In February, eleven Minnetonka High School students received 2023 Caring Youth Awards in recognition of their extraordinary volunteer work in their local community.

Every year, Caring Youth Awards are given to exceptional student volunteers who are giving back to the communities of Minnetonka, Hopkins, and Golden Valley. The MHS recipients have been working in many different sectors, providing support to a variety of area non-profit partners. 
The honorees of the award this year are:

• The Interact Club Executive Board at MHS (Campbell Deluca '24, Kiera Keegan '24, Meredith Kusilek '24, Olivia Donaldson '24)
• Alayna Winters ‘24
• Lindsey Welsh ‘23
• Piper Benning ‘23
• Gwen Nechas ‘24
• Catherine Rile ‘24
• Hannah Berchild ‘24
• Emily Affolter ‘24

All students have been dedicated to giving back to the Minnetonka community. From organizing the addition of a new food shelf for students in need at Minnetonka High School, to their work with ICA, to developing marketing material for non-profits through their VANTAGE course, to their contributions to the Youth Development Council club, students made the most of opportunities to help those in need. 

“Volunteering provides students with the opportunity to build skills, develop and share empathy, and to help better their community,” said Sarah Johnson, the Community Service Specialist at MHS.  “Volunteering has been proven to boost self-esteem, improve communication skills, and increase a person’s sense of belonging and connectedness to their community.”

There are many ways for Minnetonka students of all ages to get involved in their local communities. To learn more about how to participate in community service activities at Minnetonka High School, students can visit the Tonka Serves website, or  join the Tonka Serves Schoology page (CODE  4BKFD-7QB38). There will also be a Spring Volunteer Fair on March 23 during lunch mods at MHS where high school students can find organizations that they might be interested in working with. 

To learn more about the achievements of the 2023 Caring Youth Award winners, the recording of the virtual ceremony can be found here: https://youtu.be/XbO7zJGJYu0