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Midway girl's community service praised
AP Leachman Midway
Glennville Christian Academy Principal Charles Barnard presents the award to Chelsea Leach of Midway. - photo by Photo provided.
Chelsea Leach, 17, of Midway has been honored for her volunteer service with a President’s Volunteer Service Award.
The award, which recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of their time to serve communities and their country, was presented by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program on behalf of the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation.
Leach participated in the Spirit of Community program this year as a representative of Glennville Christian Academy where she is a student. She earned her award by volunteering more than 1,500 hours of community service to the Liberty County Youth Recreation Program. She has served as a volunteer coach for various youth teams and as a youth counselor for day camps.
Leach initiated The Junior Camp Counselor Program, a work skill building program designed to train young people to work in the Liberty County Recreation Department, as well as other jobs. She also initiated a girl’s fast-pitch softball clinic in Liberty County. She also volunteers to help with various administrative tasks at the LCRD.
Leach volunteered with the Barbara Martin political campaign for Liberty County Board of Education chairwoman. She has also volunteered as a student peer tutor and classroom aide at Glennville Christian Academy.
Leach said she loves the feeling she gets after volunteering with youth programs. Her favorite parts are the beaming looks and hugs from kids when they succeed. She said that by volunteering she has acquired skills she will use in every area of her life.
“There is no ‘I’ in team” is her message.
“Her desire to volunteer in teaching young people important life lessons through individual effort and collaborative athletic participation has resulted in success for many youngsters who just wouldn’t have tried without her extra encouragement. I believe she deserves recognition for her special leadership ability” said Earline Thompson, a former GCA principal who nominated Chelsea for this award.
Sponsored by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), the awards program recognizes young people across America for community service. More than 200,000 young people across America have been considered for these awards since the program began in 1995.
“The recipients of these awards vividly demonstrate that young people across America are making remarkable contributions to the health and vitality of their communities,” Art Ryan, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, said.
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Best things: Tasty Italian recipes
0119 Best things Lisa Braun
Midway's Lisa Braun says cooking is her passion, especially Italian food. - photo by Photo provided.

“I love to cook. It’s my passion,” said Midway resident Lisa Braun. Braun has traveled abroad to experience other cultures and that includes foods from afar.
She took cooking classes on two separate trips to Italy, at the Mami Camilla cooking school run by chef Biagio Longo’s family in Sorrento located in southern Italy.
“It’s a beautiful destination; a lot of lemon and orange trees grow there,” Braun said.
Braun also went to a school in New Orleans to learn Cajun and Creole cooking and she likes Mexican cuisine as well.
“I do cook (traditional) Southern foods fairly well, but my specialty is Italian,” she said.
Braun’s favorite Italian dishes are:
1. “Neapolitan pizza; it’s really difficult to make. It’s a thin crusted beautiful pizza.”
2. “Potato parmesan; it’s like eggplant parmesan but made with potatoes.”
3. And 4. “Ossobuco with a risotto Milanese. This is a northern Italian dish; it is a slow braised veal shank with risotto.”
5. “Traditional tiramisu; –its’ extremely easy to make and you can adjust it to your taste. You can alternate jams or jellies, make a hot sauce with it to dip lady fingers in it. I often use Italian cooking methods with accessible (local) ingredients.”
For more information on Italian cooking classes, visit www.hinesvillearts.com.

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