WARSAW — Aarshia Jain, of Warsaw, was recently commended for her exemplary volunteer service with the receipt of a President’s Volunteer Service Award.

The award, which recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of time to serve their communities and their country, was granted by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program on behalf of President Barack Obama. Warsaw Community High School nominated Aarshia Jain for national honors this fall in recognition of her volunteer service.

“Love in a Sweater is going to be a global sweater drive, where we get sweaters from people all over the world and give them back to this community,” stated Jain shortly after beginning the initiative.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, sponsored by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals, recognizes both middle school and high school students across America for outstanding volunteer service.

“The recipients of these awards demonstrate that young people across America are making remarkable contributions to the health and vitality of their communities,” said John Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial. “By recognizing these students and placing a spotlight on their volunteer activities, we hope to motivate others to consider how they can also contribute to their community.”

“Demonstrating civic responsibility through volunteerism is an important part of life,” said NASSP Executive Director JoAnn Bartoletti. “These honorees practice a lesson we hope all young people, as well as adults, will emulate.”

Prudential Spirit of Community Award applications were distributed nationwide last September through middle level and high schools, Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and HandsOn Network affiliates. These schools and officially-designated local organizations nominated local honorees, whose applications were advanced for state-level judging.

In addition to granting President’s Volunteer Service awards on behalf of President Barack Obama, The Prudential Spirit of Community awards selected State Honorees, Distinguished Finalists and Certificate of Excellence recipients. Volunteer activities were judged on criteria including personal initiative, creativity, effort, impact and personal growth.