The Rotary Club of Vincennes honored four high school seniors, at their regular Tuesday meeting at the Fortnightly Building. Rotary President Doug Steele introduced “Service Above Self” committee Chair
Ed Cummings, who made the presentations.
“Service Above Self” is the motto of Rotary International, Cummings said, “and is practiced in over 32,800 communities throughout the world. We honor young people who provide service to the people in their communities today.”
Cummings noted that Rotary International has had an ongoing world-wide service project going on since 1985, that being the elimination of Polio from the world. In 1985 there were over 375,000 new cases of Polio every year. Today, polio has been eliminated from all but three countries, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria . There have been no new cases in Nigeria so far in 2015, one new case in Afghanistan and 20 cases in Pakistan. “Rotary has not dome this alone”, Cummings said, many organizations, such as the Gates Foundation , and governments and the World Health Organization (WHO) have also contributed to this awesome achievement.
Local service by young people, doing whatever they can to help people in their community, is what Rotary will honor with the “Service Above Self Award”. This is a cash award to assist the recipient in furthering their education. The total of the awards was increased this year to $6,000.
Cummings introduced the recipients, individually, and noted that there were many others who also provided outstanding service in the community. These students stood out above the rest.
Olivia Worland, a senior at Rivet HS, is the daughter of Sam and Dana Worland, was introduced and told of her first service project was helping her grandmother sell tickets at the Fall Festival in Lawrenceville, as a child, she also helped at the annual Garden Club Sale. In high school, Olivia is a member of the Rotary-Interact Club at Rivet, has helped feed people at Loaves & Fishes, worked on a dress sale, car-wash, and other numerous projects with her Interact Club. Olivia was presented a $1,000 award.
Jensen Ballinger, a senior at Lincoln HS, is the daughter of Ed and Jill Ballenger of Vincennes. Jensen has enjoyed serving others in various ways, having participated as a hospital volunteer at Good Samaritan Hospital the past five years. She told of her experience sitting with a cancer patient who was to undergo her first treatment, and how she helped reassure her through the process. Jensen has also been a part of Youth Inspiring Peers, Youth Leadership Knox County, Art Ventures, PALICE , and Volleyball Playing for a Purpose, to raise money for Cancer patients. Jensen received a $1,000 award.
Carly Jane Waggner, daughter of Charlie and Kristi Waggoner, talked about her community service over the past three years. She said, “I knew I needed to get involved to build a strong resume’, but the service experience has had such a huge impact on my life, and I am grateful to have been involved in all of my activities.” Carly has served as a Alter Server and lector for her church, served on the Knox County Teen Court, helped teach junior golf, served as a tutor, served at Loaves and Fishes, helped organize a golf scramble for Youth Leadership Knox County which raised $3,000 for Relay for Life. She is Co-President of the Rivet Interact Club, assisted at the Elks Hoop Shoot, and helped make blankets for CASA, among many other activities. Carly received a $1,500 award from Rotary.
The final award winner was Alexandra “Ali” Skinner, daughter of David and Jennifer Skinner. Ali began her service work when she joined the Miss America program and developed, “ASAP” the After School Arts Program” to provide weekly art enrichment to students in after-school care. This program has been going on for 5 years and is active in five states. Ali is the president of the Lincoln Interact Club this year, and has done many service projects including visiting nursing home residents, a Prom Dress drive , and the “Mr. Alice” pageant that raised over $3,000 to help a LHS student who had Cancer. Ms. Skinner plans to attend the University of Missouri and open the “ASAP” program in a sixth state, Missouri. Ali was awarded $2,500.
The Rotary Club of Vincennes is celebrating its Centennial year in 2015 and with the help of the Vincennes Rotary Foundation the club continues to recognize outstand student servants, who exemplify the Rotary Motto of “Service Above Self”.