$5,000 college scholarship for young humanitarians

Are you a young person who volunteers? A $5,000 college scholarship could be the recognition you deserve for your efforts to give back to your community.

“Most of the applicants for the Youthlinc Utah Young Humanitarian Award don’t think they are worthy of the award,” said 2014 Utah Young Humanitarian Award winner Madison Palmer. “They often need a teacher or a service supervisor to encourage them to apply.”

Madison received the award as a senior at Cottonwood High School. After learning that every year 100,000 American children are forced into sex trafficking, she was determined to do something. She started educating herself and started a school chapter of Backyard Broadcast, a nationwide youth movement to combat child slavery.

Over the last 10 years, there have been nearly 700 student applicants for the award. Each young person has had a unique area of focus in helping others. Past winners of the award have volunteered mentoring youth, worked with refugees and the homeless, fought for social equality or simply spread small acts of kindness.

2015 applications for this $5,000 college scholarship are now available on the Youthlinc website at www.youthlinc.org. Applications are due March 18. There is one $3,000 runner-up award and three $1,000 runner-up awards.

The award program, which is in its 10th year, is open to all high school junior and seniors and undergraduate college students in Utah who are U.S. citizens or legal residents. Funding is provided by the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation.

Youthlinc Executive Director Judy Zone says the idea for this award – the state’s largest service scholarship – arose from the Youthlinc Service Year, in which over 2,000 Utah students have contributed more than 150,000 hours of local service. “In the past 16 years, we’ve seen young people pass through our program and become enthusiastic about service. So we have known for a long time that youth are willing to pitch in if given an opportunity and the inspiration to serve others,” Zone said. For more information, visit www.youthlinc.org or contact Jerika Mays, Youthlinc Local Service Director, at jerika@youthlinc.org or 801-467-4417.