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

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

Honors also bestowed on other top youth volunteers in West Virginia

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Kelydra Welcker, 17, of Parkersburg and Cody Gallagher, 12, of Fairmont today were named West Virginia'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).

Kelydra was nominated by Parkersburg South High School in Parkersburg, and Cody was nominated by Rivesville Elementary/Middle School in Rivesville. 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.

Kelydra, a senior at Parkersburg South High School, invented a way to purify drinking water in her community by developing a test for the presence of APFO (ammonium perfluorooctanoate), and then creating a method for removing the chemical from water. Due to an industrial plant upstream, the drinking water in Kelydra's town has high levels of APFO, a controversial compound that manufacturers maintain is safe. "After listening to the media and reading articles debating the issue, I decided that it was more important to remove the chemical rather than to argue about its toxicity," said Kelydra.

So, over the past two years she has spent almost every free minute looking for a solution. She conducted extensive research on APFO, collected and refurbished old scientific equipment, built a lab in a trailer near her home, and monitored the local water supply. Kelydra's first objective was to design a simple test that anyone can perform to detect the presence of APFO in water. After she accomplished this with 92 percent accuracy, she developed a technique for removing and recovering APFO from water. She also designed a tabletop removal unit to help individuals with contaminated wells and cisterns. Kelydra has applied to patent her procedures, and plans to make the study of fluorosurfactants her career. "Any problem technology can cause, technology can cure," she said. "I want to be a part of this process."

Cody, a sixth-grader at Rivesville Elementary/Middle School, developed a campaign to provide new and gently used children's books to disadvantaged families, in an effort to encourage parents and their children to read together. "Learning to read can open many doors of success," Cody said. "When you open the pages of a book you open the door to travel, excitement, adventure, make believe, and history. Most of all, you open communication between a parent and child."

With help from his mother, Cody collected books from thrift stores, yard sales, churches, and book sales. He also conducted a community book drive, raised money to buy books and support a local literacy program, and persuaded transit authorities to collect books in lieu of bus fares for a day. The books he collected, valued at $12,500, were distributed through a community youth center, a domestic violence shelter, day care centers, after-school programs, a hospital pediatric unit, parades and an elementary school. "Providing books to families who might not have them makes it easier for children and families to learn and spend time together," said Cody.

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

Lauren Taylor, 16, of Martinsburg, a sophomore at Martinsburg High School, has raised nearly $9,000 over the past four years for a local hospice by holding an annual two-day bake sale in front of a local store. With help from a friend, Lauren meets with hospice officials to coordinate plans for the sale each year, writes letters soliciting donations from local businesses, publicizes the event, and spends two weeks baking and collecting donated baked goods for the sale.

McKenzie Young, 18, of Huntington, a senior at Huntington High School, organized a skin cancer awareness program at her high school and a free public skin cancer screening at a local hospital, after losing a close family friend to the disease. McKenzie created displays and a trivia game for her skin cancer awareness day at school, and provided all students with free sunscreen. She then collaborated with the staff of Cabell Huntington Hospital to provide more than 300 local residents with skin cancer screening.

"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.