Students Win Awards for Helping Others

April 11, 2011 – Colin Brody (C’11) is one of 20 students Georgetown honored with the Lena Landegger Community Service Award, a $2,500 prize that recognizes students with an exceptional commitment to service and social justice work.

“When I came to Georgetown, I knew that volunteering would be a major part of my college experience,” says Brody who is majoring in psychology and minoring in cognitive science. “So I decided to find a niche where I could serve and grow at the same time. Four years later, it is clear that GERMS was that place for me.”

GERMS stands for Georgetown Emergency Response Medical Service, the all-volunteer student-run ambulance service for the university and its surrounding neighborhoods. All members of GERMS hold the certification of Emergency Medical Technician-Basic in the District of Columbia.

Human Connection

“I made most of my best friends and met hundreds of people as a result of the work I did with GERMS,” says Brody, who is from Barrington, R.I., “and I cannot think of anything else as important as the human connection when volunteering.”

Created in honor of the late Lena Landegger, the annual awards are made possible through the support of the Landegger Charitable Foundation. Students, recommended by faculty, staff or other students, are evaluated on the breadth, depth and impact of their involvement in service and justice projects.

“Once again this year, we are grateful to the Landegger family for their generosity and dedication to Georgetown in making these awards possible,” says Jeanne Lord, associate vice president of university student affairs and chair of the Landegger awards committee. “The accomplishments of these 20 students honor a strong commitment to service, which is one of the oldest traditions of Jesuit education.”

This year there were nearly 80 applicants for the 20 spots, she says. All 20 students were honored at an April 9 dinner.

George F. Landegger (SFS’58), Lena’s son, and his daughter, Justine Landegger (C’04), presented the awards.

Serving Others

Johnny Solis III  (SFS’11), a first-generation college student from Johnson City, Texas, is another Landegger winner.

Solis has volunteered at a local high school as a teaching assistant for community-based learning courses, tutored at Arlington Correctional Facility and co-founded “La Casita,” a community house dedicated to Latino culture

He plans to teach high school English for Teach For in Texas after graduation.

“No matter where I am in 10 years, 30 years or 50 years, I will always remember the impact that Georgetown has had on me and in shaping who I am as a community leader,” Solis says.  “Georgetown University was my ‘dream school’ and it is an honor to say that I graduated from an … institution that values what I intend to do with my life – serving others.”

Twenty Awards

The other Landegger award winners are:

Senyo Abotsi (C’11), Stone Mountain, Ga.
Ross S. Anderson (C’11), Morristown, N.J.
Alan Tristen Ardelean (C’11), Chicago, Ill.
Kristen Cates (C’11), Acworth, Ga.
Brenda Garcia (SFS’11), McAllen Texas
Reina Garcia (C’11), Chicago, Ill.
Diamond Graham, (SFS’11), Las Vegas, Nev.
David Lee (C’11), Los Angeles, Calif.
Julia Lovett (C’11), Houston, Texas
Marley Moynahan, (SFS’11), Tallahassee, Fla.
Natalie Punchak, (C’11), Doylestown, Pa.
Nadim Rifai (SFS’11), Doha, Qatar
Maria Rocha (C’11), Lowell, Mass.
Deidra Sanders (SFS’11), Memphis, Tenn.
Derick Stace-Naughton, (C’11), Madison, Wis.
Thuy Tran (C’11), Sagamore Beach, Mass.
Bryana Tucci (SFS’11), Washington, D.C.
Sarah Tucker (SFS’11), Ann Arbor, Mich.