By David Miller
After more than 200 hours of service and earning a congressional medal, Sara Lang is eager to explore new volunteer opportunities as she begins her college career at The University of Alabama.
Lang, a freshman business major from Tuscaloosa, was recently awarded the Congressional Award Bronze Medal, given annually to young people who commit to voluntary public service, personal development and exploration.
U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt, who represents the 4th district, presented the award to Lang, whose public service included volunteering at Verner Elementary School’s after-school program and completing a two-week service trip in Guatemala, where she taught English to children and helped build a nursing home.
The award culminated nearly five years of service that began when she joined the National Leadership Council, an initiative through the Church of Christ, Scientist’s Discovery Bound program.
The medal is the highest honor bestowed on young people by the Senate and House.
“The congressional award was a big deal for those of us in NLC because it’s a great way to have us work toward our goals of service,” Lang said. “Earning the medal means you graduated NLC, which is a great perk because it helps in scholarships and helps boost your resume.
“It was definitely one of the most impactful experiences of my high school career, keeping me focused on a good goal of earning these hours and working toward the congressional award.”
Lang attended Get on Board Day, UA’s annual showcase of student groups that helps launch the new academic year. Her goal was to find students who are interested in service leadership, particularly to address some of the broader issues she discovered locally when laying out her service goals.
Lang said her view of Tuscaloosa as “kind of a perfect place” shifted as she learned of hardships when visiting the Salvation Army and an area food bank.
“It helped me see there are more needs than I thought,” Lang said, “and getting involved at the University will help me be able to address those as well.
“I want to find a group of people that are personally motivated to do volunteer work, and I want to find a cool cause in Tuscaloosa. I want to expand a bit more from where I was the last four or five years.”
Lang said she might continue volunteering at Verner, where she previously helped students with math and English homework during the after-school program. She took interest in Verner because it’s a feeder school for her high school alma mater, Northridge. She said the life lessons and learning experiences were reciprocated daily.
“For instance, you would see their innocent moments, like a fight with a friend that they would make a big deal out of it, but how those things would roll off them so easily,” she said. “That helped me see that we could be like that, too.”