Former First Lady Laura Bush congratulates Emily Conrad, 16, of Spartanburg (center) and Janey Turner, 13, of Easley (right) on being named the top two youth volunteers in South Carolina for 2009 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Emily and Janey were honored at a ceremony Sunday night, May 3, at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C., where they each received a $1,000 award. (Photo: Business Wire)

Emily and Janey were named the top high school and middle level youth volunteers in South Carolina last February. In addition to their cash awards, they received engraved silver medallions and an all-expense-paid trip with their parents to Washington, D.C., for this week's recognition events.

"The young people receiving these awards genuinely care about making a difference in the lives of others and have accomplished so much - in their own communities and around the world," said Mrs. Bush, who delivered the keynote address at last night's ceremony. "I thank and congratulate them for their outstanding volunteer work. Students with this kind of commitment and leadership ability are essential to the future of our nation."

Emily, a member of the Pine Street YMCA and a home-schooled 11^th-grader, created a multi-chapter reading club that not only encourages students to read, but also raises money to buy books for at-risk children. Emily founded her "Need to Read Book Club" after entering middle school and discovering there was no incentive reading program there. She recruited members, organized monthly after-school meetings to discuss good books, and arranged for guest speakers, games, and crafts to add interest. She also organized a year-end service project in which club members asked sponsors to make a small donation for every 100 pages they read, and earned enough to purchase 400 new books for children at a local soup kitchen.

Emily's club made such an impact - on its members and their community - that after two years Emily began thinking about expanding it. She formed a nonprofit organization, developed a website (www.needtoreadbookclub.org), and then helped establish chapters at a Boys & Girls club and two public schools. Three more chapters have since been added, and altogether, they have distributed more than $15,000 worth of books to disadvantaged kids over the past four years. Now Emily focuses on developing programming for the chapters' monthly meetings, creating promotional materials, and fund-raising. "It is an incredible thing to see young people so enthusiastic about sharing their love of reading and to see them grow as community leaders," said Emily. "I am just proud and humbled that I can be a part of this wonderful opportunity."

Janey, an eighth-grader at Richard H. Gettys Middle School, has shipped more than 13,000 little "care packages" containing toiletries, treats and personal items to American servicemen and women around the world. When she was 8, Janey contributed to a school project that sent packages to seven soldiers overseas. "Then I started to wonder about all the other soldiers," she said. "I did not want the other soldiers to be left out." So Janey started assembling and shipping care packages on her own.

Now, Janey has a nonprofit organization called "Hands for Soldiers" and has sent care packages to 13,600 soldiers over the past five years. She asks hotels and other businesses to donate toothbrushes, shampoo, razors, candy, pens, playing cards and other items, and raises money to pay for more supplies and shipping by organizing skate nights, yard sales, and festivals. Then she holds regular parties where friends and family members help her sort and pack the items into plastic food-service gloves. Included in each hand-shaped package is a note from Janey reading: "Thank you for your service. You deserve a big hand. Love, Janey." "It is important for the soldiers to know that we support them and that someone cares about them," she said.

"Emily and Janey are inspiring examples of young Americans who care deeply about the needs of others and who have taken the initiative to help meet those needs," said John R. Strangfeld, Chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc. "By honoring them, we hope not only to give them the recognition they so richly deserve, but also to inspire others to follow their example."

Nearly 20,000 young people submitted applications for the 2009 awards program last fall through schools, Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and affiliates of the Points of Light Institute's HandsOn Network. The top middle level and high school applicants in each state were selected in February, and were flown to Washington this week with their parents for four days of special recognition events.

Conducted in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards were created 14 years ago by Prudential Financial, Inc. to encourage youth volunteerism and to identify and reward young role models. Since then, the program has honored nearly 90,000 young volunteers at the local, state and national level.

"The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program is a fabulous partnership between NASSP and Prudential, allowing us to recognize the outstanding young people in our schools and communities," said NASSP President Larry Bradley. "This year's honorees exemplify the true spirit of helping others and by doing so they give America and the world a promising future, a future filled with compassion and hope."

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards are supported by the American Association of School Administrators, the National Middle School Association, the National School Boards Association, the Council of the Great City Schools, Girl Scouts of the USA, National 4-H Council, the American Red Cross, YMCA of the USA, the Points of Light Institute, and other national education and service organizations.

More information about The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards and this year's honorees can be found at http://spirit.prudential.com or www.principals.org/prudential.

In existence since 1916, the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the preeminent organization of and national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and aspiring school leaders from across the United States and more than 45 countries around the world. NASSP's mission is to promote excellence in school leadership. The National Honor Society, National Junior Honor Society, National Elementary Honor Society , and National Association of Student Councils are all NASSP programs. For more information about NASSP, located in Reston, Va., visit www.principals.org or call 703-860-0200.

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU) is a financial services leader with operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Leveraging its heritage of life insurance and asset management expertise, Prudential is focused on helping approximately 50 million individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth. The company's well-known Rock symbol is an icon of strength, stability, expertise and innovation that has stood the test of time. Prudential's businesses offer a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds, investment management, and real estate services. For more information, visit www.news.prudential.com.

[Editors: full-color pictures of the Spirit of Community Awards program logo and medallions are available at http://spirit.prudential.com.]

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Prudential
Harold Banks, 973-802-8974 or 973-216-4833
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