Operation Homefront Announces 2017 Military Child of the Year® Semifinalists
SAN ANTONIO (PRWEB) January 06, 2017 -- Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit serving America’s military families, has narrowed nearly 400 nominees for the 2017 Military Child of the Year® Awards to 90 semifinalists nationwide. Additionally, 20 semifinalists have been chosen out of 40 nominees for the 2017 Military Child of the Year® Award for Innovation presented by Booz Allen Hamilton.
Six Military Child of the Year® Award winners in the ages 8 to 18 range, representing the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and National Guard, will receive $10,000 each. They will be selected based on their scholarship, volunteerism, leadership, and extracurricular involvement.
The seventh award, which is open to young people ages 13 to 18, is the Military Child of the Year® Award for Innovation presented by Booz Allen Hamilton. The winner of this award shows the power of innovative thinking. Examples include a new invention, improvement to existing technology, or creation of a new nonprofit. The Innovation award recipient will earn $10,000 and a mentorship by Booz Allen Hamilton employees to scale or to advance the winner’s project.
Each Military Child of the Year® Award semifinalist will be interviewed by a panel selected by Operation Homefront staff. Award recipients will be chosen by a panel of judges, to include senior retired service members, senior spouses, members of Operation Homefront’s board of directors, and other leaders in the military support community. Booz Allen Hamilton will judge competitors for the Military Child of the Year® Award for Innovation.
Every winner will be flown to Washington along with a parent or guardian to receive the award from high-ranking military leaders.
More information about the Military Child of the Year® awards is available at http://www.militarychildoftheyear.org.
These are the semifinalists:
2017 Operation Homefront Military Child of the Year® Award Semifinalists
Abroad
Andrea Gamble, 17, Kaiserslautern, Germany, Army
Alabama
Jordyn McNeal, 10, Birmingham, Alabama, Air Force
Kaili Cutler, 8, Daphne, Alabama, Coast Guard
Alaska
Erin McLeod, 17, Anchorage, Alaska, Air Force
Rachel Winburn, 17, Ketchikan, Alaska, Coast Guard
Arizona
Evan Pittman, 18, Phoenix, Arizona, Navy
California
Isabelle Richards, 12, Jamul, California, Navy
Reagan Warrick, 12, El Cajon, California, Navy
Sierra LeFlore, 17, San Marcos, California, Marine Corps
Colorado
Erica Thompson, 18, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Air Force
Hayley Hamblin, 18, Florissant, Colorado, Army
Connecticut
Ashlynn Ruleman, 16, Waterford, Connecticut, Coast Guard
Kathryn Schorr, 17, Darien, Connecticut, Navy
Florida
Grace Pleinis, 9, Tampa, Florida, Army
Madison Shick, 15, Tampa, Florida, Army
Thomas Rizza, 11, Bradenton, Florida, Army
Alyssa Santos, 17, Tarpon Springs, Florida, Coast Guard
Amelia Bailey, 16, Saint Augustine, Florida, National Guard (Top 5 national finalist in 2016)
Sheryl Evans, 17, Callahan, Florida, National Guard
Anthony Beasley, 18, Hurlburt Field, Florida, Air Force
Edward Salvador, 16, Niceville, Florida, Air Force
Henderson Heussner, 18, Fort Myers, Florida, Army
Georgia
Alysha Worden, 17, Martinez, Georgia, National Guard
Jediah Persaud, 16, Appling, Georgia, Army
Eleanor Rager, 17, Douglasville, Georgia, National Guard
Mackenzie Miller, 17, Peachtree City, Georgia, Army
Katherine Dever, 17, Kathleen, Georgia, Air Force
Hawaii
Kindrah Carney, 16, Pearl City, Hawaii, Marine Corps
Madeline Turpin, 17, Wahiawa, Hawaii, Army
Iowa
Connor Ascherl, 18, Granville, Iowa, National Guard
Kansas
Hunter Hotaling, 15, Lansing, Kansas, Army
Louisiana
Alexander Sucato, 16, Belle Chasse, Louisiana, Navy
Massachutetts
Joseph Schmid, 8, Marshfield, Massachusetts, Coast Guard
Metropolitan Washington, D.C.
Alexander McGrath, 17, Severna Park, Maryland, Navy
Cohen Russell, 10, Fort Meade, Maryland, Army
Trevette Kuester, 17, Huntingtown, Maryland, Air Force
Aiden O'Leary, 17, Fredericksburg, Virginia, Navy
Cody Phillips, 17, Quantico, Virginia, Marine Corps
Linda Goodson, 17, Triangle, Virginia, Air Force
Mary Kate Cooper, 17, Fairfax, Virginia, Coast Guard
McKenzie Galloway, 17, Stafford, Virginia, Marine Corps
Thomas Russ, 17, Stafford, Virginia, Marine Corps
Timothy Hunt, 17, Burke, Virginia, Army
Michigan
Janelle Gehrke, 15, Saint Joseph, Michigan, Coast Guard
Minnesota
Alexander Steinmetz, 16, Cottage Grove, Minnesota, National Guard
John Kargel, 15, Isle, Minnesota, National Guard
Missouri
Joshua Traxel, 16, Rolla, Missouri, National Guard
North Carolina
Neorah Wells, 9, Charlotte, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Jennifer Narvaez, 16, Hubert, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Alejandro Cook-Hernandez, 17, Havelock, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Viktoria Alston, 17, Havelock, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Joshua F., 13, Jacksonville, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Brooke Gruber, 17, Jacksonville, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Caleb Harding, 16, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Navy
Da'Rod Crutchfield, 18, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Marine Corps
Jackson Beatty, 17, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Marine Corps
North Dakota
Olivia Burch, 18, Grand Forks, North Dakota, Navy
Nebraska
Sydney Long, 17, Lincoln, Nebraska, National Guard
New Jersey
Charlie McGuire, 12, Trenton, New Jersey, Coast Guard
Kylie McGuire, 15, Trenton, New Jersey, Coast Guard
Zaniya Lewis, 18, Edgewater Park, New Jersey, National Guard
Nevada
Caroline Stanton, 11, Las Vegas, Nevada, Air Force
Marianna Galvin, 17, Henderson, Nevada, Air Force
Chace Cleckley, 17, Fallon, Nevada, Navy
Ohio
Molly Frey, 16, Pickerington, Ohio, National Guard
Oklahoma
Cody Watson, 16, Tuttle, Oklahoma, Coast Guard
Gavin Hetzler, 17, Edmond, Oklahoma, Air Force
Oregon
Lily Moser, 15, Portland, Oregon, National Guard
Puerto Rico
Jessie Porter, 17, Bayamon, Puerto Rico, Coast Guard
Rhode Island
Sierra K., 17, Middletown, Rhode Island, Navy
South Carolina
Jocelyn Figueroa-Urquidi, 13, Beaufort, South Carolina, Marine Corps
South Dakota
Trevor Bartunek, 17, Rapid City, South Dakota, National Guard
Tennessee
Kara Smith, 17, Munford, Tennessee, National Guard
Texas
Alec Argueta, 17, El Paso, Texas, Army
Benjamin Rawald, 14, Del Rio, Texas, Air Force
Darrius Anderson, 17, Mansfield, Texas, Army
Sharlee Krkosa, 17, Schertz, Texas, Air Force
William Kuebler, 12, League City, Texas, Coast Guard
Utah
Kylee McClure, 18, Monroe, Utah, Air Force
Jamal Braxton, 18, Hill AFB, Utah, Air Force
Hampton Roads, Virginia, Metropolitan Area
Alexis Bryant, 17, Virginia Beach, Virginia, Navy
Carson Butler, 18, Virginia Beach, Virginia, Marine Corps
Ethan Vicario, 17, Virginia Beach, Virginia, Navy
Kira Walters, 14, Yorktown, Virginia, Coast Guard
Vermont
Gabriel Niles, 14, Bennington, Vermont, Coast Guard
Washington
Akaiah Lovell, 15, Port Orchard, Washington, Navy
Britton Laing, 18, Silverdale, Washington, Navy
Isabelle Miller, 16, Spokane, Washington, National Guard
Tyler Evans, 14, Maple Valley, Washington, Coast Guard
Wisconsin
Elissa Nott, 17, Onalaska, Wisconsin, Army
Semifinalists for 2017 Operation Homefront Military Child of the Year® Award for Innovation
Presented by Booz Allen Hamilton
BreAsia Austin, 17, Dallas, Texas, National Guard
Kamille Banks, 17, Lodi, New Jersey, Coast Guard
Sophie Bernstein, 16, St. Louis, Missouri, Navy
Elizabeth Brouse, 17, Merchantville, New Jersey, Army
Marianne Dunaway, 17, Madison, Alabama, Army
Gabriel Feinn, 16, Louisville, Kentucky, Navy
Kianna Flowers, 17, Gambrills, Maryland, Air Force
Noah Freye, 17, Chesapeake, Virginia, Navy
Kennedy Knight, 17, Charlotte, North Carolina, National Guard
Maura Knutsen, 17, Centerville, Utah, Army
Jason Lee, 17, Pacheco, California, Army
Jennifer Molton, 16, Lucas, Ohio, National Guard
Lily Moser, 15, Portland, Oregon, Army
Krystalin Neary, 17, St. Peter, Minnesota, National Guard
Caitlyn Schoon, 17, Belle Plaine, Minnesota, Army
Samantha Shaffer, 18, Greenwood, Indiana, Army
Madison Shick, 15, Tampa, Florida, Army
Mikaela Smith, 17, Las Vegas, Nevada, Air Force
Trinity Torgerson, 17, Colorado Springs, Colorado, National Guard
Cierra Williams-Carter, 17, Virginia Beach, Virginia, Navy
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About Operation Homefront: A national nonprofit, Operation Homefront builds strong, stable, and secure military families so that they can thrive in the communities they have worked so hard to protect. With more than 3,200 volunteers nationwide, Operation Homefront has provided assistance to tens of thousands of military families since its inception shortly after 9/11. Recognized for superior performance by leading independent charity oversight groups, 92 percent of Operation Homefront’s expenditures go directly to programs that provide support to our military families. For more information, go to http://www.OperationHomefront.net.
Aaron Taylor, Operation Homefront, Inc., http://www.OperationHomefront.net, +1 202-744-1326, [email protected]
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