ANGELA VARNADOE

When a child is given Love Instruction, Guidance Hope and Trust, that child achieves and succeeds; therefore, Angela Varnadoe’s passion as led her to develop a mentoring program entitled “L.I.G.H.T. the Way; Guiding Children to Success.” Angela’s love for children and ability to reach them has led her to promote and focus her mentoring program on cultivating these essential elements among preschool and elementary aged children, as she strongly believes that a child’s life can be enriched to facilitate the development of self-worth, confidence and ambition.

Angela became involved in mentoring because she had a deep desire to serve her community and make a difference in the lives of others. Her dance and acrobatic skills along with her school and civic involvement have had her in the public’s eye and allowed her to be in the position of a role model and community leader. Our county offered no gymnastics training, and Angela desperately wanted to give in return for the love and support that her community has bestowed upon her. She established and leads a gymnastics-mentoring program for children, which she began in 2001. In her senior year of high school, she mentored daily to kindergarten students, mentored as the assistant librarian, and volunteered her service as the assistant physical education instructor, donating approximately 10 hours a week into her projects. Angela also volunteered with an “Art in Youth” program offering performing arts instruction to underprivileged youth. For her efforts, Angela was named a Georgia Distinguished finalist for Prudential’s 2003 Spirit of Community Award.

Angela has worked alongside numerous school officials and community leaders to solicit their support for establishing mentoring programs in our schools and communities. As a committee member and spokesperson for Tattnall County’s Improving Youth Development Organization, she promotes mentoring at civic clubs, organizations, children centers, and schools across the state. Angela also submits mentoring articles to newspapers. To enhance her efforts, Angela published a personalized brochure designed to inform everyone about her program and provide reference materials for mentoring. It is Angela’s intent that her initiative serve as a catalyst for creating new programs and partnerships by increasing public awareness and involvement so that children may benefit from a variety of resources offered by businesses, government agencies, churches, religious groups, and individuals. By allying her efforts with President Bush’s faith-based initiatives, Angela hopes to inspire more programs fro children and secure funding for rural communities. Aside of mentoring, Angela also serves as a volunteer and public relations representative for Glennville’s Welcome Center. In recognition, Angela was presented with Senate Resolution #401 and House Resolution #328. Angela was also a recipient of the Buddy Roberts Leadership Award for extraordinary service.

Angela exhibits high morals and ideals, and is an industrious and ambitious young lady who endeavors to make a difference. Due to Angela’s fervor for her dream and her tenacity, she has peaked the interest of, and has drastically improved our county’s knowledge of mentoring while making tremendous strides in bettering our youth. We are blessed to have Angela Varnadoe in our community. She defines what volunteer service is all about.