knew we had to make it.” Although Hunter did
not ask directly for donations, he linked his Facebook page to the
Cerebral Palsy Research Consortium at the University of Michigan and
attracted more than $15,000 in donations. Since then, over $100,000 has
been donated directly to Braden by people who saw stories about Hunter’s
walk. This money will be used to build an all-inclusive playground at
Braden’s school, said Hunter.
Caleb, a seventh-grader at Clifford H. Smart Middle School, hands out
boxes of food, toiletries and warm garments to the homeless on the
streets of Detroit each year during the Christmas season, and last
August threw a back-to-school party that provided 800 children in need
with backpacks stuffed with new school supplies. When Caleb was 6, he
was driving to the circus with his family when he saw a homeless man
sleeping on the side of the road and wondered why he wasn’t sleeping in
a house. When Caleb learned the man didn’t have a home, he wanted to do
something to help, so he decided to put together holiday boxes and
distribute them to homeless people. During the 2014 holiday season,
Caleb passed out 150 of his Christmas boxes and 100 winter coats.
Last summer, Caleb heard from a pastor who had to cancel an annual
back-to-school party for kids in need due to lack of funds. “I certainly
did want to help,” said Caleb. He sent an email to a prominent
businessman who helped start a school supply company to see about
getting discounted supplies. To his amazement, the man asked the CEOs of
several companies to help Caleb plan an event. Caleb’s school also
helped by sending emails to parents and a press release to publicize the
party. On August 23, more than 100 volunteers showed up to treat 800
children in need to a fun-filled day. Local barbers cut hair, a nail
salon gave girls manicures, and there was plenty of food and lots of
games to play. Most importantly, Caleb made sure every child left with
the supplies needed to start the school year. “I am a boy with lots of
new friends,” he said, “who feels thankful for the opportunity to bring
a smile to people’s faces.”
As State Honorees, Hunter and Caleb 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 2015.
Distinguished Finalists
The program judges also recognized eight other Michigan students as
Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service
activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion.
These are Michigan's Distinguished Finalists for 2015:
Alexis French, 17, of Kalamazoo, Mich., a senior at Mattawan High
School, is one of 13 members of the “Mattawan Dream Team,” a group that
has raised $51,000 since 2012 to support cancer research by sponsoring
an annual district-wide kickball tournament. Alexis, who initially
supported the project by forming a team with her friend, who is a cancer
survivor, later joined the Dream Team and helped to secure sponsorships,
donations and participants.
Curtis Hsu, 17, of Troy, Mich., a senior at Athens High School,
collected 1,650 pairs of shoes for children in developing countries and
1,500 articles of clothing for the people living on Native American
reservations as the founder of “Cross Continents,” a club at his high
school he started in 2012. Curtis, inspired by his father’s stories of
growing up in Taiwan and walking to school barefoot, has worked closely
with school administrators and nonprofit organizations, recruited
student volunteers, and coordinated shoe and clothing drives at local
schools to help inspire kids to help kids in need.
Sophia Koolwick, 17, of Ortonville, Mich., a senior at Everest
Collegiate High School, served on the leadership team for her Catholic
Youth Organization and, as a sophomore, she was responsible for planning
the group’s annual Rainbow Youth Conference, hosting several segments
during the conference and facilitating weekly meetings. More recently,
Sophia went on a service trip to Haiti with the group Missionaries of
Charity and helped to run a summer day camp, comfort the sick, and
assist physicians during medical procedures.
John McHarg, 17, of Alpena, Mich., a senior at Alpena High
School, started a pumpkin patch charity with his brother in 2006 and has
donated 100% of the proceeds over the past eight years to a variety of
local causes, including helping people pay for medical bills and
supporting soup kitchens and women’s shelters. John, who works with his
brother to till the land, plant the seeds, maintain the patch and tend
to the harvest, plans to continue his charity patch for many years to
come.
T'Yara McMillan, 17, of Detroit, Mich., a senior at Mercy High
School, founded “Young People of Purpose,” a mentoring and tutoring
program that pairs mentors from several local schools with students
between grades 5 and 10 who lack self-esteem or need a positive role
model. T’Yara conducted research and developed a plan for the program,
pitched it to the local middle school to receive approval and has been
coordinating the program since the summer of 2014.
Megan Notoriano, 17, of St. Clair Shores, Mich., a senior at
Regina High School, founded the “All Kids Matter” pageant for children
and adults with special needs in 2011, and collaborated with the
administrators of the Miss Downriver Scholarship Program to help. Megan,
who holds the title of Miss Teen St. Clair Shores, encouraged typical
pageant sponsors to sponsor this special pageant, and also recruited
friends to mentor the participants and help them with hair, makeup and,
most importantly, their self-esteem.
Michael Shao, 18, of Northville, Mich., a senior at Detroit
Country Day School, collected more than 3,200 children’s books and
donated them to the Central Detroit Christian Community Development
Corporation to help stock its new library for kids in need. Michael, who
first learned that many children do not have books of their own while
volunteering at the Summer in the City summer camp, reached out to
libraries, schools and friends to arrange book drives for his project,
and is now raising funds to purchase book shelves for the library.
Julia Teatro, 17, of Fenton, Mich., a senior at Fenton Senior
High School, has helped to raise $30,000 to support the local animal
shelter by co-chairing the shelter’s annual auction. Julia, an animal
lover who originally began volunteering at the shelter but wanted to do
more, stepped up to co-chair the auction in 2012 and is responsible for
sorting, organizing and preparing 300 silent auction items.
“Prudential is honored to celebrate the contributions of these
remarkable young volunteers,” said Prudential Chairman and CEO John
Strangfeld. “By shining a spotlight on the difference they’ve made in
their communities, we hope others are inspired to volunteer, too.”
“These students have not only improved their communities through their
exemplary volunteer service, but also set a fine example for their
peers,” said JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. “Each of
their stories is proof of the impact one young person can have when they
decide to make a difference.”
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 4, 10 of the State Honorees –
five middle level and five high school students – will be named
America’s top youth volunteers of 2015. 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 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
Copyright Business Wire 2015