SAUGUS — Nine Saugus students will be honored as Unsung Heroes tonight.
The Unsung Hero Awards are given to students who go above and beyond without looking for any recognition. The award has been given annually to public school students for the past 14 years and is sponsored by the School Department and Wheelabrator Saugus.
“It’s a unique event to Saugus,” said Saugus superintendent Dr. David DeRuosi. “It really recognizes students for being good people, and I think that’s part of our goal — to raise civic-minded, good human beings.”
DeRuosi said he has never seen an award quite like the Unsung Hero Awards in any of the other districts he has worked in.
Recipients of this year’s award include fifth-graders Jack Sambataro from Waybright Elementary School, Lily Ventre from Lynnhurst Elementary School, George Salsman of Oaklandvale Elementary School, and Connor Bloom and Isabella Phon, from Veterans Memorial Elementary School.
Belmonte Middle School eighth-graders Fiona McMennimen and Felicia Reppuci, and Aryana Carney and Nicole Orent from Saugus High School were chosen.
They will receive a plaque and dinner at Prince Pizzeria during a ceremony at 6 p.m.
The students were nominated by their teachers for “standing out without really standing out,” said School Committee member Linda Gaieski, who worked on establishing the very first Unsung Hero Award.
“They are the kids who always do what is expected of them without looking for any fanfare or any applause for doing it,” said Gaieski. “Whether it’s academics or citizenship, or just being kind to another human being, all of these things are recognized in our unsung heroes. I think this event truly categorizes what education is all about; the kid who doesn’t look for any recognition but certainly deserves it.”
