WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Susan Collins met with and congratulated Maine’s two top youth volunteers in her Washington office on May 8.

Stephanie Dunton, 13, of Winterport, and Kelly Davis, 17, of West Bath, were honored with the 2007 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism.

Davis, a senior at Morse High School in Bath, was recognized for raising more than $40,000 to purchase a bulletproof vest for every working police dog in Maine. So far, she has raised enough money to purchase 54 bulletproof vests, one for every active police canine in Maine. Davis also was named one of America’s top 10 youth volunteers for 2007.

Dunton, a seventh-grader at Samuel L. Wagner Middle School in Winterport, conducts a monthly collection drive called the Food Shuttle. It has collected more than 1,000 pounds of donated food items for a local pantry.

Dunton and Davis each received $1,000, an engraved silver medallion and an all-expense paid trip to Washington where they met with other recipients from around the country and participated in events honoring their volunteerism.

The students also met with U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe while in Washington.

“Today, Kelly and Stephanie proudly represented the state of Maine and their selfless dedication to community volunteerism is an inspiration to us all,” said Snowe. “These two young women are true role models in every sense of the word and I applaud their efforts to make Maine a better place through their exceptional contributions and extraordinary accomplishments.”

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals.