by Gail Lambert
At the 115th State Conference of the Virginia Daughters of the American Revolution held at Hotel Roanoke the last weekend in March, Katherine Elizabeth Helvey, a senior at Salem High School and the daughter of James and Lori Helvey of Salem was recognized as the recipient of the District VII DAR Good Citizen Award. Helvey’s nomination by Salem High for the award put her in competition with senior class nominees (one per high school) from all across District VII which includes DAR chapters in Roanoke, Salem, Bedford, New Castle, Botetourt County, Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Floyd, Stuart, Bassett, Martinsville and Rocky Mount. Students selected for this honor have the opportunity to compete for scholarship awards at the State, Division and National levels.
The DAR Good Citizen program recognizes outstanding high school students exhibiting the qualities of Dependability, Service, Leadership, and Patriotism (love of family, school, community and nation). Helvey demonstrates these qualities with an impressive record. Citing highlights, Helvey has been captain of the Varsity Volleyball team for both her junior and senior years, holds membership in the Family, Career and Community leaders of America, is in the National Honor Society with a GPA of 4.298 and serves as Vice President of the Visual Arts Club. She is on the staff of Delphi, the high school literary arts magazine and has exhibited her work in the Salem Fine Arts Commission Show as well as in ArtView, an international arts exhibit.
Active in her church, she enjoys teaching Sunday school, keeping the nursery, and especially working with children in the day-to-day environments of Vacation Bible School programs and as a counselor at church camp.
Her goals for further education are at a university where she can major in Studio Art and minor in Psychology with an eventual Master’s degree in Art Therapy that would prepare her for a life that combines her love for art with her desire to help people. She also hopes to become a Youth Minister or an Assistant Youth Minister because “she loves children and God.”
Helvey was sponsored by the Fort Lewis Chapter, National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
