Uniontown High School senior honored for community service
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of nine stories
Uniontown Area High School senior Lauren Palmar credits her parents, Andrea and Gus Palmar, for developing her spirit of community service.
“My parents have immensely contributed to the confident and well-rounded person I am today, and I am eternally grateful for that,” Palmar said.
“Because I have been so blessed and fortunate, I believe it is very important to give back.”
Palmar has been involved with a number of community service projects, including the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society, Big Brothers and Uniontown Area YMCA.
Inspired by her grandmother, who lost her battle with lymphoma last year, Palmar volunteered to help with the group’s Light the Night Walk in Uniontown. Alongside her mother and a team of volunteers, Palmar helped run the children’s area event, setting up a bouncy house, games and other entertainment for children.
“We try to make it as enjoyable and fun-filled as possible because most of the kids at the walk are survivors themselves,” said Palmar, who received the Light Brighter Award for having raised over $2,000 for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society.
As a mentor with the Big Brother Big Sister program, Palmar said she tries to encourage positive values in her “little,” a kindergartner. Though Palmar realizes her influence can only go so far, she hopes her young mentee will take some of Palmar’s lessons home with her.
“Thanks to this program, I am able to instill sensibility and kindness in my ‘little’ so that she may learn to deal with tough situations on her own,” said Palmar.
Palmar, who holds a 3.71 GPA, also worked with other area teens on the Uniontown Area YMCA’s Youth Advisory Board, which she founded, to raise $10,000 for a park and playground at the YMCA’s preschool center. The playground will open to children at the end of this school year.
In the fall, Palmar will take her heart and hard work to Ohio State University, where she will major in biochemical engineering, with a goal of working in the field of prosthetics and orthotics. At Ohio State, Palmar said she plans to continue balancing her studies with community service. “Staying involved is very important to me and I plan to continue that through my college experience and adult life,” she said.
For her community service efforts, Palmar has been awarded the Fayette County Community All-Star Award. She’s among nine local students being honored for putting forth an extra effort to make a difference in their communities.
Participants include students from Albert Gallatin, Brownsville Area, Frazier, Connellsville Area, Geibel, Laurel Highlands and Uniontown Area high schools, along with Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, and the Laurel Business Institute. Each school selects its own award winner based on the student’s community service endeavors over the last three years. Students must have a minimum 3.25 grade-point average.
Under the program’s guidelines, a $500 check will be sent to Ohio State University for Palmar. The students can also receive a matching grant from the Community Foundation of Fayette County, depending on certain requirements.
Sponsors include the Herald-Standard, Dave and Linda Meredith, Jes Hutson, Cherokee Fur, Inc., Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, Paul and Shelley Songer, United Bank, Ben and Dr. Barbara Wright, Russell Blaho, Coldwell Banker, Dan Evans, Hartsek Catering, Kisiel and Associates PC, Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus Alumni Society, Joe and Katie Price, Sepic Orthodontics, Jim Saul, Abby’s Gold and Gems, Martha Brownfield, Larry and Carol George, Leda Gismondi, Tim and Debbie Seeger, Doug Wood, Upper Room, Inc., Slavik’s, Inc.
Committee Trustees are Paul Bortz, Cindy Digga, Leda Gismondi, Dave Meredith, Tara Phillips, Jim Saul, Katie Semans, Mark Skoric and Jes Hutson.
The students will be honored at a 7:30 a.m. breakfast Wednesday, May 8 at the Holiday Inn in Uniontown. Ben Wright will be the master of ceremonies and Gina Jones, a professor at Penn State Fayette, the Eberly Campus, will be the guest speaker.
Two co-captains will be named in honor and memory of Harry Brownfield and Jim Gismondi. The co-captains will receive an extra $100. This is the tenth year for the program, which started in 2004.