Sarah Young, 16, of Pflugerville, a home schooled Girl Scout, has been honored for her exemplary volunteer service with a President’s Volunteer Service Award.

The award, which recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of their time to serve their communities and their country, was granted by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program on behalf of President Barack Obama. Girl Scouts of Central Texas nominated Sarah for national honors this fall in recognition of her volunteer service. Sarah was also honored as a Certificate of Excellence recipient by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards.

Sarah was recognized for her Girl Scout Gold Award and sustainability of said project. For her project, Sarah planted and distributed 2,250 street trees during the first two years to help minimize the heat island effect. The Apache Foundation has supported the project throughout the first two years, as well. Throughout year three, Sarah intends to distribute an additional 1,500 trees. As a Girl Scout and Youth Director for Discover Green, she has been involved in planting and distributing over 15,000 trees since October 2008.

 

“Sarah Young is the embodiment of what being a Girl Scout means. She has shown with actions that matter what it truly means to be a girl of courage, confidence and character,”said Lynelle McKay, CEO of Girl Scouts of Central Texas. “Thanks to her volunteering efforts and leadership, her community has seen a real improvement. Girl Scouts of Central Texas is incredibly proud of her and proud to be her home council.”

 

Sarah’s Discover Green project was also recognized as first place winner in the national youth category with Keep America Beautiful and state winner with Keep Texas Beautiful. Her eco-inspiration coach training was recognized in 2013-2014 by OneStar Foundation and Texas Commission for Environmental Quality TCEQ. This project trained 77 youth to continue her tree planting initiative.

 

“The recipients of these awards demonstrate that young people across America are making remarkable contributions to the health and vitality of their communities,”said John Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial. “By recognizing these students and placing a spotlight on their volunteer activities, we hope to motivate others to consider how they can also contribute to their community.”

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