National Charity League honors local teenagers

The Green Valley chapter of the National Charity League honored 21 high school girls for their volunteer service with Henderson charitable and nonprofit organizations at its annual Senior Presentation in June. All of the girls are 2008 high school graduates who participated in the mother-daughter service organization for six years.

This year's Charity League class accumulated more than 3,900 volunteer hours since joining the league as seventh-graders, according to Gina Gaber, the 2008-09 National Charity League president. As a whole, Green Valley Chapter members contributed more than 12,300 hours to the Southern Nevada community during the 2007-08 year.

The class of 2008 volunteered at several community organizations including Children's Heart Foundation, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Down Syndrome of Southern Nevada, Henderson Parks and Recreation Department, Meals on Wheels, Safe House, Special Olympics and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

In addition to volunteering, the girls also participate in a variety of activities throughout their six-year membership including a father-daughter event, fashion show, chapter tea and cultural events.

The 2008 Charity League graduates are: Kylie Almeido, Brittni Bailus, Laura Ernst, Ara Finnegan, Jaclyn Hasson, Gabriella Jannotta, Courtney Jolcover, Samantha McCosh, Collyn Morgan, Kendal Nisson, Alexandria Smith, all of Coronado High School; Kelli Belmont, Kristina Cirone, Kylie Cox, Jenna Davidson, Morgan Hernquist, Lauren Wagner, all of Green Valley High School; Jessica Forsythe and Courtney Marshall, both of Bishop Gorman High School; Casi Arnold of Silverado High School; and Hanna Wellish of Las Vegas Academy of International Studies, Performing and Visual Arts.

In other youth news:

* Moryah Hennessy and Destiney McGrann have been selected to receive full scholarships from Renaissance Learning to attend the Summer Institute for the Gifted program at the University of California, Los Angeles July 27-Aug. 16. Moryah, a seventh-grader at O'Callaghan Middle School, and Destiney, a fifth-grader at Hoggard Elementary School, were selected from 119 applicants for the program that offers academic enrichment courses and social opportunities for gifted students.

* Annastasia Wilcox, 16, a student at Northwest Career and Technical Academy, has been selected to participate in the People to People Leadership Summit at UCLA. The 10-day summit, which begins today and runs through July 23, will focus on leadership and team building, community service, and how to navigate the college application process. In addition, the pupils will meet with admissions officers and earn academic or service-learning credit while at the summit.

n Nancy "Nikki" Graves of Silverado High School, and Julian Crider, Rebecca Stewart and Jeff Zicker of Las Vegas Academy were part of a cast and crew of 48 high school students from 18 states who presented the first high school production of the musical "Hairspray" June 24 at the 2008 International Thespian Festival in Lincoln, Neb. The production was presented by Music Theatre International and the Educational Theatre Association. Also at the festival, Las Vegas Academy students from International Thespian troupe 5273 performed their production of "Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" on June 26.

If you know of a worthy candidate for this column, mail information to Youth Spotlight, Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125-0070, or send faxes to 383-4676.