Photo courtesy of Jeremiah Bledsoe/ Twitter.
High school junior Jeremiah Bledsoe has won the Hershey Heartwarming Hero Award for his community service with the elderly.
Bledsoe is in the 11th grade at Nolan Catholic High School in Fort-Worth, Texas. He won the award back in April.
The teen has been visiting the elderly in local nursing homes for 10 years. He spends time with the residents and donates items to them through his community service initiative, J8 Creative. J8 Creative is a social enterprise that creates multi-media solutions.
Bledsoe is a stellar student and is also the quarterback of the football team. Youth Service America and Hershey partnered to support youth with creative ideas that connect people, promote inclusion and teach empathy. Youth Service America and Hershey donate up to $50,000 in grants for projects and community-building activities led by young people. They selected Bledsoe because of his dedication to helping senior citizens. The young man said it was important that we take care of our elders, especially during the pandemic.
“The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals help us to identify global issues. I selected SDG 3: Health because we are living during a global pandemic and we cannot leave our elders behind,” he said.
“During a pandemic I developed J8 Creative. It is a social enterprise that provides cutting edge, creative solutions. When customers use my service, a portion of the proceeds will support elderly residents in senior living facilities. I want the world to know that my hard work ethic, determination, and commitment to excellence make me a resilient changemaker. My triumphs, struggles, and victories help to make me the young man that I am today. It is my desire that you will use J8 Creative and help me help others.”
Bledsoe credits his parents, teachers and coaches for encouraging him to set goals and achieve them. He said that he creates daily and weekly goals to help him get to the next level. The teen also noted that a strong work ethic is important.
“Accomplishing your goals is not an accident,” he said. “It requires focus, hard work, and dedication.”
He graduates from high school in 2022, and we can’t wait to see what he does next.