From Staff Reports
Kaylee Laster was awarded the Prudential Spirit of Community medallion recently by Kevin Brown, a Prudential represenative from Rogers.
Laster's service activity is Share the Lovies, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that she started with help from her mother. She is the daughter of Mark and Kim Laster.
Share the Lovies accepts donations of stuffed animals, and money for shipping cost, to send to needy children around the world.
"When I first visited Uganda on a short term mission trip with Empower-A-Child International (EAC) in 2010, I was sad to see children in orphanages and slums with only sticks and empty bottles to play with. Before my second trip in 2012, I asked family members to donate stuffed animals that I could give to children in Uganda. With those donations, I was able to give lovies to almost 50 children.
"My favorite part of the trip was seeing huge smiles on the faces of children in hospitals, orphanages, and slums holding their stuffed animals. For Christmas last year, I raised $400 selling scarfs and necklaces for EAC. As much as I loved helping EAC, I kept remembering how happy Ugandan children were to receive something as simple as a stuffed animal. For Christmas this year, Share the Lovies has collected over 500 animals to send to children, who will love them very much, in Uganda, Kenya, Alaska, Jamaica, and Arkansas," Laster said.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards represent the United States' largest youth recognition program based exclusively on volunteer community service. The awards were created in 1995 by Prudential in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals to honor middle and high school students at the local, state and national level for outstanding service to others.
Community on 04/02/2014