Name: Millianette “Millie”  Age: 12 School: Day Middle School Accomplishment: On Sun., May 7, Millianette participated in the annual Walk for Hunger. She and her Big Sister Sara Sinicropi-Yao have raised donations to help alleviate local hunger. Although this is her first walk, her enthusiasm and dedication shine through. In addition, Millie and her Big Sister Sara Sinicropi-Yao, also a Newton resident, recently celebrated their one year anniversary together with the Big Sister Association of Greater Boston. Key to Awesomeness: Her passion to help others. In June she hopes to participate in …

Name: Valerie Herman Age: 15 School: Gann Academy  (lives in Newton) Accomplishment: Valerie has spearheaded a fashion show fundraiser for Franciscan Hospital for Children with her best friend Maddie Pontin. “We both love music and wanted to organize a fun event that would let people know about the incredible benefits of the hospital’s music therapy program," Valerie said. "When we went to visit the program we immediately saw the impact that music had on the children. No matter their age or why they were hospitalized they all came together as a community and really enjoyed participating." …

Name: Taylor Arcuri Age: 16 School: Newton North High School Accomplishment: Taylor was chosen to be the 2012 Youth of the Year at the John M. Barry Boys and Girls Club of Newton, which is the highest honor a member can receive. She will now compete against other Boys and Girls Club members for the State Youth of the Year title and a $1,000 college scholarship. If she wins, she will go on to the regional, then national competitions. Key to Awesomeness: Taylor is an incredibly hard-working teen. She was nominated by the staff of the club for the Youth of the Year competition last year, and …

Name: Melanie Snider Age: 17 School: The Rivers School (Melanie is a Newton resident) Accomplishment: Violinist Melanie Snider had the opportunity to perform as a soloist with the Rivers Symphony Orchestra at New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall in Boston this February. Melanie, who performed Antonin Dvorak's Romance at the concert, said the solo opportunity was “absolutely incredible.” “All the preparation, all the intense practicing - everything culminated in a performance that went better than I could have hoped,” Melanie said. “The adrenaline rush I felt on stage and hearing myself play…

Name: Manny Lopez Age: 17  School: Newton North High School Accomplishment: Manny is currently preparing to participate in his third consecutive year running a marathon. This year, his goal is to complete the Cox Sports Marathon in Providence on Sunday, May 6, in under four hours. He is the Captain of the Newton North Dreamfar High School Marathon Team and his dream is to participate in the Boston Marathon someday. Key to Awesomeness: Determination, discipline, kindness, and an easy-going attitude at school and practice make Manny a successful athlete and team leader. His key to success is …

Name: Sam Mayer Age: 16 School: Newton North High School Accomplishment: Sam is passionate about music and the outdoors. Sam’s band, Levity (band mate Cole Brightbill was also featured as a Whiz Kid), is now in the studio recording its first album. Although he's just 16, Sam plays the drums and guitar, is in six different ensembles, and writes and performs his own music at open mic nights around Boston. Sam has also participated in a 30-day National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) trip. NOLS is an organization that takes kids on challenging trips so they learn leadership and wilderness …

Names: Social Synergy group at Newton North Ages: Ages in the group range from 15-17  School: Newton North High School Accomplishment: Social Synergy is a small non-profit organization in the entrepreneurship class at Newton North High School. Social Synergy is working in collaboration with the Global Education Leadership Fund (GELF) to promote the 2012 Global Leadership Education Dinner, which will be held Sat., March24 at 7 p.m. at the American Legion Post 440. The funds donated at this event will be used for international travel scholarships for students within the Newton community. GELF …

Names: The teachers’ names are Jillian Bullens, Jane Safar, and Stacey Colarusso. Editor's note: For privacy reasons, the teachers at Jams Preschool did not wish to include the names of the 24 students who participated in the drive.  Ages: 1.9 years to 4-years old School: Jams Preschool Accomplishment: Throughout the month of February, the theme at Jams Preschool was kindness, caring, and sharing. In the spirit of the theme, and with both Valentine’s Day and the Super Bowl happening in February, the school decided to hold a food drive called “Souper Caring.” Everyone’s goal was for the group …

Name: Infiniti Thomas-Waheed Age: 15  School: Newton North High School  Accomplishment: Infiniti is a great success on the basketball court. As a player for the Newton North girls' varsity basketball team, she averages 16 points and 10 rebounds per game. With her hard work, she has helped her team qualify for the post-season playoffs, which started Wednesday night (Feb. 29). Key to Awesomeness: Infiniti constantly pushes herself to improve. She's a committed team-player, she's extremely motivated, and her strong desire to win helps her dominate on the court. Nomination information provided by…

Name: Nadia Salie Age: 12 School: Brown Middle School Accomplishment: Three years ago, Nadia began taking gymnastics classes at Rhythmic Dreams in West Newton (with no prior gymnastics experience). Under the guidance of coaches Smaranda Moisescu and Ionela Majeri, she has learned a ton. Now, she's a Level Seven gymnast.  Nadia's aunt Rahma was a dedicated gymnast in an International School Team when Nadia's family lived in Tokyo. Nadia's father Afkham vividly remembers the joy of watching his sister Rahma perform at gymnastics competitions. Nadia tragically lost her beloved aunt in the Sept. …

Name: Phoebe Erickson Age: 17 School: The Rivers School in Weston (Erickson is a Newton resident) Accomplishment: Erickson has spent the last two springs working on a community garden project in Newton. As an avid gardener who is especially interested in locally-grown food, she began looking around Newton for a place to start a gardening project in spring 2010. After getting in touch with Jeanne Stewart at the Newton Housing Authority, Phoebe started a community garden at the Parker House senior living center.“This project was a big success, producing many tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants and …

Names: Aaron Wolff and Anna Larsen Age: Aaron is 17 and Anna is 11  Schools: Aaron attends Newton South High School and Anna (a former Suzuki School of Newton student) attends High Rock Middle School in Needham Accomplishments: These two young musicians will perform in the New Philharmonia Orchestra’s Of Youth & Music concerts this Saturday, Feb. 11 and Sunday, Feb. 12. Aaron is the featured soloist. He's an accomplished cellist, all-around musician, and actor. He is an alum of the radio show From the Top and had a lead role in the Oscar-nominated Coen brothers’ film, A Serious Man. He also …

Names: Jacob Roll and Maxwell Kozlov Ages: 14 (Jacob), 13 (Maxwell) Schools: F.A. Day Middle School (Jacob), Bigelow Middle School (Maxwell) Accomplishment:  On Jan. 14, Jacob and Maxwell were two of the 300 student ambassadors who were invited to participate in Project 351, an event that consisted of a town hall meeting and day of community service to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray, and Boston Mayor Tom Menino began the day by speaking directly to the students and asking them “lots of questions” (…

Name: Rhea Jagasia Age: 17 School: Brookline High School (lives in Newton) Accomplishment: Since Rhea’s sophomore year of high school, she has made herself available to other teens who are struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts. She volunteers at Samaritans, Inc., which is a local suicide prevention and support organization that serves the Greater Boston and MetroWest communities. Over the course of 300 training hours, Rhea, learned how to listen better by asking open-ended questions and avoiding passing judgment or trying to provide superficial solutions to complex problems. Now, …

  Name: Ben Bassett Age: 14 School: Newton North High School  Accomplishment: Ben volunteers as a soccer coach at the YMCA for two hours each week. He says working at the Y "is a lot of fun, and I like getting to know the kids.” As part of his confirmation process at Eliot Church, Ben recently volunteered at the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter. He says that he really enjoyed working there, and what struck him the most was that the guests at the shelter "are just regular guys." "We talked about sports, and they are all Boston sports fans. We talked about whether the Pats would make the Super …

Name: Siobhan Burke  Age: 18 School: Mount Alvernia High School Accomplishment: Siobhan recently started her own small business making and selling jewelry and donating the proceeds to the American Heart Association. Aside from her new jewelry business, Siobhan has also completed more than 300 hours of community service.  She helped out at the St. Jude Summer Bible Camp for several years, and she has served as a tutor in the National Honor Society. As a tutor, she spent both last year and this year teaching fellow students once per week. Siobhan also participated in the Hugh O’Brian Youth …

Name: Cole Brightbill Age: 14 School: Bigelow Middle School Accomplishment: Cole is a successful rock and roll guitar player and songwriter who is in the local rock band LEVITY. At a recent concert at The Skellig in Waltham, through ticket sales, the band raised almost $500 for the Project Bread charity. Last spring, the band won second place in the Anheuser Busch Rock’n RibFest in Merrimack, New Hampshire. Cole has been playing the guitar since he was 3-years old, and he spends several hours a week practicing—sometimes up to three hours a day.  Key to Awesomeness: Cole’s attributes his …

Names: Kim Boucher is the President, and there are more than 100 students from the group who participated in the holiday event.  Ages: 14-18 School: Newton North and Newton South High Schools, as well as some local private schools Accomplishment: More than 100 Newton high school students joined other local volunteers at Christmas in the City, which is an annual holiday party for children and their families who are living in local homeless shelters. The event was held at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center on Dec. 16. These Newton students are from the group called Athletes Serving the…

Name: Jai Le Roman Age: 13 School: F.A. Day Middle School Accomplishment: Jai is the president of the Torch Club program at the Newton Boys and Girls Club, a middle school leadership program. Last year, Jai almost failed out of the Torch Club, but this year, she made a complete 180-degree turn. She is now deeply committed to the Torch Club and to the Newton Boys and Girls Club in general. Her positive attitude has helped her also do well in school, sports, and many other areas of her life. Everyone was surprised when Jai confidently announced she would like to become the Torch Club president…

Names: “The Keystoners” are Christina Caira, Davante Maxwell, Chris Proia, Chris Mackay, Kelli Lawless, Hayley McAuliffe, April Pellegrini, Taylor Arcuri, Vanessa Battista, Emma Schertz, Jankee Patel, and Casey Gilbert. Ages: 15-18 School: Newton North High School  Accomplishment: Nationwide, all students who are members in the Keystone Club participated in required activities and projects in three topics areas: academic success, career preparation, and community service.  The Keystone Club Program is a teen program associated with the Boys & Girls Club open to students 14- to 18-years old. …