CARING INSTITUTE ANNOUNCES YOUNG ADULT WINNERS OF 2005 NATIONAL CARING AWARD
Award Winners to be Inducted into the Hall of Fame for Caring Americans

Robert J. Dole, Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Val J. Halamandaris, Founder and Executive Director of the Caring Institute, announced the 2005 National Caring Award young adult winners. This honor is bestowed annually upon the most caring youth and most caring adults in America. The winners will be honored during an induction ceremony at 11:00 a.m. on December 5, 2005 at the Frederick Douglass Museum & Hall of Fame for Caring Americans on Capitol Hill (located at 320 A Street, N.E. in Washington, D.C.). The winners will receive their awards at the official National Caring Awards ceremony the evening of December 5, 2005 in Washington, DC.

The young adult (age 18 or younger) National Caring Award winners are:

• Kyle Amber, Pinecrest, FL, 16 years old – When, at age 6, Kyle learned his older brother was diagnosed with Leukemia he decided to help other children. He founded the only child-run 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization affiliated with the Jackson Memorial Hospital, “The Kids That Care Pediatric & Cancer Fund,” and raised more than $100,000 and supports a variety of programs that benefit cancer patients. For example, he supplies hospital waiting rooms with toys and stocks the year-round “Ouch Box” that rewards patients after painful treatments.

• May Lan Dong, Cambridge, MA, 17 years old – May Lan founded “Operation West Africa,” a non-profit foundation to help the residents of Guinea, Africa. May Lan concentrated on three programs: an all girls orphanage, a vocational school, and a high school, and garnered financial support from friends, family, and associates of the Global Alumina Corporation (a major mining company with offices in Boke, Guinea). She raised more than $50,000 which has so far gone to construct a dormitory and provide equipment to support training in domestic trades. Future projects include AIDS/HIV prevention education in conjunction with the efforts of the Global Alumina Corporation.

• Jacob Komar, Burlington, CT, 13 years old – Besides enrolling in college-level classes at the University of Hartford, Jacob has also incorporated his own not-for-profit organization called “Computers for Communities, Inc.” The idea for Jacob’s project came from his struggle with dysgraphia, a learning disability associated with handwriting. Jacob requires a computer for his schoolwork and realized that not all families are able to afford one. Jacob obtained used computers from his school district, rebuilt them, obtained software licensing, and installed educational software. Through Jacob’s efforts over 300 computers have been distributed to families in need.

• Aishlinn O’Connor, Prairie Village, KS, 16 years old – At the age of nine, Aishlinn was told she was too young to volunteer at a local children’s hospital, so she founded “Kids Helping Kids.” Aishlinn convinced administrators at a geriatric center to allow their backyard to be converted into an intergenerational playground and wheelchair garden, for which she raised more than $75,000. Since 2002 this effort has helped the geriatric center residents and children of a tutoring to center forge meaningful relationships. To further bridge the generational gap, Aishlinn and her group has programmed various activities to increase the interaction between the children and residents.

• Greg Sweeney, Wilmington, DE, 17 years old - Greg Sweeney founded Cub Scout Pack 506 for homeless children and has been able to provide the benefits of scouting to more than 100 homeless boys. Because of the transient nature of homeless boys, he expanded the program to multiple shelters, providing opportunities for social interaction but also a book library, backpacks, school supplies and tutoring. Through Greg’s hard work and insistence he received a generous grant of $19,000 to acquire a van and driver to ensure transportation to meetings for the boys.

The Caring Institute was founded in 1985 by Val J. Halamandaris as a result of his first meeting with Mother Teresa. Its mission is to promote the values of caring, integrity and public service. The institute sponsors a number of programs designed to inspire, encourage, recognize and reward acts of caring.

“These young people along with the adult winners exemplify our mission and I am proud that they will be inducted into the Caring Hall of Fame,” says Halamandaris. “We believe that Luciano de Crescenzo put it well when he said, ‘We are all angels with only one wing. We can only fly by embracing each other.’”