Connecticut's Top Two Youth Volunteers Selected in 12th Annual National Awards Program.

Southington and Branford students earn $1,000 awards, engraved medallions and trip to nation's capital

Honors also bestowed on other top youth volunteers in Connecticut

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Rebecca Michlin, 16, of Southington and Ryan Bloomquist, 14, of Branford today were named Connecticut's top two youth volunteers for 2007 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. The awards program, now in its 12th year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).

Rebecca was nominated by Southington High School in Southington, and Ryan was nominated by Francis Walsh Intermediate School in Branford. As State Honorees, each will receive $1,000, an engraved silver medallion, and an all-expense-paid trip in early May to Washington, D.C., where they will join the top two honorees - one middle level and one high school youth - from each of the other states and the District of Columbia for several days of national recognition events. Ten of them will be named America's top youth volunteers for 2007 at that time.

Rebecca, a junior at Southington High School, has managed the back-to-school project of Southington's Smart Start program for the past six years, providing backpacks filled with school supplies to as many as 300 underprivileged students each fall. "I love school and want every kid to love learning," said Rebecca, so when she approached her town's social services department in 2001 looking for a project to help her achieve the Girl Scout Silver Award, she was delighted to be given responsibility for the entire back-to-school project.

Rebecca works year-round to promote the project, solicit donations, recruit and train volunteers, purchase school supplies, and distribute filled backpacks to kids who need them. She expands the program each year, adding new supplies such as lunch boxes, flash cards, dictionaries, calculators, and vouchers for new shoes. "I try to add a variety of items so the children actually look forward to going back to school," said Rebecca. She is now working with a local foundation to provide scholarships to graduating high school students.

Ryan, an eighth-grader at Francis Walsh Intermediate School, started a multifaceted fund-raising project called "the Lemonade Gang" that has raised more than $16,000 over the past eight years to battle nervous-system diseases and help families of young cancer patients. When Ryan was 6 years old, his neighbor was diagnosed with a disease of the central nervous system. Ryan wanted to help, so he rounded up some friends to sell lemonade and donate the proceeds to an organization that supports nerve research. The following summer, Ryan and his friend Greg, who is now co-director of the Lemonade Gang, decided to raise more money by putting on a cabaret.

The gang added another project after Ryan's sister was born with a rare form of cancer. "Our family was devastated, and I knew that we had to do something to honor Hanna," said Ryan. So they started an annual Christmas Spectacular and donated those proceeds to a fund that helps families dealing with childhood cancer celebrate Christmas and pay for necessities throughout the year. Ryan and Greg now stage their summer cabaret and Christmas show annually, spending much of their free time directing the productions, and managing publicity and ticket sales. They also organized a summer theatre camp for 5- to 10-year-olds, conducted a concert for victims of Hurricane Katrina, and contributed to other causes. "There is nothing better than giving back to the community," said Ryan. "It feels good to know I'm making a difference in the world."

In addition, the program judges recognized four other Connecticut students as Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion:

Greyson Gregory, 17, of Branford, a junior at Branford High School, created and manages a Web site that connects local teens with service opportunities posted by nonprofits, community organizations and other groups seeking volunteers. In addition to developing the Web site (www.studentvolunteerlink.com), Greyson liaisons with civic organizations, schools and business leaders; raises funds and writes grant proposals; recruits student volunteers; and promotes the site.

Rebecca Krumholz, 16, of Guilford, a junior at Guilford High School, organized a 5K race that raised more than $2,000 for Right to Play, an organization that brings sports to children in undeveloped and war-torn countries. Rebecca planned the event, enlisted the support of fellow students and school officials, oversaw promotional activities and the solicitation of donors and sponsors, and coordinated the logistics of the race.

Lauren Nadan, 17, of Southport, a senior at Fairfield Ludlowe High School in Fairfield, founded Hats for Hope, a nonprofit organization that provides trendy hats to children losing their hair as a result of medical treatment for life-threatening illnesses. Since Hats for Hope began in 2004, Lauren has provided more than 2,000 hats to children at four oncology facilities.

Alexandra Schreiber, 16, of Westport, a junior at Staples High School, started a volunteer service club at her school called Heart and Soul. The members of Alexandra's club volunteer at three local medical facilities, serve food to the homeless, celebrate holidays with homeless and abused children, and visit with aged and infirm patients on Valentine's Day.

"People as caring and committed as these young students are critical to the future of our neighborhoods, our cities and our nation," said Arthur Ryan, chairman and CEO of Prudential. "By recognizing these honorees, we hope to encourage other young people - our future leaders - and all Americans to think more about the value and importance of volunteering in their communities."

"NASSP is pleased to once again join Prudential in recognizing these young people for their amazing accomplishments," remarked Gerald N. Tirozzi, executive director of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. "This year's honorees are proof that the youth of today are conscientious and capable of performing selfless acts of kindness in their local communities, on a national scale and at the global level."

All public and private middle level and high schools in the country, as well as all Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and Volunteer Centers, were eligible to select a student or member for a local Prudential Spirit of Community Award this past November. More than 7,500 Local Honorees were then reviewed by state-level judges, who selected State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists based on criteria such as personal initiative, creativity, effort, impact and personal growth.

While in Washington, D.C., the 102 State Honorees will tour the capital's landmarks, attend a gala awards ceremony at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, and visit their congressional representatives on Capitol Hill. In addition, 10 of them - five middle level and five high school students - will be named National Honorees on May 7 by a prestigious national selection committee. These honorees will receive additional $5,000 awards, gold medallions, crystal trophies, and $5,000 grants from The Prudential Foundation for nonprofit, charitable organizations of their choice.

Serving on the national selection committee will be U.S. Senator Norm Coleman of Minnesota; Arthur Ryan of Prudential; actor Richard Dreyfuss; Alma Powell, chair of America's Promise - The Alliance for Youth; Robert Goodwin, president and CEO of the Points of Light Foundation; Amy B. Cohen, director of Learn and Serve America at the Corporation for National and Community Service; Kathy Cloninger, CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA; Donald T. Floyd Jr., president and CEO of National 4-H Council; Michael Cohen, president and CEO of Achieve, Inc.; Kathryn Forbes, national chair of volunteers, American Red Cross; Joe Militello, president of NASSP; and two 2006 Prudential Spirit of Community National Honorees: Ajay Mangal of Pascagoula, Miss., and Geneva Johnson of the Bronx, N.Y.

In addition to granting its own awards, The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program will be distributing President's Volunteer Service Awards to more than 4,150 of its Local Honorees this year on behalf of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation. The President's Volunteer Service Award recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of their time to serve their communities and their country.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards represent the United States' largest youth recognition program based solely on volunteer service. The program is part of a broad youth-service initiative by Prudential that includes a youth leadership training program administered by the Points of Light Foundation; a free booklet of volunteer ideas for young people offered through the Federal Citizen Information Center; and a Web site featuring profiles of outstanding youth volunteers, volunteer tips and project ideas for students, an electronic newspaper on youth volunteerism, and more (www.prudential.com/spirit). The Spirit of Community Awards program also is conducted by Prudential subsidiaries in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, and is being introduced this year in Ireland.

For information on all of this year's Prudential Spirit of Community State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists, visit www.prudential.com/spirit or www.principals.org/prudential.

The National Association of Secondary School Principals -- the preeminent organization and the national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals and aspiring school leaders -- provides its members with the professional resources to serve as visionary leaders. NASSP promotes the intellectual growth, academic achievement, character development, leadership development, and physical well-being of youth through its programs and student leadership services. NASSP sponsors the National Honor Society[TM], the National Junior Honor Society[TM] and the National Association of Student Councils[TM]. For more information on NASSP, NHS, NJHS or NASC, visit www.principals.org.

Prudential Financial companies serve individual and institutional customers worldwide and include The Prudential Insurance Company of America, one of the largest life insurance companies in the U.S. These companies offer a variety of products and services, including life insurance, mutual funds, annuities, pension and retirement-related services and administration, asset management, securities brokerage, banking and trust services, real estate brokerage franchises and relocation services. For more information, visit www.prudential.com.