September 11, 2015
The residents of the Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan (WRCNM) will eat healthier this fall, thanks to Youth Leadership Summit (YLS) attendee Emily Kurburski.
Emily, a senior at Petoskey High School, was one of six students selected to attend YLS earlier this year. She then attended the Youth Tour in Washington, D.C. in June. There, she had the opportunity to apply for a grant from generationOn, a global youth service movement that inspires kids to make their mark on the world.
On Sept. 1, generationOn announced Emily’s grant application was one of 23 nationwide selected to receive a $500 grant. The grant allows Emily to fulfill a project to provide proper nutrition and fresh, healthy meals to residents of WRCNM in Petoskey this fall.
Grant winners were chosen from a national pool of applicants, all who had participated in the 2015 Electric Cooperative Youth Tour. The grant program was coordinated in partnership with generationOn.
Kurburski says, “Through this project, I hope to not only give these women something they might not be able to give themselves, but show them that healthy options are available.” The impact of her project is both short- and long-term, she adds, because shelter residents will learn about different healthy foods they can use in easy-to-make meals when money and time are tight.
Great Lakes Energy is proud of Emily for actively demonstrating the co-op principle of concern for community and for taking this opportunity to make a difference.