MOD council picks four Key Club members

Each year, the March of Dimes selects new representatives for its (United States) National Youth Council. For the 2006-07 administrative year, 12 new members have been chosen, and four have Key Club connections:

• Brandon P. Mansur is a Key Club International Trustee and was a member of the Key Club of Alvirne High School in New Hampshire, from which he recently graduated. He will attend George Washington University and aspires to serve in the US military and pursue a career in international diplomacy.
• Drew Bryan currently is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Key2Kiwanis in the Carolinas District, where he served as a past Key Club secretary/treasurer. A sophomore at Wofford University in Spartanburg, South Carolina, he plans to specialize in medicine. While in high school, he helped organize a WalkAmerica event, which raised more than US$10,000 for the March of Dimes.
• Jenna Wilson is a Zanesville High School Key Club member in Ohio.
• Seema Samuel is a member of the Jackson Memorial High School Key Club in Jackson, New Jersey. She also was a Builders Club member.

MOD National Youth Council members are selected because of their demonstrated leadership ability. They are involved in training other student volunteers as well as working with MOD’s youth partners, including Key Club International, which raised more than $100,000 for the March of Dimes in 2005.

“Youth involvement is integral to the March of Dimes grass-roots approach,” says Allison Hauser, manager of MOD’s national youth program. “For example, every year, youth volunteers in every state participate in March of Dimes advocacy days for mothers and babies at state capitals across the country and thousands participate in the March of Dimes largest annual fundraiser, WalkAmerica, raising more than $8 million to further the mission.”

The March of Dimes is a (US) national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality. Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds research programs, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies, and in 2003 it launched a campaign to address the increasing rate of premature birth.

For more information, visit the March of Dimes Team Youth Web site or the parents and professionals’ Web site.