Contact: Margaret Kovar
STARKVILLE, Miss.--More than 40 members of the Mississippi State and Starkville communities are new honorees for their volunteer service contributions throughout the year.
The university's Maroon Volunteer Center and Volunteer Starkville recently recognized them with Spirit Awards for having completed more than 50 community service hours.
Freshman finance major Shan Shan Peng of Starkville is the 2012 Volunteer of the Year. She completed more than 160 hours of community service over the past year.
Spirit Awards also were presented to 17 organizations that had accumulated more than 200 total work hours. Among honorees in this group:
--The MSU Women's Club received the Group Effort of the Year Award for accumulating 1,267 hours, the highest number of service hours of any campus or community group.
--Theta Tau Professional Engineering Fraternity, the Student Group Effort of the Year Award for 1,150 total hours its members worked, the highest number in this category.
--The Starkville Mayor's Youth Council, Community Organization of the Year Award for the more than 50 hours of community service accumulated per member.
--Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Student Organization of the Year Award for members that averaged 37.5 hours, the highest number of service hours per member.
--Habitat for Humanity, Community Partner of the Year Award for the more than 500 volunteers working during the fall semester on the Maroon Edition: Habitat for Humanity house building project.
Created in 2003 during the George W. Bush administration, the President's Volunteer Service Award seeks to recognize the valuable contributions of volunteers who have answered the call to serve others through current activities or lifetime service.
As a certifying organization for the national challenge, the MVC identified eligible recipients and verified their service hours. The bronze, silver and gold levels of the award vary by hours of service completed within a 12-month period. These honorees included:
Bronze
Individual: Shan Shan Peng, Chase Robinson, Ruth De La Cruz, Carol Read, Chloe Phillips, Diane Wall, Darius Mangum, Fredricka Brown, and Jasmine Danzy.
Group: Controllers Generation 2/ 4-H Club.
Silver
Individual: Robert Jamerson.
Group: Starkville Mayor's Youth Council, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
Gold
Individual: Amanda Thornton, Victoria Hall, Patricia Gillon, Zettie Rose Coffey, James Coffey Jr., and Jameka Harkins.
Group: MSU Women's Club, MSU Veterinary Camp and Theta Tau Professional Engineering Fraternity.
For more information about the 2012 Volunteer Service Award Banquet or Maroon Volunteer Center, visit www.mvc.msstate.edu. For other information, contact the office at volunteer@saffairs.msstate.edu.