Hampden pupil receives Prudential volunteerism award

HAMPDEN – Sarah Cayia, an eighth-grader at Reeds Brook Middle School, received an engraved silver medallion as one of Maine’s top two youth volunteers for 2004 in the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program. The presentation took place March 25 during an assembly.

As a state honoree, Cayia also will receive $1,000 and an all-expense paid trip in May to Washington, D.C., where she will join the top two honorees – one middle level and one high school youth – from each of the other states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico for several days of national recognition events. Ten of the young people will be named America’s top youth volunteers for 2004.

Cayia was honored for creating Boxes for Bosnia, a schoolwide campaign that collected 10 large boxes of school supplies for needy Bosnian schoolchildren.

While Cayia’s father was serving with the National Guard in rural Bosnia, he wrote home about a poor, war-ravaged school his unit was trying to help. Cayia wanted to help, too.

“I decided I wanted to help my dad and his unit make these kids’ school life just a little bit better if I could,” Cayia said.

She presented her idea for a school-supply drive to her teacher and homeroom class, and volunteers signed up to help. They found pictures and other information about Bosnian children on the Internet, and used the material to decorate collection boxes and to make promotional posters.

Cayia’s teachers taught a lesson about Bosnia to seventh-grade pupils. Cayia and her volunteers placed boxes in every classroom in the school. They also wrote a newsletter article, produced an advertisement for the school television station and spoke to each homeroom class.

The group sorted and packed the donated items, then delivered everything to the National Guard for shipping.

“The most memorable part of this project was when my dad sent me pictures of how happy the children were when they saw all the school supplies,” Cayia said.

All middle level and high schools in the United States, along with Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, Red Cross chapters, YMCAs, Camp Fire USA councils and volunteer centers were eligible to select a student or member for a local Prudential Spirit of Community Award last November. Local honorees were selected on criteria such as personal initiative, creativity, effort, impact and personal growth.

The awards program, sponsored in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals, is part of a broad initiative created by Prudential Financial to encourage young people to become involved in community service.

For more information about this year’s Prudential Spirit of Community state honorees and distinguished finalists, visit www.prudential.com/spirit or www.principals.org/awards/prudential.cfm.