Andrew Schultze
Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy (ages 18-23)
2009 National Philanthropy Day

For Andrew Schultze, volunteering and giving back to the community has been a way of life. Andrew embraced the lead of his parents and grandparents at a very early age working through his church and civic groups to help the lives of others.

Andrew was first introduced to the issues of homelessness and hunger when he was 13 years old and served a meal to the homeless with his church youth group. Since that time, he has led a group of teen and adult volunteers to prepare and serve over 16,500 breakfasts to the residents of the St. Vincent’s Homeless Shelter. He has racked up more than 2,000 volunteer hours and helped his youth group to raise thousands of dollars to help support this ministry. Most importantly, he has actively recruited other teen volunteers—exposing over 75 future community leaders to the reality of homelessness and hunger.

Through his youth group at Christ United Methodist Church, he also collected and distributed food as part initiatives that focused attention on local and world hunger. He also participated in various annual “Serve Ohio” and “USA Today’s National Make a Difference Day” work projects in and around the Dayton area as well as Habitat for Humanity home construction projects. He led several work projects including efforts to build picnic tables and benches at the homeless shelter, and led various neighborhood clean-up projects.

Andrew has gone on two mission trips to Tijuana, Mexico where he helped to construct a Community Center Tree House, constructed homes and did various projects at an orphanage. He also made three trips to Samara, Russia where he personally fought for the future of at risk teens and to introduce the basic concepts of youth ministry.

As an Eagle Scout, Andrew erected a flagpole at the St. Vincent’s Homeless Shelter and dedicated it to homeless veterans, and has organized events to increase community awareness of the plight of homeless veterans.

Needless to say, Andrew has received numerous recognitions and awards recognizing his community service. He was the valedictorian of Kettering Fairmont High School, graduating in 2009, and is currently a freshman at Vanderbilt University pursuing a degree in Biomedical Engineering and Russian Studies. He is looking to identify community service projects focused on hunger in Nashville.