Senator Collins Meets with 2019 Prudential Spirit of Community Award Recipients from Yarmouth and Biddeford

Click HERE for a photo of Senator Collins with Isabel Brennan, and HERE for a photo of Senator Collins with Rebecca Hatt

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Susan Collins met with Isabel Brennan of Yarmouth High School and Rebecca Hatt of Biddeford Middle School who were in Washington, D.C., as 2019 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards State Honorees.  The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program is the largest youth recognition program based on volunteer community service. 

“One of the greatest privileges I have serving Maine in the U.S. Senate is the opportunity to know outstanding people from our state who have devoted part of their busy lives to community service,” said Senator Collins.  “Both Isabel and Rebecca identified a problem in their communities that needed a solution — and instead of waiting for someone else to tackle the challenge, they took action themselves.  Congratulations to you both! Maine is so proud of your desire to serve.”

Isabel, a senior at Yarmouth High School, has been a leader in a local program that provides nutritious breakfast and lunch, as well as supervised activities on summer weekdays for kids whose families may not be able to afford three meals a day.  The program, Lunch Crunch, is designed to ensure that children who get free or subsidized meals at school don’t go hungry during the summer.  In her role as a Lunch Crunch leader, Isabel helps coordinate and plan the program schedule.  Once camp begins, she distributes the food and helps with activities.  Each summer, between 25 and 30 children attend the camp.

Rebecca, an eighth-grader at Biddeford Middle School, spearheaded a project to collect feminine hygiene products for homeless women in her community.  Rebecca was joined by her Girl Scouts troop to create “Project Confidence.”  The Troop raised money to purchase feminine hygiene products, which were then distributed to a local teen center, soup kitchen, and other organizations that work with low-income and homeless women.  Through Rebecca’s project, they have distributed more than 100 packages of pads and tampons.