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Community Youth Service Award winners named
Published: Wednesday, May 6, 2009 at 3:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, May 5, 2009 at 8:59 p.m.
Ten Sonoma County high school seniors received honors Tuesday for volunteerism and leadership in their schools and communities.
Now in its 21st year, the Community Youth Service Awards sponsored by The Press Democrat recognize students who promote the common good by serving others.
“It is reassuring when you see what these students have done for their school and community,” Bruce Kyse, publisher of The Press Democrat, said.
“It’s not easy being a student these days, and it’s truly remarkable that these kids can maintain strong grades, participate in school activities, and still find the time to perform extraordinary community service. You can’t help but feel good about the future,” he said.
Kyse presented the awards during ceremonies held Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts. The winners, who each receive $1,000, were selected by a panel of 29 judges from 132 nominees representing 20 Sonoma County high schools.
Agricultural/Vocational - Kasey Peterson, Petaluma
Peterson routinely volunteers with Sonoma-Marin Fair’s annual Ag Day as a mentor for younger 4-H members who are beginning rabbit projects.
In addition to her years of volunteer work through 4-H, the Petaluma Wildlife Museum and local Boys and Girls clubs, she volunteers as a server at the Petaluma Kitchen.
At the wildlife museum, Peterson oversaw the scheduling of elementary student tours, served as a docent and was responsible for working with other staffers to oversee the health of the animals in the museum.
"I know that every minute I spend doing community service and volunteering is helping make me a better person, and one day a better teacher,” she said.
Peterson plans to study at Fresno State University and become an agriculture teacher.
Arts - Sandivel Torres, Sonoma Valley
Sandivel “Sandi” Torres has evolved from a shy volunteer to a take-charge employee at the nonprofit Vineyard Worker Services in Boyes Hot Springs.
She is now in charge of reporting and administering a program that teaches the values of communication between youth and their parents.
“I am the youth ambassador at my work,” she said. “I help teach parents how to talk to their kids about sex and communication. I gave my opinions from the perspective of a daughter, and parents feel more comfortable about their approaches to their own kids.”
In addition to VWS, Torres has spent five years volunteering with “Voices Juveniles” through KSVY. The program began with Torres reading children’s books every Saturday in an hourlong show, but evolved into a youth program that Torres helps organize.
Torres plans to attend Dominican University next fall.
Athletics - Adolfo Rodriguez, Healdsburg
Adolfo Rodriguez has spent years passing on his love of the soccer to members of Healdsburg youth teams.
A trained goalie, Rodriguez said he has for years encountered well-coached teams that didn’t have proper instruction for keepers. So Rodriguez started training them himself.
“Although they might be great coaches, none of them know a thing about being a goalie, so I was a tremendous help to them,” he said.
Rodriguez trained youth goalies during his freshman, sophomore and junior years at Healdsburg High and then help train JV and Varsity goalies on the high school girls teams.
“Most recently I have pushed the fact that soccer is only a stepping stone in their life, that the most important thing and most valuable thing is their education. Therefore they have to finish their homework before practice,” he said.
Rodriguez is considering attending CSU Monterey Bay.
Community Action - Isaac Gutierrez, El Molino
El Molino High’s senior class president Isaac Gutierrez has spent years reading to children as a volunteer with the Sonoma County Library.
But he really found his niche when he established Primos, a program at Oak Grove Elementary School in which struggling students are tutored not just in academics, but in tolerance, academic diligence and citizenship.
“Many of the Primos students lack the opportunities that I was given growing up. I feel like it is my duty to be a role model and a teacher to these children that have been deprived of so much,” he said.
Gutierrez earned high praise from his counselor at El Molino, Marilu Saldana.
“Isaac is a true leader and a role model to younger generations and finds ways to help promote the importance of getting an education,” she said.
Gutierrez plans to attend the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Ecology - Benjamin Stern, Petaluma
Petaluma High’s Ben Stern is at home outdoors.
His list of volunteer work is long and includes: Petaluma Wildlife and Natural Science Museum, Walker Creek Outdoor Education, Petaluma Bounty Farm, Sonoma County Trails Council, Amor Ministries and Petaluma Kitchen.
His counselor, Joan Walsh, calls Ben “the real deal.”
“When these nomination forms went out to our staff, Ben’s name came up across departments, meaning that teachers in the science department, in our industrial arts department, our Wildlife museum and in our English and counseling departments all felt that Ben is one of the most caring students that they have had the pleasure to teach, counsel and interact with,” Walsh said.
A four-year docent at Petaluma’s wildlife museum, Stern said he gives public tours “focusing on the human impacts on wildlife and what each person can do to protect it.”
Stern will attend CSU Humboldt and plans to major in environmental resource engineering or forest resource conservation.
English/Foreign Language - Rubi Garcia, St. Vincent de Paul
Every summer for the past three years, St. Vincent de Paul senior Rubi Garcia has volunteered at an orphanage in Sonora, Mexico.
She tutors the kids in speaking and reading English, but she also spends time with them.
“I also play and have lunch with the children, who do not have anyone to spend their summer with,” she said.
Garcia, who hopes to study medicine and someday work with Doctors Without Borders, is taking classes at Novato Community Hospital so she can eventually volunteer there.
She is also a member of her school’s Teens Against Discrimination Club, Community Concerns Club and the Social Justice Club and tutors students two days a week.
“I believe that every child has a great potential in life. It is our duty as the future to help young children reach their potential,” she said.
Health Sciences - Cierra Warner, El Molino
By Cierra Warner’s calculation, she has spent more than six years volunteering.
That’s six years — straight. More than 52,000 hours worth. The bulk of that has been raising puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind. She has raised four dogs in six years.
“It is humbling to be able to directly affect a person’s ability to increase their independence, security and confidence,” she said.
In addition to the 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week commitment to raising guide dogs, Warner is also heavily involved in 4-H and FFA. She volunteers at educational outreach programs that bring farm animals to elementary school students, serving at the Farm Bureau Crab Feed, serving and clearing at the Sonoma County 4-H Chicken-que and participating in laguna and beach cleanups.
She has also coached the award-winning flag team at Piner-Olivet Elementary
School the past two years.
Warner plans to attend SRJC before transferring to UC Davis to study to become a large-animal veterinarian.
Journalism/Media - Cesar Cruz, Elsie Allen
Elsie Allen’s Cesar Cruz has found his voice.
An avid member of Teen Media Broadcasting, as well as Teen Advocacy Group, peer education with the Southwest Community Health Center and Safe Schools Ambassadors, Cruz speaks out on issues such as depression and suicide, gang
prevention, HIV and AIDS prevention and other health-related topics.
His work with Teen Media Broadcasting has given him direction and sparked a passion, he said.
“My life has changed so much because of this,” he said. “Today I see myself as an informed citizen who is out there making the world better in whatever way I can.”
Cruz has also spent four years as an Upward Bound Scholar; two years as a volunteer with the Southwest Community Health Center; four years as a Safe Schools Ambassador, and an annual project with Grupo Iramaco Guanajuato, a fund-raiser to build homes and fix buildings in Cruz’s hometown of Iramuco Guanajuato, Mexico.
“Once in awhile, as a school counselor, we meet a young person who exhibits such passion for a chosen profession that you can get a sense of destiny at play,” said Cruz’s counselor, Betsy Hofstadter. “Cesar has that kind of enthusiasm, altruism, and optimism that is a true privilege to be around.”
Cruz plans to attend San Francisco State University and study communication studies before pursuing a career in radio broadcasting.
Mathematics/Technical - Jennifer Arango, Petaluma
Petaluma High’s Jennifer Arango turned her youthful insecurities into a powerful force to help others in school.
“Learning English as a second language not only put me at a learning disadvantage, but it also was a huge blow to my self-confidence,” she said.
“I have always been afraid of speaking up for fear of pronouncing something wrong or having the wrong answer.”
In becoming a math and Spanish tutor, Arango turned those fears on their head.
“I found that when I was tutoring for math I was not only helping my peers, but I was also helping myself, getting better in math by not forgetting the math fundamentals that apply in every level of math,” she said.
Arango has also volunteered with the Petaluma Youth Commission, the California Scholarship Federation, Petaluma Valley Hospital and Cinnabar Elementary School.
Arango said she is considering a career in teaching.
Music - Joseph Plaugher, El Molino
El Molino’s Joseph Plaugher has hit the road during every spring break of his high school career. He doesn’t go to the beach, he goes to the inner city or to storm-ravaged neighborhoods to help those in need.
“These were people who had been abandoned by everyone else, people who even the government had forgotten about,” he said.
Villagers of Nicaragua, citizens of New Orleans and the homeless in Seattle and Boston have all benefited from Plaugher’s annual trips with the youth group at the Sebastopol Community Church.
“Joseph has most contributed to our programs with his gentle yet strong leadership style. From a very early age, Joseph has been looked upon as a leader,” said Kristen DelMonte, director of Youth Ministries at the Sebastopol Community Church.
“Unlike other teens who volunteer and provide community service, Joseph has not devoted himself to only one project, but has spent his time volunteering where and when needed the most.”
In addition to his work with the youth group, Plaugher has volunteered with the Russian River Food Bank, Thanksgiving and Christmas food basket preparation and Guerneville Elementary School.
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