RALEIGH, N.C., Feb. 7, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Victoria Kosinski, 18, of Kinston and Caleb Lumpkin, 13, of Winston-Salem today were named North Carolina's top two youth volunteers of
2017 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of
volunteerism. As State Honorees, Victoria 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 2017.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, now in its 22nd year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in
partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
These are North Carolina's top youth volunteers of 2017:
High School State Honoree: Victoria Kosinski
Nominated by Girl Scouts North Carolina Coastal Pines in Raleigh
Victoria, a senior at Kinston High School, taught a self-defense course and coordinated the renovation of a new domestic
violence shelter in her community as part of her multi-faceted program to empower women and educate the public about domestic
violence. Victoria was volunteering to help the homeless when she met the director of a local domestic violence program. "She
told me about the needs of women who were victims of DV," she said. "She shared that many DV survivors become homeless, so I made
the decision to develop a program to serve these women."
Victoria, the holder of a second-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, began by teaching unarmed self-defense skills to 60 women,
using a PowerPoint presentation that included information on domestic violence and what to do when faced with an armed intruder.
After learning that a building had been donated to the United Way, Victoria volunteered to lead a renovation project and turn it
into an 18-bed facility for women and children fleeing abuse. She reached out to the community for donations of beds, appliances,
clothing, food and other items through flyers, social media, and interviews with the press. She also rallied volunteers and
secured the donation of major landscaping and construction services from a hardware store. The new facility opened last fall.
Middle Level State Honoree: Caleb Lumpkin
Nominated by Winston Salem Christian School
Caleb, an eighth-grader at Winston Salem Christian School, is a volunteer facilitator of a book club that teaches and
encourages people with intellectual disabilities to read. A couple of years ago, while performing in a community musical, Caleb
befriended a man with Down syndrome. "He is one of the nicest people I have ever met and we formed a close bond," said Caleb.
After the show was over, the man's mother told Caleb about the Next Chapter Book Club, a nonprofit organization that sponsors
community book groups for adolescents and adults with Down syndrome, autism and other intellectual disabilities. She asked Caleb
if he would be interested in becoming a facilitator.
After training to lead a group, Caleb began meeting with five or more adults of varying reading abilities on Sundays.
Typically, Caleb's group each week reads two to five chapters of books designed for early readers. "When they get to read a story
and sound out words by themselves, the joy on their faces is indescribable," said Caleb. When the readers finish a book, the club
has a party to celebrate their accomplishment. "I have learned to never judge a book by its cover," said Caleb. "All people are
special and no one should be judged or experience discrimination ... and everyone deserves to hear or read a good book!"
Distinguished Finalists
The program judges also recognized six other North Carolina students as Distinguished
Finalists for their impressive community service activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion.
These are North Carolina's Distinguished Finalists for 2017:
William Baldwin, 18, of Fletcher, N.C., a member of
Buncombe County 4-H and a senior at A. C. Reynolds High School, led an effort that turned a
grassy area at the Lord's Acre community garden into a permaculture garden with grapevines, mulberry trees and more, offering a
self-sufficient resource to the community that also provides fresh produce for people in need. After doing some research, William
secured donations of mulch and plants and recruited eight volunteers to help bring his concept to life.
Grace Ferebee, 17, of Shawboro, N.C., a senior at
Ferebee Homeschool, knits hats to cheer up other young patients at The Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters in Norfolk.
Grace took on the project to keep busy while undergoing hospital treatments and being homebound, and to brighten the days of
other sick kids; she has saved up money and used coupons to buy materials for the hats, and delivers the finished products to the
hospital's volunteer services office when she visits for appointments.
Hannah Scanlon, 17, of Raleigh, N.C., a senior at
Millbrook High School, founded "Music is Instrumental," a program that works to enhance the music education of local students by
running the North Raleigh Honor Band for middle schoolers and providing related service opportunities for its high school
mentors. Hannah wanted to provide local kids with music opportunities as robust as the ones in her old hometown, and has since
provided dozens of middle and high school musicians with opportunities to learn and grow.
Patterson Sheehan, 18, of Raleigh, N.C., a senior at
St. David's School, has raised money to travel on service trips to Ethiopia, Guatemala and Rwanda, where she provided services ranging from childcare to
building a roof of a school. Patterson, who developed a stronger sense of community after her family adopted a young boy from
Ethiopia, has also volunteered to coach the middle school boys soccer team at her school.
James Willett, 16, of Asheboro, N.C., a junior at
Asheboro High School, built a demonstration teaching garden focused on the native grasses of North
Carolina's Central Piedmont area, and created an educational brochure with details about
the native grasses. James's project aims to raise awareness about incorporating native plants – which don't require watering and
fertilizing like other popular plants - into landscaping and farming, to help reduce the amount of fertilizer and nitrogen
washing into local streams.
Tina Y, 14, of Charlotte, N.C., a freshman at Myers Park High School, has volunteered
for the past five years providing support to refugee assistance efforts as a way of giving back to the agencies that helped her
and her family when they came to the U.S. from Vietnam when she was 3 years old. Tina
regularly volunteers with a Wednesday refugee help center by watching children and distributing fresh vegetables; she also lends
a hand with special events, and has served as a "refugee spokesperson" for media opportunities.
"Prudential is honored to recognize these young volunteers for their exemplary service," said Prudential Chairman and CEO
John Strangfeld. "We hope that their stories inspire others to consider how they, too, can
volunteer their time and talents to improve their communities."
"These service-minded young people have brought meaningful change to communities at home and abroad, and it's a privilege to
celebrate their work," said JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. "Congratulations to an
exceptional group of middle level and high school students."
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 8, 10 of the State
Honorees – five middle level and five high school students – will be named America's top youth volunteers of 2017. 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 115,000 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 middle level and
high school principals, assistant principals, and school leaders from across the United States.
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.
For Spirit of Community Awards program logo and medallion graphics, please visit https://spirit.prudential.com/resources/media
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