Michigan's UNICEF champion is UCS sophomore

For Luna Alaowad, being Michigan’s champion for UNICEF is personal.

“I know that a lot of children are struggling with early childhood development, and I find the work of UNICEF to be very important,” she said.

Alaowad, a Gene L. Klida Utica Academy for International Studies sophomore, has been selected as the UNICEF Ambassador to represent the State of Michigan through Key Club International.

UNICEF is an international organization that is dedicated to helping children who are experiencing a crisis, such as conflicts, natural disasters, or poverty.

Elected this summer to the position, Alaowad said her role will be coordinating fundraising efforts and to inform others about the nonprofit’s positive impact on children worldwide. Student ambassadors from each state meet regularly in zoom meetings and will gather at Key Club’s conference in May.

“To be selected as a committee chairperson for the Michigan District of Key Club International is an honor for any high school student but a rare distinction for a high school freshman, when Luna was appointed last year,” said the GLK-UAIS Key Club Advisory Justin Spear. “Her positive, can-do attitude and her commitment to issues of global importance that reflect her personal history together demonstrate an impressive set of leadership skills. I look forward to her continued commitment in Key Club.”

Alaowad said the organization’s current efforts include helping children in Ukraine and Zambia.

“Basically, they will find children who need assistance, and they will do anything to help them,” she said.

In the UCS community, Alaowad said she is working through elementary school to support raising both funds and awareness about UNICEF.

Alaowad, who plans to pursue a degree in the medical field, said her involvement in the GLK-UAIS Key Club grew through the organization’s informational sessions for new students and a project where they packed food for families in poverty. The group’s mission to help others fit perfectly with her own values, she said.

“They made me fall in love with providing service,” she said.

Source: Utica Community Schools

Robert Monroe, Superintendent of Schools

Http://www.uticak12.org