2 · WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17, 2019 TRIB TOTAL MEDIA
Letter from
the president
The Trib Total Media
Outstanding Young Citizen
Awards Program is a longstanding
tradition and one
that I look forward to each
year.
This year, we received
489 outstanding nominations
representing 104
schools across the region.
From all of our nominees,
we selected
100 students
to
receive the
Outstanding
Young
Citizen
Award.
Those
students
are featured
within these pages and will
be honored at a banquet
later this evening.
In addition, 10 students
will be selected to receive
the Outstanding Young
Citizen gold medal, signifying
that they are among
the very best of the best.
Finally, we will present
$5,000 scholarships to two
students in recognition of
their commitment to volunteerism
and community
service.
Our gold medal winners
and scholarship recipients
will be announced in
the Tribune-Review (Valley
News Dispatch and
Westmoreland Editions) on
Thursday, April 18.
These students not only
excel in the classroom,
they spend countless hours
participating in extracurricular
activities and serving
their communities.
Their dedication and
commitment to excellence
is remarkable. They are
leaders in not only their
schools but their communities,
as well.
We are honored to have
the opportunity to give
them the recognition they
deserve.
As we honor these young
adults, we must take a
moment to recognize and
thank the many parents,
teachers, coaches, advisors
and mentors who have
supported and encouraged
them along the way. You
have helped these students
grow into the Outstanding
Young Citizens they are.
I must also take this opportunity
to extend our
sincerest thanks to our
generous sponsors Seton
Hill University and Penn
State University — New
Kensington. We truly value
your partnership; please
know how much your support
is appreciated.
Finally, thanks must also
be extended to you, the
reader. Without you, none
of this would be possible.
I ask that if you know
any of the students highlighted
in this section that
you please take a moment
to congratulate them for
setting such an outstanding
example.
I would like to personally
congratulate the 2019
Trib Total Media Outstanding
Young Citizen nominees
and awardees.
I have the utmost confidence
that you will go on
to do amazing things.
Jennifer Bertetto
President & C.E.O.
Trib Total Media
Meet the Judges
As past president of her local Rotary Club, Kary
Milan was the youngest individual and only the
fourth female to hold this position in the club’s
near 100-year history. As Kary has advanced
at the Rotary International district and zone levels,
central to her success in this organization,
and life, has been her whole-hearted belief in
the organization’s commitment
to service and credo,
“Service Above Self.” Kary,
who has 18 years of experience
in higher education,
the nonprofit sector, and
corporate communication
within the Greater Pittsburgh
region, serves as the
director of development and
alumni relations at Penn State New Kensington,
where she works to advance the land grant
mission of one university that is geographically
dispersed across the Commonwealth and
secure strong financial support for scholarships,
capital projects and annual operations
as well as for economic revitalization in the City
of New Kensington. Kary also enjoys serving
the campus as an adjunct instructor in public
relations and advertising. As an engaged leader
in Westmoreland County, Kary is a volunteer
with the Westmoreland Cultural Trust and is
actively engaged with each of the organization’s
fundraising events. Kary continues to serve as
a member of the Rotary Club of Greensburg,
where she leads numerous service projects, is
the past public relations and marketing chair
for Rotary District 7330, and volunteers as
a facilitator and instructor with the Rotary
Leadership Institute. A volunteer with the
Westmoreland County Food Bank, Kary, with
husband Josh, lends a helping hand every
month at the food pantry hosted at Our Lady
of Grace parish. Kary earned her Bachelor of
Arts degree in communication and information
arts from Seton Hill University and her Master
of Arts degree in communication studies from
California University of Pennsylvania, where her
graduate research was centered on nonverbal
communication. In their free time, the Milans,
who reside in Greensburg, are adventure
travelers.
Molly Robb Shimko serves as Vice President
for Institutional Advancement at Seton Hill University.
In her role, she works to foster a greater
understanding and appreciation of Seton Hill,
its history, mission, programs and people in
order to secure strong financial support for
annual operations, capital and endowment
growth. Prior to her position at Seton Hill, Molly
worked as director of major gifts at Chatham
University in Pittsburgh and as development
officer for the Annual Fund
at Saint Vincent College in
Latrobe. She earned a Bachelor
of Arts degree from
Saint Vincent and received
the college’s Alumna of Distinction
Award. Molly earned
an MBA from Seton Hill
University. She is involved
with several community organizations and is a
recipient of the Westmoreland County Winners’
Circle Community Service Award. Molly
presently serves on the Mental Health America
Southwestern Pennsylvania Board of Directors.
She is a past president of the MHA Board and
received the agency’s Fred Funari Award of Distinction.
She also serves as secretary for the
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Greensburg
Board of Trustees. Molly is a member of the
Excela Health Patient Family Advisory Council.
She is a Past President of the Saint Vincent
Alumni Council and remains engaged in committee
work. She is a member of several professional
organizations, including the Council
for the Advancement and Support of Education,
the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning, the
Association of Fund Raising Professionals, the
College and University Public Relations Association
of Pennsylvania and the Public Relations
Society of America. She and her husband, Ken
Shimko, P.E., reside in Latrobe and are members
of Saint Vincent Basilica Parish.
As associate director and director of development,
Karen Struble Myers oversees multifaceted
fundraising and communications plans
designed to promote and support the mission
and programs of the Fred
Rogers Center. She is responsible
for annual giving,
major gifts, grant writing,
special events, brand and
content strategy, external
relations, publications, social
media and e-communications.
In addition, she provides
operational assistance through budgeting,
strategic and programmatic planning, and partnerships.
A graduate of Penn State University,
she holds a B.A. in advertising-public relations,
and minors in speech communication and business.
Karen received an M.S. in professional
leadership, training, and development from
Carlow University. She is a Certified Fundraising
Executive (CFRE), serving as a frequent lecturer
and community advisor on annual fund strategies
and branding, and has nearly 20 years
of experience in nonprofit development and
marketing roles in the performing arts, religion,
health care and public policy.