Last month, Bishop Lynch High School senior Robert Escobedo became the first BL student to receive the Presidential Voluntary Service Award. During a special pregame ceremony prior to the Sept. 9 football game against Kaufman, Escobedo was presented the award by BL president Chris Rebuck, who wasn’t surprised Escobeo would earn such a prestigious award.
“Robert has always been a great contributor to the school, always very jovial and has a great sense of humor. Whenever I see him in the hallway he always has a joke for me,” Rebuck said. “He’s always looking out for other people. For Robert to serve hundreds of hours in a year, and be recognized by the President of the United States really gives him an elite status. It’s really special that he’s recognized in this way. I know how many receive the award and very few actually achieve it.”
The award is given by the Corporation for National Community Service and Points of Light, which administers the program on behalf of the President of the United States.
Escobedo, a St. Thomas Aquinas graduate, documented 240 volunteer hours with two Dallas Fire and Rescue houses, which earned him a Gold Level Service Award.
“Service isn’t hard and it can be a lot of fun if you find something you love,” Escobedo said. “I love working with the fire department so much that it doesn’t feel like service at all.”
Deacon Bill Fobes, campus minister at Bishop Lynch, hopes other students at BL will be eager to apply for the award in the future.
“Robert is the first person at Bishop Lynch to apply for the Presidential Volunteer Service Award,” Fobes said. “I hope his leadership in pursuing this award inspires other students to investigate the PVSA and follow in his footsteps, to pursue the level of service to the community that he has achieved.”
“We are privileged to have Robert in our community and I am grateful to him for the value of persistence and purpose that he has shown to all who get to know him,” added Rebuck.
Rebuck hopes Escobedo’s award and recognition will serve as a reminder to all students at Bishop Lynch, as they are each called to a similar endeavor.
“Robert, like all BL students, have been called to serve,” he said. “Because he’s been recognized in this way, he has become a model for our other students.”