Mississippi's Top Two Youth Volunteers Selected in 13th Annual National Awards Program.

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

Honors also bestowed on other top youth volunteers in Mississippi

U.S. Senators John Kerry and Chuck Hagel to co-chair judging panel that will pick 10 National Honorees in May

JACKSON, Miss. -- Abigail Hardin, 17, and Katie Pinkard, 12, both of Clinton, today were named Mississippi's top two youth volunteers for 2008 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. The awards program, now in its 13th year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).

Abigail was nominated by Jackson Academy in Jackson, and Katie was nominated by the Girl Scout Council of Middle Mississippi in Jackson. 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 2008 at that time.

Abigail, a senior at Jackson Academy, wrote a book to teach children to accept those who are different, and then used it to lead group discussions with more than a thousand schoolchildren across Mississippi. Abigail, who was born with a port-wine birthmark on her cheek, said, "I remember many nights of crying and begging for answers as to why I had this 'defect' on my face." As a result, she said, "I became more sensitive towards others' feelings as I did not want to hurt them in ways that I had been hurt."

Since she loved to write, Abigail decided to author a book that would encourage children to focus on the similarities among people rather than their differences. She consulted with 14 teachers and a child development specialist before writing her book, entitled "Look At Me, I Am Just Like You." She then found an illustrator and "tested" her manuscript on teachers and children of all ages. Abigail has read her book to children in schools all over the state, and led group discussions on the issues it raises. She also is coordinating a new volunteer program in which students at her school read the book to children in the waiting rooms of the state's largest children's hospital. In addition, Abigail has established a nonprofit foundation that has raised $4,000 to fund new projects that advance her message of tolerance. "I believe if we can help children see each other's value at a young age, we will see less loneliness, racism, suicides and bullying in forthcoming generations," she said.

Katie, a sixth-grader at Lovett Elementary School, made 132 personal care bags for abused and homeless women staying at shelters in her area. Katie recently learned how to sew in Girl Scouts, and wanted to put her new skill to good use. "God wants us to use our talents and skills to help others," she said. "I thought sewing the drawstring bags would allow me to help women make their lives a little better."

Katie first made calls to four local shelters to determine if the bags were needed, and received enthusiastic responses. She purchased fabric and sewed together 132 drawstring bags by herself. Katie then visited hotels and casinos in the Jackson and Vicksburg areas and asked for donations of soap, shampoo, toothbrushes, toothpaste, mouthwash, and other personal care items. Finally, Katie filled the bags with the collected items and "encouragement pamphlets," and delivered them to the four shelters. "The women in these shelters are usually at a low point in their lives," said Katie. "I hope that this small gift will let them know that people do care about giving them some hope."

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

Lynice Higgins, 17, of Hazlehurst, a senior at Hazlehurst High School, organized an annual "Teen Awareness Campaign" to teach teenage girls about healthy lifestyles and community service. The campaign, which Lynice has conducted for three years, focuses on topics such as eating disorders, skin care, breast cancer, self-esteem issues, and volunteering.

Eden Johnston, 17, of Mount Olive, a senior at Simpson County Academy in Mendenhall, has been sewing bibs for elderly veterans and lap pads for overactive young children since 2004 in a project she calls "Sew Love." The bibs help veterans at the State Veterans Home in Collins maintain a sense of dignity while eating, while the weighted lap pads help children in Head Start programs sit still during speech therapy. Eden also has helped increase awareness about the dangers of cardiac arrest, and raised $500 to purchase a cardiac defibrillator for her school.

Richard Cooper Kennard, 17, of Starkville, a junior at Starkville High School, created "Project Armstrong" when he was in eighth grade at Armstrong Middle School to provide snacks and cleaning items for families staying at a local Ronald McDonald House while their children undergo treatment for cancer. Richard continues to coordinate the project today, and has helped donate thousands of items in addition to cooking and serving hot meals for the families.

Elizabeth Seratt, 17, of Greenville, a junior at the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science in Columbus and a member of the Girl Scout Council of Northwest Mississippi in Greenwood, initiated a program that encourages generous pet lovers to contribute to a fund that enables prospective and current pet owners of limited means to sterilize their pets at little or no cost. Elizabeth started "Pet Partners" as a volunteer for a local animal rescue organization when she realized that more people would adopt pets if they could afford the mandatory spaying or neutering.

"Over the past 13 years, we've seen an incredible number of young Americans who have selflessly devoted their time and energy to helping others in their communities," said Arthur F. Ryan, chairman of Prudential Financial. "The volunteer work of this year's honorees is as inspiring as any we've seen, and we are honored to recognize the amazing contributions they've made to their neighborhoods, cities and nation."

"Congratulations to this year's state winners in The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards," stated Gerald N. Tirozzi, executive director of the National Association of Secondary School Principals. "The hard work and determination that these students have exhibited in trying to make a difference in the lives of others is remarkable."

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. Nearly 4,500 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 5 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.

Co-chairing the national selection committee will be U.S. Senators John Kerry of Massachusetts and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, and Arthur Ryan of Prudential. Also serving on the committee will be actor Richard Dreyfuss; Alma Powell, chair of America's Promise - The Alliance for Youth; Michelle Nunn, president and CEO of the Points of Light & Hands On Network; 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; Kathryn Forbes, national chair of volunteers, American Red Cross; Neil Nicoll, CEO of YMCA of the USA; Michael Cohen, president and CEO of Achieve, Inc.; Barry Stark, president of NASSP; and two 2007 Prudential Spirit of Community National Honorees: Kelly Davis of West Bath, Maine, and Kelydra Welcker of Parkersburg, W.Va.

In addition to granting its own awards, The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program will be distributing President's Volunteer Service Awards to nearly 2,800 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 & Hands On Network; 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, Taiwan and 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.

NASSP is the preeminent organization and the national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals and aspiring school leaders. NASSP provides its members 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 administers the National Honor Society[TM], the National Junior Honor Society[TM] and the National Association of Student Councils[TM].

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU), a financial services leader, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Leveraging its heritage of life insurance and asset management expertise, Prudential is focused on helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth. The company's well-known Rock symbol is an icon of strength, stability, expertise and innovation that has stood the test of time. Prudential's businesses offer a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds, investment management, and real estate services. For more information, please visit www.prudential.com.

Editors: Graphics depicting the award program's logo and medallions may be downloaded from www.prudential.com/spirit.