Earlier this year, a page on Advance Media New York’s website read, “Nominate Someone Young & Amazing,” headlining a short nomination form. At the bottom of the page, the website made its second offer: “Be a part of an awards program spotlighting deserving youth in our community.”

Hundreds of nominations then poured in. On Thursday, the honorees will be recognized at the fourth annual central New York Young & Amazing Awards, a ceremony that highlights exceptional young people in the Syracuse community.

This year’s award categories — each one sponsored by a different local organization — highlight a diverse range of talents, including categories for Athletic Sportsmanship and Philanthropy.

The ceremony also features the “Overcoming Great Odds” award, which, according to the website, aims to highlight “a young person who made significant strides forward despite physical, economical, mental or environmental challenges.”

Each recipient will receive a $500 scholarship.

Katie Wegerski, an event specialist and event coordinator for Advance Media New York, has worked on the awards since their inception and said that the organization received hundreds of nominations this year alone. For Wegerski, the awards offer a chance to highlight more positive stories in a media landscape often overpowered by negativity.

“We tend to see a lot of negativity in the news, so this is a way to show some good news and shine a light on these kids,” Wegerski said.

Winners are selected by the sponsor of the award for which they were nominated for. Following their selections, the winners receive a phone call telling them they are finalists and that they will go through one final round of interviews.

Wegerski, who conducts these interviews, said this is her favorite part of the process: during the interviews, the winners are surprised on camera with the information that they have, in fact, won a Young & Amazing Award. All the footage is eventually put together into a documentary about each winner and is shown during the culminating awards ceremony, held this year at the Everson Museum of Art.  

“Gaging their reaction on camera is always very rewarding,” said Wegerski. “There’s lots of ‘thank you’s’ and big smiles.”  

Alena Zhang, who won the 2017 Academics in Science Award, can attest to the shock of winning: she said finding out she had received the award was a “strange, surprising validation.” Zhang won the award for her work with SciExcite, Inc., a nonprofit she founded while she was a student at Fayetteville-Manlius High School.

SciExcite, Inc. works to bring hands-on science education to central New York students. Zhang now studies sustainable development and philosophy at Columbia University and said the two fields of study combine her passion for science along with the humanity behind it.

Encouraging students to pursue things they are passionate about is just as important as highlighting achievements, said Lauren Chyle, the assistant director of the Everson Museum. In  addition to hosting this year’s awards ceremony, the Everson is also sponsoring an art award.

“The arts are important to all aspects of our community,” Chyle said, in an email. “Through the Art Award we hope to encourage more people to engage in the arts, whether through visiting the Museum, taking a class, or making your own art at home.”

The Young & Amazing Awards have an impact on more than just the young individuals who receive them. Wegerski said the award has a positive effect on the greater Syracuse community.

“I think it gives people hope,” Wegerski said. “I think that it’s really incredible that these kids are so young and doing amazing things, and I think it might motivate older people to want to do more in our community.”

Published on March 6, 2019 at 1:27 pm