Prudential Seeks Outstanding Youth Volunteers

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program is searching for America’s top youth volunteers of 2012.

This year, Jonathan Berman, 16, of Stamford, and Alec Albright, 13, of Milford, were named Connecticut's top youth volunteers, according to a press release. They were selected from a group of Connecticut residents who were recognized at the local level for community service. Each state winner received $1,000, an engraved silver medallion and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C.

Berman was honored for founding a nonprofit organization with his brother six years ago to encourage local kids to get involved in community service by trick-or-treating for UNICEF, volunteering at a soup kitchen, and promoting UNICEF’s clean-water Tap Project. Albright was honored for collecting Halloween costumes for children whose families could not afford to buy them.

The annual awards, sponsored by Prudential Financial and the National Association of Secondary School Principals, have honored nearly 100,000 students at the local, state and national level.

Through Nov. 1, Connecticut students in grades 5-12 can apply for a Prudential Spirit of Community Award by clicking here or here at http://spirit.prudential.com or www.nassp.org/spirit.