B-B student group nominated for national award

What started as the H.E.R.O. Project (Helping out in Emergencies, Reaching out to Others) in 2002, turned into a student-led organization called the Byron-Bergen Emergency Response Team (BBERT). Now in its fifth year of operation, (BBERT) has been nominated for the Harris Wofford Organization Award.

Established in 2002, the Harris Wofford Awards were created to honor former U.S. Senator Harris Wofford of Pennsylvania, one of the nation's greatest public servants. The awards recognize extraordinary achievements in three categories: Youth, Organization, and Media. Wofford, who helped launch the Peace Corps and later served as CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service, has dedicated much of his life to making citizen service the common expectation for all Americans.

A number of BBERT's goals and objectives meet the criteria for the Wofford Award. As recently as last month, BBERT volunteers stepped in to assist with Red Cross sheltering responsibilities following October's snowstorm which knocked out power to more than 350,000 homes in western New York state. They opened up the high school for a hot evening meal, showers, conversation, card games, light and warmth. The ratio of student volunteers to those in need was 3:1. Channel 13 WHAM-TV in Rochester sent a film crew to Byron-Bergen to highlight what an asset these students are to our entire community.

Awards will be presented at the National Service Learning Conference in March 2007.

November 5, 2006