Fox Valley students land Kohl’s Cares scholarhips

Submitted by Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program

The Kohl’s Department Store’s Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program honors more than 200 deserving volunteers with $1,000 scholarships toward postsecondary education. Eleven children from the Chicago area were chosen from more than 35,000 nominees nationwide for making a positive impact in their local communities. Through the Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program, Kohl’s is encouraging promising youth to further their education at a time when college costs have risen approximately seven percent per year for decades.

“Kohl’s is honored to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of the more than 200 regional level Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program winners this year,” said Julie Gardner, Kohl’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer. “From collecting books for underprivileged children to fundraising for a community food bank, the efforts of these kids are undoubtedly making our communities better places to live and it is a pleasure to recognize and thank them for their work.”

Local recipients of $1,000 scholarships are:

Jade Woo, 11, McHenry: Born with Crohn’s disease, Jade has raised more than $10,000 for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America through collecting donations for a silent auction and fundraising for a team she leads for the foundation’s yearly walk.

Laura Saldivar, 17, Algonquin: Laura started Jacobs Safety Initiative, a student-led organization at her high school to educate youth on the importance of safe driving through mock car crash assemblies, speaking events, creating educational materials and more.

Genevieve Hankins, 9, Aurora: Genevieve has volunteered with the Fur Angels Animal Sanctuary for the past three years assisting with an animal foster program, helping at events to educate people on adoption and working directly with the animals.

Alyssa Jacobsen, 12, Batavia: After seeing the devastation by tornadoes in Joplin, Mo., Alyssa convinced her family to change their vacation from Florida to Joplin to help those in need. Alyssa fundraised to fill 30 backpacks with stuffed animals and school supplies that she distributed to children and helped dispense food and water to people during her time in Joplin.

Rebecca Woelfel, 18, Oswego: Rebecca planned and organized a dance marathon at her high school and donated the $4,500 raised to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Winners are chosen based on initiative, leadership, generosity and project benefits and outcomes. Each regional-level winner qualifies for one of Kohl’s 10 national scholarships, which will be announced at the end of July. National winners will each receive a total of $10,000 in scholarships and Kohl’s will donate $1,000 to a nonprofit organization on each national winner’s behalf. In total, Kohl’s will recognize more than 2,200 young volunteers with more than $420,000 in scholarships and prizes.

In 2012, Kohl’s celebrates its 12th year of rewarding young volunteers. Since the program began in 2001, Kohl’s has recognized more than 17,000 kids, including the 2012 winners, with nearly $3.5 million in scholarships and prizes. The Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program is part of Kohl’s Cares, Kohl’s philanthropic program focused on improving the lives of children. Kohl’s Cares benefits children’s health and education initiatives nationwide through its merchandise program, featuring special books and plush toys where 100 percent of net profit benefits children’s initiatives; fundraising gift cards for schools and youth-serving organizations and the Associates in Action associate volunteer program. For more information on the Kohl’s Cares Scholarship Program, visit kohlskids.com.