The Cattaraugus County Youth Bureau announces this week’s featured Youth Citizenship Award recipient is John Charles. John is the son of Suzanne and Raymond Charles and is a senior at Allegany-Limestone Central School.
John has volunteered many hours of service to his community and school through several programs. He has been a member of the Interact Club for three years and the LEO Club for three years participating in and organizing various service projects. John has volunteered at the Olean Warning House for four years, has made blankets and has collected reading glasses for the community.
He has volunteered several hours a week at Homecare and Hospice throughout his high school years totaling two hundred and forty hours helping the elderly. Additionally, John has volunteered at Saint Luke’s Mission of Mercy in Buffalo for four years.
John has been a member of the Spanish Club for four years and has held the position of president for one year. John has been a member of the Donate Life Club for three years and a participant in the Math Counts State-Wide Competition twice. He has played Varsity Tennis for six years and earned a spot as Captain his senior year. He has been a member of the National Junior Honor Society for two years and a member and the President of the National Honor Society for two years. Through all of John’s community and school involvement, he has served more than 1,250 volunteer hours to helping others.
Academically, John has worked hard and has earned a number of awards. He has been presented with the Jamestown Community College Student of the Year Award, received First Place for the “If I Were Mayor” Essay out of one thousand applicants, was selected to compete in the Saunders Scholars Competition regionally and nationally, and has participated in the Saint Bonaventure Summer Research Program to discuss and research Leukemia treatments. John has participated in the New Visions Health Professions Intern Program, attended the Harvard Science Research Conference working with a team of students on Gene Editing Software and has taken a college chemistry class through Jamestown Community College.
In addition, John has been certified in CPR, AED, First Aid, and Stop the Bleed. He has participated in Young Entrepreneurs Academy where he founded a non-profit business called Seniors Aid Seniors, where students in high school and college help seniors in assisted living facilities and has shadowed Sen. George Borrello for a day in Albany.
John’s future plans are to attend college in order to go to medical school and eventually become a certified physician. He is described by his guidance counselor as “an extremely kind and thoughtful person who works hard in all that he does.”
Nominations for the 2022 graduating class are open until March 15, 2022. If you know an outstanding member of your community who is a senior in high school, you can nominate them for a Cattaraugus County Youth Citizenship Award. For more information please visit our website at Cattcoyouth.org or contact: Alison Crosson, Youth Bureau Program Coordinator at (716) 938-2617.
