Bremen Student Receives Chicago Bears Community Champions Award

Benjamin Avila, a senior at Bremen High School, has been awarded the Chicago Bears Community Champions Award for excellence in the community. Avila was one of two recipients of this award and was acknowledged on February 17, 2020 at Halas Hall. The Voice of the Chicago Bears, Jeff Joniak presented Avila his award as well as a $4,000 scholarship for Avila to continue his education after high school.

The Chicago Bears Community Champion Award is presented to two high school football players in recognition of their tremendous civic involvement. In order to be considered for the award, the student must be nominated.

Nominated by Bremen Football Coach, Dan Stell, Avila was credited to a large list of accomplishments and activities which include:

• 4.04 GPA, 3/374 class rank (top 1%), 1450 SAT, 32 ACT
• Football Team Captain and Offensive and Defensive line player
• Cook County Thomas J. Dart Commitment to Service Award
• All-Conference, Football
• All-Conference Mathletes
• Academic All-State
• National Honor Society
• National Hispanic Scholar
• Illinois State Scholar, AP Scholar Award
• Student Council Member
• Scholastic Bowl Member
• Track Team Member
• Bowling Team Member
• Bremen Food Drive Volunteer
• Bremen Youth Services Summer Camp Volunteer
• Excel program volunteer for Bremen’s high school students with special needs

“Ben is an extremely diligent, and hard-working person,” says Stell. “His work ethic, sense of humor, and competitive nature are well-known and carry him on the playing field, but more importantly in his academic interests and volunteer activities.”

Avila was recognized alongside Sam Barus of Batavia High School who is the second recipient of the Chicago Bears Community Champions Award. An additional three high school students were also recognized by the Chicago Bears as National Football Foundation (NFF) Scholar Athletes. Similarly to the Community Champion Award, NFF Scholar Athletes are recognized for their excellence on the football field, in the classroom, and in the community. These students include Martin Hoban of Lincoln-Way Easy, Marcellus Moore of Plainfield North, and Sam Tumilty of Willowbrook High School.

During his moment of recognition, Avila said, “I believe that football and community service go hand in hand. Football doesn’t care about your background. Football cares about the time and effort you put in to being great. The players that put in the time and effort are the people who make an impact on their team. This is similar to community service. The only thing it takes to make an impact in your community is time and effort. This means everyone can make an impact in their community.”

Avila currently plans to major in Actuarial Science and will attend either Michigan State or Ohio State in the fall.

The scholarships and awards provided to students are given on behalf of a partnership between Bears Care and the National Football Foundation.