Soules receives Oregon Heritage Excellence Award

Marshfield High School senior Rebecca Soules, 18, is one of three individuals and five groups selected to receive an Oregon Heritage Excellence Award at a conference in May.

Soules was chosen based on her work to preserve the Pioneer Cemetery, Century Farms and Heritage Trees.

Oregon Heritage Commission coordinator Kyle Jansson of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department’s Heritage Programs Division said the award recipients were judged on their ability to produce the most from available resources, and skills.

Finalist in Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program

For her work coordinating activities at Marshfield Pioneer Cemetery throughout the year, including volunteer workdays and Memorial Day ceremonies, Soules was selected as a distinguished finalist in the 2008 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program, which honors youth volunteers.

In addition, she has marked the graves of veterans and replaced headstones and is compiling a computer database of cemetery records.

All middle level and high schools in the United States, along with all Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and volunteer centers were eligible to select a student or member for a local Prudential Spirit of Community Award in November.

Nearly 4,500 local honorees were then reviewed by state level judges, who selected two state honorees in each state and the District of Columbia, plus a select number or Distinguished Finalists based on criteria such as personal initiative, creativity, effort, impact and personal growth.

The awards program, sponsored in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals, is part of a broad initiative created by Prudential Financial to encourage young people to become involved in community service.

Other elements of the initiative include a community leadership training program for high school students and a variety of educational materials relating to volunteering.

For more information on this year’s Prudential Spirit of Community State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists, those interested can visit http://www.prudential.com/spirit.