NRTA's 2011 Annual With Our Youth! Award Winners

NRTA: AARP's Educator Community is committed to learning, voluntary service and civic participation. More than a decade ago, the organization formed the With Our Youth! Program to provide volunteer opportunities for community service projects with youth. For the first three years of the program, NRTA made a pledge to serve 1.5 million youth in 2,000 communities with a total of 45 million service hours through its affiliated state retired educators associations (REAs). The goal was exceeded.

The award recipients of NRTA's 12th Annual With Our Youth! Awards were chosen for outstanding service to youth in the state, local and individual categories by an independent selection panel. Award recipients include:

EXCELLENCE AWARDS

STATE CATEGORY

Alabama Education Retirees Association

Food not only nourishes the body, but also the brain. A recent Cornell University study shows that when children don't have enough to eat, their academic progress, particularly in reading and math, as well as their social skills, suffer.

As the second hungriest state in the nation and with the current recession and loss of jobs, many families across the state of Alabama were in need of food and relied on assistance from food banks. For the second year in a row, the Alabama Education Retirees Association (AERA) helped feed families in need through a statewide program titled "Yes, We Can Feed Alabama!

As part of this effort, local units collected food items and determined which agencies or groups they would support. Food donations were distributed to groups such as church food pantries, food banks and the Alabama Department of Human Resources, as well as individual families in need. Other units collected money and offered financial assistance to local groups providing food in their communities. Over the course of 10 months, this statewide food program collected 15,990 canned goods and almost $5,000, which was donated to more than 70 local food banks.

Thanks to the Alabama Education Retirees Association and their "Yes, We Can Feed Alabama!" program, children across the state are being nourished in body and mind, and are better equipped for success in the classroom and in life.

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