Martin Luther King Community Service Awards

NEW HAVEN - Yale-New Haven Hospital has awarded the first three $1,000 Martin Luther King Community Service Awards to New Haven students who are setting examples in their community

Recipients are: Kaneez Anwar, a junior at Career High School, and Avital Silverman and Crystal Ayala, both students at Wilbur Cross High School.

YNHH's service award program honors the legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., by providing scholarships to eligible high school students, as well as grants to New Haven elementary schools, the hospital said in a statement.

To qualify, students must log 20 or more hours of uncompensated community service and write a description of how their experiences helped them appreciate the differences in others, the statement said.

"A scholarship can really make a positive difference in a young person's life - and ultimately in our community," Pat Worthy, manager of workforce diversity at YNHH, said in the statement. "This is a perfect way for us to honor Dr. King - by finding and celebrating the next generation of community leaders."

Yale-New Haven has mailed grant applications to all public elementary school principals and will announce recipients at the end of November. The grants will support educational programs and activities that build on King's philosophy and goal of inclusion, teach the value of diversity and tolerance and bring people of different backgrounds together, the statement said.

Shown in the photo, l-r, are: Paul Patton, vice president of human resources at YNHH; Kaneez Anwar; Pat Worthy, manager, workforce diversity, YNHH; and Michael Ceraso, principal, Career High School.