Twelve WVU student pharmacists were presented with the President’s Volunteer Service Award by the WVU Center for Civic Engagement. Together, they completed more than 1,500 hours of community service in 2011. The WVU School of Pharmacy had the most nominations within the WVU Health Sciences Center and had the second most nominations throughout the 13 schools and colleges at WVU.
The President’s Volunteer Service Award was created by the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation to honor Americans who are dedicated volunteers and encourage the people around them to get involved.
First-year student pharmacist Jodi Canada of Bud, W.Va., received the gold-level award for completing more than 250 hours of service and second-year Katherine Mabry of Ronceverte, W.Va., completed more than 175 hours of service earning the silver-level award.
Second-year student pharmacists Jennifer Alastanos of Bridgeport, W.Va., Katelyn Andrews of York, Pa., Kelsey Bailey of Pineville, W.Va., Victoria Capozzi of Clarksburg, W.Va., Sarah Mallow of Upper Tract, W.Va., Cara Milburn of Camp Hill, Pa., Andrew Mlinarcik of Weyers Cave, Va., Zachary Post of Clarksburg, W.Va. and Amy Toler and Kealy Toler of Mullens, W.Va., received the bronze-level award for completing more than 100 hours of service to the community.
The student pharmacists participated in an array of activities to earn their service awards, ranging from local fundraisers and awareness walks, to assisting with the coordination of temporary pharmacies in Honduras while on global projects. The students were honored for their dedication to improving the communities around them.
Brett White, operations coordinator and United Way campaign director for the WVU Center for Civic Engagement, coordinates the President’s Volunteer Service Awards for the Center. He said the Center values the relationship with the WVU School of Pharmacy and is impressed by the students’ and the university’s dedication as a whole.
“The award is recognition of the hard work each of these volunteers put in year-round,” White said. “The 202 recipients accounted for more than 45,000 hours of service. This is a phenomenal example of how WVU is touching lives in our community and around our state every day. We hope that the recipients will wear this award as a badge of honor and use it to inspire others to give back.”
Photo identifications:
Front row (l-r) Jennifer Alastanos, Katherine Mabry, Kealy Toler and Amy Toler
Back row (l-r) Kelsey Bailey, Cara Milburn, Katelyn Andrews, Zachary Post, Andrew Mlinarcik, Victoria Capozzi and Sarah Mallow