CHEYENNE, Wyo.- Seventy Wyoming students received the Congressional Gold Medal Award, Congress’ most prestigious honor for youth this year.
Of those 70, 44 traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in the Congressional Award Gold Medal Ceremony held at the U.S. Capitol Visitor’s Center Congressional Auditorium on June 20. U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, Senator John Barrasso, M.D., and Representative Liz Cheney met with and gave Gold Medals to students at the special recognition event.
At the June ceremony, members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives honored 538 youth across 42 states and territories at the ceremony, including the 44 students who traveled from Wyoming. The 2019 Gold Medal class was the largest in the national program’s 40-year history, representing an unprecedented year of servant leadership. This year’s class contributed 295,206 volunteer hours to their communities, an average of 548 hours per medalist.
The Gold Medal represents the pinnacle of Congress’ award program for youth. The honor requires that each recipient embarks on a two year goal-setting journey, logging a minimum of 400 hours of Voluntary Public Service, 200 hours of Personal Development and Physical Fitness, respectively, and a 5 day, 4-night Expedition/Exploration.
Wyoming Gold Medalists included the following:
Six from Albany County:
Alice Attebery, Laramie
Noah Dreiling, Laramie
Sydney Holles, Laramie
Michaiah Jones, Laramie
Carmen Leon, Laramie
Cody Perkins, Laramie
Three from Campbell County:
Caroline Johnson, Gillette
Makala Johnson, Gillette
Chloe Rankin, Gillette
Three from Carbon County:
Kamry Knotwell, Encampment
Makaylah Berkovitz, Rawlins
Selena Landa, Rawlins
Two from Goshen County:
Logan Grosz, Torrington
Samantha Jurkowski, Torrington
39 Students from Laramie County:
Mercedes Bartels, Burns
Sydney Bell, Cheyenne
Abigael Bylow, Cheyenne
Elijah Cole, Cheyenne
Mykenzie Dean, Cheyenne
Samantha Dijohn, Cheyenne
Abigail Fearneyhough, Cheyenne
Emma Geringer, Cheyenne
James Hayes, Cheyenne
Isabelle Houseman, Cheyenne
Maeve Knepper, Cheyenne
Araceli Ledesma, Cheyenne
Arianna Lewis, Cheyenne
Zoey Mares, Cheyenne
Mackenzie Marler, Cheyenne
Claudia Miller, Cheyenne
Junuenth Morales, Cheyenne
Abby Morillon, Cheyenne
Tommy Neal, Cheyenne
Thanh Nguyen, Cheyenne
Tiffany Passehl, Cheyenne
Ruth Potter, Cheyenne
Emily Purifoy, Cheyenne
Haley Purifoy, Cheyenne
Dylan Raymond, Cheyenne
Nicole Reyes-Aguilar, Cheyenne
Grace Ritschard, Cheyenne
Lauren Salsgiver, Cheyenne
Camden Schmidt, Cheyenne
Abigail Shameklis, Cheyenne
Jakob Shuey, Cheyenne
Colby Stockton, Cheyenne
Nicole Talkington, Cheyenne
Amelia Van Winkle, Cheyenne
Cassidy Weibel, Cheyenne
Eleccia Wells, Cheyenne
Micayla Whitfield, Cheyenne
Taylor Wilson, Cheyenne
Alyssa Miller, Pine Bluffs
Seven students from Natrona County:
Andrew Gronning, Casper
Jayla Johnson, Casper
Katie Johnson, Casper
Taylor Maese, Casper
Audrey Mitchell, Casper
Quentin Moter, Casper
Johanna Moter, Evansville
Three students from Park County:
Adelle Ostrom, Cody
Kathryn Sauerwein, Cody
Kendra Ostrom, Powell
Five from Sweetwater County:
Lane Hutchison, Green River
Alyssa Bedard, Rock Springs
Lorin Jones, Rock Springs
Megan Leavitt, Rock Springs
Julianna Pizzato, Rock Springs
One student from Teton County
Jazy Manoukian, Jackson
One student from Uinta County
Madison Bindl, Fort Bridger
Photo from the June 20 ceremony
The following 44 Wyoming youth traveled to the nation's Capitol for the awards ceremony and are pictured in the photos below.
Five from Albany County: Alice Attebery, Laramie; Noah Dreiling, Laramie; Carmen Leon, Laramie; Sydney Holles, Laramie; and Michaiah Jones, Laramie
Three from Campbell County: Caroline Johnson, Gillette; Makala Johnson, Gillette; and Chloe Rankin, Gillette
Two from Carbon County: Selena Landa, Rawlins; Kamry Knotwell, EncampmentOne from Goshen County: Logan Grosz, Torrington
22 Students from Laramie County: Mercedes Bartels, Burns; Sydney Bell, Cheyenne; Abigael Bylow, Cheyenne; Elijah Cole, Cheyenne; Abigail Fearneyhough, Cheyenne; James Hayes, Cheyenne; Isabelle Houseman, Cheyenne; Araceli Ledesma, Cheyenne; Arianna Lewis, Cheyenne; Claudia Miller, Cheyenne; Abby Morillon, Cheyenne; Emily Purifoy, Cheyenne; Haley Purifoy, Cheyenne; Dylan Raymond, Cheyenne; Grace Ritschard, Cheyenne; Lauren Salsgiver, Cheyenne; Jakob Shuey, Cheyenne; Colby Stockton, Cheyenne; Nicole Talkington, Cheyenne; Amelia Van Winkle, Cheyenne; Cassidy Weibel, Cheyenne; and Taylor Wilson, Cheyenne
Four students from Natrona County: Katie Johnson, Casper; Jayla Johnson, Casper; Taylor Maese, Casper; and Audrey Mitchell, Casper
One student from Park County: Adelle Ostrom, Cody
Four from Sweetwater County: Alyssa Bedard, Rock Springs; Lorin Jones, Rock Springs; Megan Leavitt, Rock Springs; and Julianna Pizzato, Rock Springs
One student from Teton County: Jazy Manoukian, Jackson
One student from Uinta County: Madison Bindl, Fort Bridger