Freshman class president Brandon Nguyen commits himself to his community, one hour at a time
To give, truly, is to contribute more than one takes and exceed expectations in doing so. And as Brandon Nguyen journeys through his first year at PRHS, he does exactly that.
Nguyen, despite only being a freshman, has dove head-first into his school extracurriculars: he runs freshman class decisions as president, participates in Leadership, and has amassed over sixty-five volunteer hours through his first semester while juggling the work of his four honors courses. For context, his leadership class only requires 30 hours for an A+, making his numbers double the necessary amount.
On a larger scale, this information means that Nguyen qualifies for the Bronze President’s Volunteer Service Award for teenagers, a nationally recognized and respected award, and is on his way to complete the over 100 hours in the one year time frame that the Gold award requires.
“I just love to help my community,” Nguyen said. “It makes me really happy and fulfilled (to know) I put a smile on somebody’s face.”
From volunteering at a quilt auction at Trinity Luthern to the Annual Christmas Light Parade, Nguyen has left his mark all over Paso Robles.
“In my 17 years of teaching Leadership (14 at Lewis and 3 at PRHS) I don’t think I have had a student rack up so many community service hours,” Leadership teacher Jennifer Martinez said. “Every time a community service opportunity comes my way he is the first to jump at it, without asking questions or wondering what is involved. He just does it.”
And though the second semester promises more challenges regarding time as he begins his Boys’ Volleyball season, he still sees volunteering in his future: “I’m just going to (continue) going with the flow… but don’t worry! I will always try and find time to help people.”
“He is definitely a role model that others should follow. The world would be a better place if everyone had the drive to volunteer to help those in need. Brandon sets the bar high for his peers as well as adults,” Martinez said, and indeed Nguyen has proven himself to be one to watch in years to come.
