WASHINGTON, May 6, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- North Dakota's top two youth volunteers of 2019, Ishika Gupta, 17, of Fargo and Olivia Allen, 12, of Reiles Acres, were honored in the nation's capital last night for their outstanding volunteer service during the 24th annual presentation of The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Ishika and Olivia – along with 100 other top youth volunteers from across the country – received a $1,000 award and personal congratulations from award-winning actress Viola Davis at an award ceremony and gala dinner reception held at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program, sponsored by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), named Ishika and Olivia North Dakota's top high school and middle level youth volunteers in February. In addition to their cash awards, they each received an engraved silver medallion and an all-expense-paid trip with a parent to Washington, D.C., for four days of recognition events.
Ishika, a senior at Davies High School, started a nonprofit organization two years ago that donates bassinets for babies whose families lack a secure place for them to sleep. While volunteering at the American Indian Resource Center, Ishika met a young mother with a son who was born eight weeks prematurely and did not have a safe place of his own to sleep. "He was pale and barely moving," said Ishika, who also was a premature infant. "I thought of my own bassinet, how it kept me warm, safe, and healthy." As a volunteer at the center, she had visited several Native American reservations and from conversations with center staff knew that the rate of sudden infant death syndrome was higher than average in this population and was sometimes due to unsafe sleeping arrangements.
So Ishika began researching the issue and decided to create "Cradle Me Care" to try to reduce infant mortality in her state. After gaining nonprofit status, she developed a website, began organizing fundraisers such as raffles and door-to-door appeals, applied for grants, contacted the media to promote her events, and developed relationships with local healthcare and social services agencies for referrals. So far, she has purchased more than 100 bassinets and distributed them to organizations that help parents in need in two states and three tribal communities. In addition to her bassinet project, Ishika continues to be an active volunteer at the American Indian Resource Center, where she helped organize and lead a summit on disparities in tribal oral health. She also has helped monitor and analyze local, state and federal policies that impact the health of Native Americans.
Olivia, a sixth-grader at Cheney Middle School, has organized blanket-making events that have produced more than 600 fleece security blankets for hospitalized or traumatized children in need of comfort. In 2009, Olivia started experiencing seizures and was eventually diagnosed with epilepsy. During one of several hospitalizations, she was handed a blanket. "I know how good the blanket made me feel. A blanket makes you feel like you are at home," Olivia said. The blanket Olivia was given at the hospital came from Project Linus, an organization named after the blanket-toting character in the Peanuts comic strip. It was started by a Colorado woman who, after reading a newspaper article about a 3-year-old girl who had endured months of painful treatment for cancer with the help of her special blanket, decided every frightened child should have one. Remembering how good that blanket had made her feel during a stressful time, Olivia began volunteering with the organization, and started her own organization in 2018 called "Warm Blanket Hugs."
Olivia's mother helped her promote her blanket-making events on social media. In addition to the volunteers who participated in her events, many people also donated fleece for blankets, the leftovers of which Olivia used to make over 100 dog toys. In 2017, she started asking friends and family to give her fleece or money instead of presents on her birthday so that she could donate more blankets. Olivia is also using social media and her role as Miss Pre Teen Prairie Rose International 2019 to encourage people across the country to become involved in providing a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized or otherwise in need. Every time Olivia sees a child hug one of her blankets, "It puts a smile on my face," she said.
"We're impressed and inspired by the way these honorees have identified problems facing their communities and stepped up to the challenge to make a difference," said Charles Lowrey, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc. "It's a privilege to celebrate their leadership and compassion, and we look forward to seeing the great things they accomplish in the future."
"These students have not only done important work in support of people in need – they've also shown their peers that young people can, and do, create meaningful change," said Christine Handy, president of NASSP. "We commend each of these young volunteers for all they've contributed to their communities."
Youth volunteers in grades 5-12 were invited to apply for 2019 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards last fall through schools, Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and affiliates of Points of Light's HandsOn Network. More than 29,000 middle level and high school students nationwide participated in this year's program.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program was created in 1995 to identify and recognize young people for outstanding volunteer service – and, in so doing, inspire others to volunteer, too. In the past 24 years, the program has honored more than 125,000 young volunteers at the local, state and national level.
For more information about The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards and this year's honorees, 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.
Editors: For pictures of the Spirit of Community Awards program logo and medallions, visit https://spirit.prudential.com/resources/media.
For B-roll of North Dakota's honorees at the 2019 national recognition events, contact Prudential's Harold Banks at (973) 216-4833 or [email protected].
SOURCE Prudential Financial, Inc.
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