Michelle Meheran, an 8th grader at Canton Middle School, received the Connecticut Secretary of State Citizenship Award for Public Service Thursday morning.
Superintendent Kevin Case presented the award and read a proclamation from Secretary of The State Denise W. Merrill.
In part, the letter states, "I applaud your level of community engagement and social awareness as you serve as an inspiration to your peers and to your community."
Meheran was honored due to her involvement in a Bristol soup kitchen, the CMS Substance Free Student organization, 10-year membership in Girl Scouts, participation in band, chorus, jazz band and chamber singers and work with Canton on TRAK (Tolerance, Respect, Acceptance Kindness). The TRAK students meet once a month with middle school principal Joseph Scheideler to talk about school climate.
Scheideler said the most impressive thing about Michelle is her level of dedication to community service. With the soup kitchen, for example, Michelle has volunteered on a regular basis for the past three years, whereas a lot of kids tend to help for short time periods. She's also extremely active in the school groups, he said.
"It's all without fanfare," Scheideler said. "She's just a nice kid who goes out of her way to do so much for everyone else.
