Ohio's Top Two Youth Volunteers Selected In 12th Annual National Awards Program.

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

Honors also bestowed on other top youth volunteers in Ohio

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- David Trinh, 17, of Maineville and Konnor Bachman, 13, of Solon today were named Ohio'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).

David was nominated by St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, and Konnor was nominated by Solon Middle School in Solon. 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.

David, a junior at St. Xavier High School, co-founded a student volunteer organization called the Bethany Group that has grown from just seven members five years ago to more than 140 participants from 25 schools in the Greater Cincinnati area. "My desire to volunteer was inspired by my parents, who, as refugees from Vietnam, appreciated greatly the goodness of this country and have since tried to give back to the community in many ways," he said.

David's community service work began when his piano teacher took him to perform at a nursing home one day. The elderly residents enjoyed it so much that David, along with his two brothers, decided to perform additional recitals for senior citizens, and then invited four friends to join them. As these young musicians, most of them middle level students, performed at more nursing and retirement homes and attracted additional volunteers, they expanded their presentations to include arts and crafts, karaoke, dog therapy, origami, slide shows, and clown performances. Since then, the group has branched out into a broad range of other volunteer activities, including supporting a homeless women's shelter, raising funds for disadvantaged and sick people overseas, organizing canned food drives, writing letters to U.S. troops, and keeping a stretch of highway free of litter. "Volunteering is recognizing how lucky we are, counting our blessings, and trying to demonstrate our gratitude by helping others," said David.

Konnor, an eighth-grader at Solon Middle School, raised more than $25,000 for a foundation established to honor the memory of a neighbor who died suddenly from a heart condition. After Michelle DiCillo passed away, Konnor searched for a way to help her grieving family. Upon learning that Michelle's husband had set up a foundation called Michelle's Wish, "I decided to take the ball and run with it," said Konnor. "I wanted to do something so that Michelle and all that she stood for would never be forgotten. Sometimes just not understanding why bad things happen to good people is inspiration enough to get involved in a cause."

With help from his parents and Michelle's family, Konnor designed and ordered white silicone bracelets modeled after Lance Armstrong's popular Livestrong bracelets. To sell them, he sent letters to friends and family members, made speeches at an elementary school, and hosted a booth at a community fair. Some of the profits paid for a Make-A-Wish trip to Disney World for a 6-year-old boy with a heart condition similar to Michelle's. Other proceeds have been used to purchase heart defibrillators for various locations in his community. At the same time, Konnor has raised awareness of the importance of maintaining a healthy heart. "If one life is saved because of the work that I have done, that is huge," he said.

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

Andrea Blamble, 17, of New Albany, a senior at New Albany High School, is a goodwill ambassador for the Central Ohio Arthritis Foundation and a dedicated advocate for children with rheumatoid arthritis. Andrea, who was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis at age 13, works to raise awareness of the disease, participates in fund-raising activities, and formed a club for kids in Ohio who suffer from arthritis.

Kaitlyn Kiger, 18, of Hilliard, a senior at Bishop Watterson High School in Columbus, organized "Have a Heart Week" last February at her school to raise awareness of poverty in third-world countries and to raise money to help foreign orphans. For the week, Kaitlyn coordinated daily sales of baked goods and valentine cards, a casual dress day and a collection drive, all of which raised $1,500 to sponsor two children living in orphanages in Haiti and El Salvador.

Clay McMullen, 12, of Chesterland, a seventh-grader at West Geauga Middle School, formed the "Wetlands Education Team," a volunteer youth organization dedicated to preserving local wetlands and the endangered osprey hawk. Clay's team obtained grants and donations to purchase science equipment to study wetlands, created an outdoor wetlands classroom at their school, and erected platforms for migrating osprey.

Michael Meyer, 17, of Worthington, a senior at Thomas Worthington High School, created and maintains a Web site for his school to improve teacher-student communication and inform parents about school activities. With the help of another student, Michael designed and set up the Web site, delivered demonstrations to individuals and groups of educators, promoted the site, and now serves as an important source of general technology knowledge at his school.

Andrea Mitchell, 16, of Findlay, a member of the Hancock County 4-H and a sophomore at Findlay High School, prepares and teaches a variety of education programs and workshops for children and adults throughout Ohio. Andrea presents programs on reading, teen mentoring, craft-making, assistance dog training, line dancing, and other subjects at schools, churches, libraries, public events and youth and adult organizations.

Angela Primbas, 16, of Concord, a junior at Hawken School in Gates Mills, co-founded two environmental groups dedicated to educating the public about pollution in Lake Erie and saving the endangered native Ohio brook trout. Angela plans and schedules school presentations about watersheds and pollution, recruits volunteers, organizes tree-planting events to help restore stream banks and wetlands, and distributes informational pamphlets at public events and recreational sites.

Stacey Ward, 18, of Cincinnati, a senior at Taylor High School in North Bend, created a school-tutoring program that pairs academically struggling students with peer tutors. After gaining approval from school officials, Stacey solicited teacher referrals, designed and distributed student signup forms, advertised for volunteers, and personally tutored several students.

Callae Yonker, 17, of Cincinnati, a senior at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy, co-leads a weekly after-school tutoring and homework assistance program for elementary-school students who are learning English as a second language (ESL). Callae coordinates 15 to 20 high school student tutors, makes informational flyers for the elementary kids, plans "Family Fun Nights," and personally assists 30 to 40 ESL children with their homework.

"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.