Sixty-five MICDS Upper School were honored at assembly this week for earning the Presidential Volunteer Service Award. « The goal of this program is to encourage more people to live lives of service and celebrate the spirit of volunteerism, » said Erin Hamill, Director of Upper School Community Service. « Recognizing and honoring volunteers sets a standard for service, encourages a sustained commitment to civic engagement, and inspires others to make service a part of their lives. All of this aligns with MICDS’ mission to prepare students for lives of purpose and service. »
The award recognizes individuals who have achieved a certain number of hours of service during a 12-month period. Awards are given to youth ages 15 and under who have completed 50 or more hours of volunteer service (50 – bronze, 75 – silver, 100 – gold) and to individuals 16 and older who have completed 100 or more hours (100 – bronze, 175 – silver, 250 – gold).
In this week’s ceremony, MICDS was proud to thank and honor 65 MICDS 9th through 11th graders for their volunteer service over the last twelve months. Ten seniors will be recognized on May 17 during Senior Night. Combined, these 75 Upper School students logged a combined total of 9,640 hours of service in a 12-month period. And the entire Upper School volunteered over 17,000 hours this year!
Two of the award recipients shared what volunteering means to them.
Catherine Cai ’27
When I was young, I used to go to Indianapolis frequently for piano competitions. I had major stage fright, so my teacher suggested that I could perform at a senior living house as a volunteer. During my performances there, one of the residents, Ilene, took a liking to me. She always showed up to my recitals, and we would bond over our shared love of Chopin and Mozart. Every time I performed, she would stick around after I finished to start a discussion about my pieces. Eventually, I looked forward to performing there because it always meant that I would have time to talk to her. But as time went by, Ilene’s visits became more and more infrequent, and I would go weeks without seeing her. One day, my mother told me that Ilene had suffered from cancer for a long time and unfortunately passed away.
Two weeks after her death, I received a teddy bear, along with an email from Ilene’s brother. He explained that llene loved collecting teddy bears and that she would want me to have one due to our bond. I immediately hung it up in my room, where it still is today. Whenever I look at that bear, I am reminded of what my time with Ilene meant to me.
For me, I believe that leading a life of purpose and service boils down to the personal connection you make with the lives that you impact. As I look back at my time in Indianapolis, I realize that I don’t remember how much time I spent volunteering, although it is certainly logged somewhere. Instead, the first thing that comes to mind is Ilene, and that memory is one of the many memories that make me certain that I am living a life of purpose and service; it keeps me doing whatever I can to be there for the members of my community as they live out their golden years, so never forget how much your volunteering can impact another’s life, and how they can, in turn, affect yours.
Anik Jukanti ’25
My grandfather’s name is Sudharshan Reddy Jukanti. In Sanskrit, Sudharshan is another word for Lord Vishnu who is the god of Preservation, meaning to provide salvation for humanity. My grandfather was a farmer living in a small village in the city of Kamareddy. Every day he would wake up at 5 a.m. and work on the farm trying to provide for my grandmother and his four kids. His drive was not only at work but also towards the people in the city he lived in. He had no education but was still a very smart man, giving to people and doing random acts of service. Whether it’s as small as helping a person lift heavy objects or helping construct architecture in his village. His service has been recognized recently with a place named after him, Sudharshanapuram. It’s real, look it up. Unfortunately, he never got to see it, as it was implemented by his son. He died before I was born due to lung cancer, but his story was told by his son, my father.
Now, my father was the third child and the only boy in the family. From his perspective, his father did everything with an iron fist, even raising my father. He recognized that later in life and followed in his footsteps. A lot of people in this auditorium know him as a businessman owning the famous Anis Hyderabad House restaurant, but only a few people know him as a community service worker like his father before him, packing food and sponsoring different service organizations around St. Louis. Unlike my grandfather, his acts of service were recognized immediately by many different people and even won some awards.
And then there’s me, the lazier one out of the three. A lot of people know me as an actor, track star, kickboxer, or academic weapon, so to most people, it might be a bit of a surprise to see me on stage. And that’s fair because It was only last year when I was inspired by my family’s service. That’s where my journey started. For the past year, I’ve logged not one, not two, but over 300 service hours. Now the recognition is nice and all but it’s not the main reason why I do it. My family comes from a long line of great people providing service to people. Like I talked about before when I included the place Sudharshanapuram. Although it seems that I’m trying to boast about it, I can assure you that that’s not what I’m trying to convey. To the place’s inhabitants, it’s his last act of service turning his farmland into a village, but to me, it’s a reminder of the legacy I have to fulfill and what values I want to fulfill with my legacy. That’s what service means to me.
Hamill, Upper School Dean Chris Ludbrook, and Head of Upper School Scott Small then awarded certificates to the recipients:
Class of 2027
GOLD
- Fatima Abosalem ’27
- Myra Arain ’27
- Hawk Bergquist ’27
- Catherine Cai ’27
- Josie Ciaramita ’27
- Lola Compton ’27
- Grace Griffin ’27
- Daniel Haas ’27
SILVER
- Forest Gong ’27
- Daniel Kuhlman ’27
- Kaviya Senthilkumar ’27
BRONZE
- Connor Blake ’27
- Eddie Feng ’27
- Elise Hamelink ’27
- Maddie Karr ’27
- Amey Parwal ’27
- Maahi Saini ’27
- Sienna Snyder ’27
CLASS OF 2026
GOLD
- Sophia Ashley-Martin ’26
- Joy Chen ’26
- Jacob Genin ’26
- Samuel Glasser ’26
- Angelina Hu ’26
- Anna Jiang ’26
- Abhiram Madala ’26
- Lakshmi Madala ’26
- Keshon Mims ’26
- Rose Sabalvaro ’26
- Lea Shamsham ’26
- Hannah Wang ’26
SILVER
- Eleanor Cheers ’26
- Anna Dehlendorf ’26
- Aanya Handa ’26
- Shreyas Kota ’26
BRONZE
- Dalton Costick ’26
- Layla Gilbert ’26
- Kaitlyn Kellner ’26
- Gigi Koster ’26
- Kate Niemeyer ’26
- Evita Okohson-Reb ’26
- Aparna Paturu ’26
- Narya Phatak ’26
- Alice Seddon ’26
- Celia Swiston ’26
CLASS OF 2025
GOLD
- Baishali Biswas ’25
- Noah Coen ’25
- Abby Derdeyn ’25
- Charlie Glass ’25
- Anik Jukanti ’25
- Jeremy Kalishman ’25
- Oliver Marks ’25
- Arjun Puri ’25
SILVER
- Abhinav Katyal ’25
- Anika Mulkanoor ’25
BRONZE
- Harris Ahmad ’25
- Saivi Gadi ’25
- Sanjana Gandhi ’25
- Aniket Joshi ’25
- Grant LaMartina ’25
- Diya Makkapati ’25
- Yash Malhotra ’25
- Victoria Neill ’25
- Jai Patel ’25
- Lillian Pickett ’25
- Amisha Poojari ’25
- Joseph Walsh ’25
Congratulations again to each of our award recipients, and to the many students who may have reached an award level, but preferred not to be recognized. Each of you has made an impact on your community, made a difference in others’ lives, and set an example that hopefully encourages your family, friends, and classmates to become more involved in service.