This month we’ve announced the recipients of some of our biggest awards from fall of 2013: the Graduate Scholar Award winners ($10,000), the Undergraduate Achievement Scholarship winner ($5,000), and the Education Debt Reduction Award winners ($5,000).  Today, we’re excited to display the recipients of the remaining fall 2013 headquarters awards. These scholarships make up part of the $1,000,000 we award annually to members.
Alumni Professional Development Grant ($1,000):

• Pamela Stover, Baylor University, United States
• Olive Aneno, South Carolina State University, United States

Community Service Scholarship ($1,000):

• Graham Kell, University of Southern Queensland, Australia
• Joshua Akman, University of Maryland, United States
• Talita Delport, University of Pretoria, South Africa
• Orysya Svystun, University of Alberta, Canada
• Parmanand Dasrat, The City College of New York, United States

“I would like to express my deepest thanks to the kind people at Golden Key for selecting me for this scholarship. I am grateful for this monetary push in my college education and commend the Society for supporting students like me throughout the years. This scholarship will help to not only support me financially, but also motivate me to continue into a life of service as a physician. As a lifelong resident of New York City, I know what the value of community service is in society and how vital it is. I’ve always felt welcome into Golden Key, from day one at the New Member Recognition Event, where the chapter officers made everyone feel proud and special.”
-Parmanand Dasrat
Golden Key Research Grant ($1,000):

• Alexandra Galindo, University of Puerto Rico – Mayaguez, United States
• Brian Squitieri, The University of Oklahoma, United States
• Gabriel Chernitsky, The University of Winnipeg, Canada
• Kaitlyn Enright, McGill University, Canada
• Mathew Hamula, University of California, Santa Barbara, United States
• Rebecca Cross, University of Wollongong, Australia
• Song Zhang, The University of Adelaide, Australia
• Ying Qi Winnie Li, Edith Cowan University, Australia

“Receiving this award greatly motivates me to continue conducting research of my interest that I believe will have an impact to the society. I am currently enrolled in the Master of Science (Interdisciplinary Studies) at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia. My research involves the evaluation of novel biomarkers of health in a group of Australian adults that will have original contribution to multidisciplinary academic fields and will lead to practical use and benefits to the wider community. I am utterly thankful to the society that provide this acknowledgement and to my family and friends who support me in embarking a research journey at the very first end. Making the decision to do a research degree overseas is definitely not an easy one, but with assistance like this, it will turn out to be meaningful and rewarding.”
-Ying Qi Winnnie Li
Joan Nelson Study Abroad Scholarship ($2,500):

• Lorin Dawson, The University of Mississippi, United States

Outstanding Alumni Award ($1,000):

• Shanling Yu, LaTrobe University, Australia
• Kaitlyn Bentley, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa

“I come from a small town in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, called Port Elizabeth. Last year I had the privilege of teaching at a small school, called the Human Dignity Centre, which reaches out to the children of a local township. Due to the extreme poverty stricken conditions, many of the learners have fetal alcohol syndrome, are malnourished, etc. and therefore cannot keep up academically. There is a huge need, in not only this school, but all over South Africa, for children such as these to be assed in order to assist them. My intention is to eventually return to the Human Dignity Centre, in order to aid them with performing assessments for the children who have trouble academically in the school. This scholarship will help me towards achieving my goal of obtaining my masters in educational psychology in order to do so. I, therefore, feel very honoured to win the Outstanding Alumni Award for 2013.”
-Kaitlyn Bentley
Study Abroad Scholarship ($1,000):

• Sarah Llewellyn, The Australian National University, Australia
• Brandon Kwong, University of Alberta, Canada
• Kate Poppa, La Trobe University, Australia
• Nishtha Vashishta, University of Delhi-Lady Sri Ram College, India
• Adam White, James Madison, United States
• Jessie Zanutig, University of Alberta, Canada
• Jacques van der Berg, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa
• Rose Kenyon, George Mason University, United States
• Akinlolu Makinwa, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa

“I hereby wish to express my profound gratitude to the Golden Key International Honour Society for selecting me for the 2013 study abroad scholarship award. Thank you for the honour bestowed on my family, my university, my country and me. Winning this award is a confirmation of my call to contribute to the emergent and essential field of youth and family ministry, especially in Africa. It also means, to me, that Golden Key International Society recognizes the fact that all fields of study have the potential to make impact in society. This award will assist me to pursue my quest to be grounded in the study of youth and families in order to become a resource-person for prospective and practicing youth and family ministers in Africa. This award will also help me to collaborate and dialogue with fellow youth and family ministers abroad as we continue to seek effective ways to address the challenges faced by youth and families. The lessons learnt from my study abroad will also contribute to the outcome of my PhD dissertation in Youth Ministry as I seek to identify, analyze and establish the theological foundations of youth and family ministry for a good life-transforming practice.”
-Akinlolu Makinwa
QS World MBA Tour Scholarship ($5,000):

• Natalie Hatour, University of California, Los Angeles, United States

QS World Grad Tour Scholarship ($5,000):

• Tatevik Shaboyan, York University, Canada

“I feel very privileged to receive the QS World Grad Tour Award. It is a great honour to be recognized for my achievements and dedication to my chosen career path. This award will help me financially through the Doctor of Optometry Program, which is a very focused field. It requires extensive knowledge and sharp clinical skills, which are developed through four years of schooling. Receiving this award is a motivation to continue learning and refine my clinical skills, in order to provide high quality patient care. The award also brings pride to my family, friends, and community, who have supported me throughout the years. I will continue to uphold Golden Key’s pillars of Academics, Leadership, and Service, by spreading awareness of eye health and regular eye exams. This includes both local programs and international mission trips to developing countries, to provide eye-care in underserved communities around the world. I would like to extend a thank-you for this generous award, which will allow me to continue these initiatives.”
-Tatevik Shaboyan

Congratulations to the winners!

From 11-13 April 2014, many Golden Key members from about 70 chapters came together to participate in service activities for Global Youth Service Day (GYSD), the largest weekend of service in the world. GYSD was created to engage young people ages 5 to 25 years old in service activities to create civic minded youth while bettering their communities. All Golden Key members and chapters were encouraged to take part in service events for GYSD.
GK chapters that participated were eligible to apply for our Global Youth Service Day Chapter Awards for their outstanding initiatives.

And today, we are excited to announce the winners of these awards!

First place goes to the Universidad de Puerto Rico, Mayaguez chapter who are awarded $500! The second and third place winners, receiving $250 each, are the chapters at Wright State University and the University of South Dakota, respectively.  Congratulations to these three chapters!
The Universidad de Puerto Rico, Mayaguez (UPRM) chapter had two GYSD events in which 22 of their chapter members participated. The first was called “Build Your Future.” It consisted of seminars directed towards high school students about college education and career development. The goal was to motivate these students to finish a college degree. The participants visited three local high schools where they talked about the benefits of an undergraduate degree and highlighted diverse career options, which the students showed great enthusiasm towards.
Additionally, the chapter organized an event called “Seeds of Hope: The Puppet Show.” The chapter made puppets and went to UPRM Preschool Center to put on an environmentally themed puppet show for 31 children to illustrate about wildlife, environmental preservation and animal care. Then the GK members gave the kids a very thoughtful gift: baskets with tomato seeds and instructions about how to plant and grow a tomato tree. The event helped the children to start to learn about being conscious citizens while having fun.
“We fervently believe in our youth potential to make the difference. Global Youth Service Month has been an unforgettable journey and we hope to inspire others to live in service. Let’s make Global Youth Service part of our everyday lives and share the most unselfish and honorable virtue of life: to give,” said Dayana C. Reveron Alvalle, graduate student at UPRM.
The Wright State University chapter hosted an event called “Young Athlete’s Experience”. The purpose of this event was to invite children from ages two to seven with intellectual disabilities to participate in physical activities. The stations introduced them to skills they will need for Special Olympics eligibility, beginning at age eight. The seven stations included: an obstacle course, running, “Coach says,” batting, kicking, beginning hockey, goalie drill, and much more. There were more than ten children with Down Syndrome, Schizencephaly, Autism, and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder participate. It was an inclusive event and they highly encouraged family participation. Towards the end of the event, the children played with a large rainbow parachute. This was a unique opportunity because in their region, similar events do not exist where kids can learn these skills for future involvement with the Special Olympics. Because of this limitation, we reached out to community organizations to gain participants and make this event possible. This event provided a positive change for parents to meet one another outside of therapy in a fun environment. Valuable connections between families were also made as the chapter members noticed some of the families exchanging phone numbers for future play dates. Volunteers were recruited from Wright Patt United States Air Force, Special Olympics College and Phi Kappa Phi.
The University of South Dakota chapter hosted their own March of Dimes walk in Vermillion, South Dakota. The chapter successfully raised $1,540 to support March of Dimes, which raises money to support programs that help moms have healthy, full-term pregnancies, and it funds research to find answers to the problems that threaten babies. The had 60 members from the community and campus join the march. All proceeds will go towards research and care as well as vaccinations for pre-mature births, full-term births and their mothers in the state of South Dakota.

Congratulations to our three winning chapters and a BIG thank you to all of our chapters that participated in Global Youth Service Day!