Suffolk County Legislator Steven Englebright (D-Setauket) named Stony Brook resident Kayden Laucella the Fifth Legislative District’s Youth Week Award winner for 2024.
“The Fifth Legislative District is filled with impressive students,” Englebright said. “Kayden is an excellent example of how fortunate we are to have young people in our community who care about enhancing our quality of life.”
Kayden and her fellow Suffolk County youth volunteers were honored at a ceremony on May 14 at the H. Lee Dennison Building in Hauppauge.
The Ward Melville High School junior has been a beacon of volunteerism since her elementary school days. Kayden was a Nassakeag Elementary School Student Council member from fourth to sixth grade. During free periods, she often assisted teachers in their classrooms in addition to volunteering at school events. A Three Village Kids Lemonade Stand ambassador, she volunteered with the nonprofit for five years and helped raise money for Stony Brook Children’s Hospital. In 2019, she and two other ambassadors headed up their school’s team, which won the Lemonhead Award at the annual fundraising event that year.
When she was younger, she also baked apple pies to be auctioned off for charity at the Benner’s Farm Annual Apple Festival, held at the Sherwood-Jayne Farm.
Kayden has been a Gold Level recipient of the Presidential Volunteer Service Award sponsored by the Three Village Teachers Association and the Three Village PTA Joint Council since 2017. To achieve the award, Kayden participates in a variety of community service through Girl Scouts, Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, Cooking for Long Island Veterans, soup kitchens and for her neighborhood’s S-Section Circle of Friends.
Her work with her S-Section community group has included volunteering at the annual kindergarten play dates and at the fall festival, hosting the annual Christmas tree lighting and egg hunts, and monitoring the Little Free Library in the S-Section Park.
Kayden’s journey in Girl Scouts has been a remarkable 12-year commitment. She has hosted events for younger troops, led beach cleanups and collected items for pantries and those without homes. She is an alternate delegate for Suffolk County Girl Scout Council and has successfully completed several Girl Scout journeys and taken on action projects. Her dedication has been recognized with the Bronze and Silver awards, and she has received approval to proceed with her ambitious Gold Award project. She plans to enhance the Dr. Lee Koppelman Nature Preserve in Stony Brook and raise community awareness about its importance.
