Number of Participants: 1
Hours Donated: 100
Value of Time Served: $845
Event Type: Civic & Community
Sport: Basketball
Date: June 23, 2023
Location:
Baldwin
NY, USA
About:
Katelyn Simpson loves seeing joy on children’s faces, whether she’s reading to them in a library, visiting a school or braiding hair at a church or community event. Much of her community service work involves interactions with children, and it’s a two-way street in terms of getting the benefits of the experience.
“I like kids, they are so creative and just being around them always brings up my spirits, and takes stress off me also,” Simpson said. “I’ve been to all the Baldwin schools, and it’s been a great experience. Giving back is something that I don’t have to think twice about doing.”
Simpson, a member of the National Honor Society, is ranked toward the top of her class at Baldwin and will play basketball and study engineering at the University of New Haven. She was a five-year varsity player and a key member of a program that has won nine straight Nassau Class AA championships and two straight Long Island Class AA crowns.
“She’s been a big part of some tremendous runs,” coach Tom Catapano said. “She was an integral part of those last two Long Island championship teams. She’s aware of the alumni that have come before her, she helps out when we have our youth clinics with the elementary students, and I know that she’s somebody that’s going to stay connected not only to our program but more importantly to our whole community.”
Even with her busy basketball and academic schedule, Simpson prioritizes setting time aside for community service activities, such as tutoring math and working with children at the Baldwin Public Library. She braided hair at The Hope event at the Baldwin Church, finding a variety of ways to give back to the members of her community.
“Katelyn has an amazing demeanor about her,” Catapano said. “She’s soft-spoken, she’s emphatic and she’s just always trying to give back and make things better for people around her. She’s a tremendous role model not only for our community but the younger girls on our basketball team.”
Catapano sees big things in Simpson’s future as she goes on to study at New Haven.
“She’s just the complete package,” he said. “I feel like she’s a future leader for our country.”
– Owen O’Brien
https://www.newsday.com/sports/high-school/marcus-a-henry-award-2023-finalists-llqxjpwh