Volunteer work earns CHS student township award Centerville High School senior Kristina Stieger was recently named as the recipient of Washington Township's second annual Community Service Award.
At the May 17 meeting of the Washington Township Board of Trustees, Stieger was honored for "her dedication, her important contributions to the community, and for the superior example of community service that she has set for us all," township officials stated.
The trustees established the Community Service Award in 2003 to honor Centerville High School students who best exemplify the spirit of community service. The award is also intended to draw attention to the importance of public service.
During her four years at Centerville High School, Kristina logged a total of 773 hours of service to her community. The reason is simple, she says.
"I like doing community service," she explains. "You get to help people and have fun at the same time."
At Centerville, Kristina was an active member of the Interact Club for two years and of Octagon Club for four. She served as a role model with S.T.A.N.D. for middle school students and with Lunch Buddies for elementary students, tutored students through the National Honor Society, and served three years as Octagon Club co-chair for the Centerville-Washington Park District's Haunted Trail.
Ask Kristina about a project she's been involved with and she'll talk about it with the enthusiasm of someone discussing a recent vacation. And don't ask her to pin down her favorite volunteer activity.
"It's actually too hard to pick a favorite," she reveals.
However, the high school senior is able to narrow her top choices down to three: Church activities, events at the St. Joseph Children's Treatment Center, and her most recent endeavor as Junior Board advisor for Hannah's Treasure Chest, an organization that provides clothing, toys and furniture for children in need.
Kristina has been a particularly good friend to St. Joseph Children's Treatment Center, which served abused, abandoned, neglected and emotionally handicapped children until it closed earlier this year. She selected the center for the service project that enabled her to obtain the Gold Award, the highest rank in Girl Scouting.
Many children at the center needed kits for occasions when they returned to their home for a visit. They lacked basic items such as a toothbrush, toothpaste and other personal hygiene items, so Kristina obtained 44 book bags and filled them with all the toiletries they might need, plus items ranging from letter-writing material to stuffed animals, playing cards, coloring books and hot wheel cars. She obtained the items by contacting her church and local businesses.
Community service has been a part of Kristina's life for many years. She joined Alpha Club at Driscoll Elementary School and was active as a Junior Optimist at Watts Middle School.
"I discovered I liked it, so I found more of it to do," she remarks.
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