Gyu Yeun Kim of Palo Verde High School in Las Vegas was the Nevada winner of the Peace Essay Contest last year. She attended the National Awards program in Washington DC and received a $1,000 scholarship. She has been awarded the Principal’s Award for Highest Academic Achievement and has a great passion for music. She has scored an excellent rating at State Solo and Ensemble and made the CCSD Honor Choir as a soprano. She also plays classical piano and received a superior rating at Junior Festival.
Kim aspires to attend a college out East, in hopes of someday making a worthy contribution to this world. She is considering majoring in a spectrum of subjects from international business to political law to pre-med.
“As a former foster child, I have learned to be an advocate for myself,” says Heather Wilder of Cimarron Memorial High School in Las Vegas. Many of the activities she participates in have current foster children in mind. She has written booklets about her experiences, facilitated scrapbook workshops, collected and organized toy drives and speaks on behalf of foster children.
She participates in youth groups at church, the I Have a Dream Foundation and works with elementary age students. She plans on being a horse trainer and working with foster children. She hopes to continue writing, help make stronger laws and provide a safe home for her own children in the future.