Utah's Top Youth Volunteers of 2021 Selected by National Program

NEWARK, N.J., Feb. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Jisung Lee, 18, of Logan and Levi Holmstead, 12, of Lehi today were named Utah's top youth volunteers of 2021 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, America's largest youth recognition program based exclusively on volunteer service.

As State Honorees, Jisung and Levi will each receive a $2,500 scholarship, a silver medallion and an invitation to the program's virtual national recognition celebration in April, where 10 of the 102 State Honorees will be named America's top youth volunteers of the year. Those 10 National Honorees will earn an additional $5,000 scholarship, a gold medallion, a crystal trophy for their nominating organization and a $5,000 grant for a nonprofit charitable organization of their choice.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, conducted annually by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), honors students in grades 5-12 for making meaningful contributions to their communities through volunteer service.

"We created the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards 26 years ago to highlight and support the work of young people taking on the challenges of a changing world – a mission that rings truer than ever given the events of last year," said Charles Lowrey, Prudential's chairman and CEO. "We are proud to celebrate the vision and determination of Spirit of Community's Class of 2021, and all the ways they're making their communities safer, healthier and more equitable places to live."

These are Utah's top youth volunteers of 2021:

High School State Honoree: Jisung Lee
Nominated by Logan High School

Jisung, a senior at Logan High School, formed an organization that is helping teen refugees in Utah feel welcomed, adjust to their new surroundings, excel in the classroom, and learn about educational opportunities beyond high school. While attending middle school in France, Jisung encountered many classmates from northern Africa, who helped her appreciate the value of cultural diversity and the importance of acceptance and kindness. But when she moved to a rural town in Utah, she found that there was very little diversity, and that most of the teen refugees there were seen as outsiders. "Knowing these students' potential, I wanted to give back the kindness I had received in France," said Jisung, "and empower them to pursue their dreams."

So in mid-2019, Jisung launched a youth organization called UTREAT (for "Utah Teen Refugee Education and Tutoring") to "lessen the educational disparities that youth refugees face in their lives." To get help, she reached out to local refugee organizations and recruited students and adults from several communities. Then she built a website and began organizing monthly book drives and weekly tutoring sessions for teen refugees. Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Jisung has been delivering books in sanitized bags to more than 20 refugee households, creating tutoring videos on core subjects for every grade level, and working on a blog to help teen refugees understand the college application process and scholarship opportunities. Jisung's organization now has chapters in three towns, and is working with 20 high school students, 15 adult volunteers and more than 10 educational programs and nonprofit organizations to accomplish its mission.

Middle Level State Honoree: Levi Holmstead
Nominated by Lehi Junior High School

Levi, a seventh-grader at Lehi Junior High School, spent many hours cleaning up litter in and around a nearby lake, and removing errant golf balls from waterways surrounding a local golf course. "I love being around waterways," explained Levi. "I see lots of cool animals and wildlife." While riding on his paddleboard at a lake one day, "I realized how much garbage there was all over the place," he said. "There was years of garbage and some of it was submerged." He quickly committed himself to picking up 100 pieces of trash every time he visited the lake. He started by picking up discarded fishing tackle so barefooted visitors wouldn't get hurt. Then he pulled an old bicycle out of the water.

Levi tried to spend a couple of hours twice a week picking up trash at the lake, sometimes recruiting his father, sister and cousins to help. He has since been proud to see some large fish in areas that he cleaned up. "If it stays clean, I hope others will want to keep it that way," he said. "If others litter, I will pick up after them." Levi also invited friends to help him fish golf balls out of water holes at a local golf course. Working 1-3 hours on 15 different occasions, they removed more than 500 balls. "The big thing I learned last summer is that playing a game on a TV or computer screen isn't as fun as doing a service project outside with your friends and family," said Levi.

State Honorees in The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards Class of 2021 – the top middle level and high school volunteer from all 50 states and the District of Columbia – were selected for service initiatives completed, at least in part, between the fall of 2019 and the fall of 2020. Selection was based on criteria including impact, effort, initiative and the personal growth demonstrated over the course of the project. Several Distinguished Finalists and runners-up were also selected in each state, and all qualifying applicants received President's Volunteer Service Awards. 

"It speaks volumes about the character of today's secondary school students that the Spirit of Community program heard from more than 21,000 applicants this fall – most of them stories of young volunteers overcoming the hardships of a global pandemic to support those in need," said Ronn Nozoe, Chief Executive Officer, NASSP. "While we're especially proud to celebrate this year's 102 State Honorees, NASSP applauds every student who's found a way to volunteer this past year. You inspire your peers and adults alike to remember that, even in times of crisis, we all have something to give."

To read the names and stories of all of this year's State Honorees, visit http://spirit.prudential.com.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial wellness leader and premier active global investment manager, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Prudential's diverse and talented employees help to make lives better by creating financial opportunity for more people. Prudential's iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit news.prudential.com. 

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 http://nassp.org.

SOURCE Prudential Financial, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.PRUDENTIAL.com