Many Honor Monette’s ‘Kind Heart’

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Mililani High School’s Melissa Monette, 16, was honored for her kind heart and dedication to her community over the weekend during a trip to Washington, D.C., as one of Hawaii’s top two youth volunteers for 2009 in the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. She also receives $1,000 and an engraved silver medallion.

Prior to the trip, from May 2-6, the Trojan junior said she was excited for it and looked forward to meeting her peers from across the country. It’s an honor just to be recognized, she explained: “Knowing that I’m helping people is the best.”

Her school nominated her for establishing A Harvest for Many Inc., a nonprofit that has collected about 18,000 pounds of food and distributed it to low-income seniors and the homeless over the past two years. Donations have gone to Hawaii Foodbank, Food Pantry and River of Life Mission. She also donates food and medical supplies to Hale Kipa and Waikiki Health Center’s youth outreach program.

When Monette learned that her grandmother was unable to get food assistance from a local food pantry because the pantry only served the homeless, she decided to do something to help seniors like her who aren’t homeless but still need help.

“It is very difficult and traumatic for seniors when they get turned away because they are not poor enough to qualify,” she said. Monette later identified places where low-income seniors live and arranged for staff members of local agencies to help deliver food to them - food that Monette would collect herself.

“I’m very proud of her,” said her father, Mike. “She had the idea of asking people for their surplus fruit and vegetables that they have growing in their yard. That’s where the idea came from.”

Monette is not just the “food lady” of Central Oahu. She also plays violin and is on the varsity tennis team. She was recently named a finalist in the search for Huggable Heroes by Build-A-Bear Workshop, and is one of 50 young people from the United States and Canada being recognized for charity work.

The chocolate people admire her, too. Monette is the Hawaii winner of the 2009 Nestle Very Best in Youth competition for community service and academic excellence. She gets $1,000 to give to a charity of her choice.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards is a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. Now in its 14th year, the awards are coordinated by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals.