After-School Program for Girls Is Among Those Honored as ‘Points of Light’

Following are the people and organizations that have most recently been named to receive President Clinton’s Daily Points of Light Award.

The Points of Light Foundation, a Washington charity, assists the president in making the choices and carrying out the award program. More information about the award winners and the program is available at the foundation’s World Wide Web site, http://pointsoflight.org, or by contacting the foundation at 1400 I Street, N.W., Suite 800, Washington 20005; (202) 729-8184.

The recipients:

1569. Cathy Robinson, Moore Haven, Fla., an H.I.V.-positive woman who incorporates her experiences of living with the virus into educational presentations she gives to children, drug users, and religious congregations throughout Florida.

1570. Families of SMA, Libertyville, Ill., an all-volunteer organization that offers support groups and medical equipment to families affected by the genetic, and sometimes fatal, disease spinal muscular atrophy; money raised finances research and conferences on the disease.

1571. Community Bridges, Silver Spring, Md., an organization begun by Naomi Nim and Mary Freeman in 1997 to empower girls from poor families through an after-school program where they discuss career options, learn about health issues, and engage in community service.

1572. Karen Tarney, Milwaukee, who, after suffering permanent injuries when her car was struck by a driver on cocaine, founded Citizens Against Drug Impaired Drivers, known as CANDID, which has become a national organization that works to prevent people from driving when under the influence of drugs.

1573. West St. Paul Neighborhood Association, Minn., a program in each of that city’s 11 neighborhoods that allows residents and business owners to decide how to use their allotment of city funds for neighborhood improvement and revitalization.

1574. Corporate Champions for Children, Fort Worth, a coalition of companies that provide money and volunteers to help train child-care workers, purchase equipment, and increase awareness of the importance of early-childhood education.

1575. WUSL Power 99 FM, Philadelphia, a radio station that runs an antiviolence program that includes $1,000 scholarships awarded to 11th graders for essays on violence prevention, and the “Powerhouse Computer Interactive Program,” in which middle-school students receive academic help through computer software and station employees volunteer as mentors.

1576. Lawyers for Children, Kansas City, Mo., a committee of the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association that works to help children who witness domestic violence by donating educational videos and books to social-service organizations and by sponsoring an annual conference of professionals who meet to coordinate their efforts.

1577. The Rev. Robert Lawrence, Fall River, Mass., who organized the “Guns for Groceries” program, which exchanged $50 gift certificates for firearms and collected 1,200 weapons over three years.

1578. Courtney Thomas, Cumberland, Md., a volunteer for many projects who coordinated a program to collect spare change to buy infant car seats for poor families, and who founded and directs Character Kids!, which uses mentors to teach virtues and proper behavior.

1579. John McConnell, Grand Junction, Colo., a retired physicist who established the Senior Scholar Project, through which elderly people serve as tutors and mentors to students, and who created the Sci-Tech Exploratorium, a hands-on science-learning center, using a few grants and his own money.

1580. Lynne Klein, Petaluma, Calif., a teacher who creates forums for displaying children’s art and ideas, including the Children’s AIDS Quilt of Hope, which is used as a way to educate kids about the disease.

1581. Area Churches Together Serving, Aiken, S.C., an interdenominational group of 60 churches whose 380 volunteers distribute food and offer a full range of social services for homeless and low-income families and abused women.

1582. Turning Points, Apple Valley, Calif., a program that matches adult mentors with students at Yucca Loma School to improve their self-esteem and academic performance and also involves parents in activities with the children and the mentors.