PRESS RELEASE
Kiwanis Leadership Essay Contest Finalist
Kiwanis will visit Washington, D.C. and attend the Barack Obama Inauguration. Atticus
Garvin Moll of Farmington was a finalist in the Leadership Essay Contest. He is a
sixteen year old junior at the Greater Hartford Academy of Math and Science, a NASA
explorer school on the Trinity College campus. He enjoys the challenge of their math and
science curriculum and last year’s project to develop and conduct experiments on gforces in space. He also attends Farmington High school, where he maintains first honors
at every marking period (with averages over ninety-four) and has perfect attendance since
kindergarten.
Atticus is a varsity Farmington High School Crew team member, FIRST Robotics
team, and LeaderShop leadership workshop participating for two years. He is a member
of Unionville Boy Scout with Troop 170 with rank of Life Scout. He has completed his
Eagle Scout Service Project, the construction of a pavilion for the Town of Farmington at
Tunxis Mead Park waterfront. His hobbies include swimming, biking, skating, skiing,
camping, fishing, reading, drawing and innovating in “projects” including a tree fort and
terrain course. He lives with his parents and two brothers, who encourage each other to
be their best each and every day, and sometimes,” … just like to watch a good movie
together”. The Kiwanis Club of Hartford is proud to sponsor this fine young man on this
historic trip.
Atticus Garvin Moll
18 Wyndwood Road
Farmington, CT. 06032
860-673-7078
garvin@attg.net
My name is Atticus Moll and I am sixteen years old. I am a junior at Farmington
High school and at the Greater Hartford Academy of Math and Science (GHAMAS).
GHAMAS is a magnet school located on the Trinity College campus, whose curriculum
is heavily gauged towards math and science. GHAMAS is a NASA explorer school. The
school has a partnership with NASA and we are both working together to develop and
conduct experiments in space. Last year I took part in a project that studied g-forces. It
was a great learning experience.
At Farmington High school I have received first honors at every marking period
with averages over ninety-four. I have a perfect attendance record since kindergarten. I
have been recommended by my teachers at Farmington High School to participate in
LeaderShop each summer for the past two years. It is a workshop for students that
exemplify leadership.
I am a varsity member of the Farmington High School Crew team. I am a
member of the FIRST Robotics team. I am currently a Boy Scout with Troop 170 in
Unionville CT. I am at the rank of Life Scout and I am progressing closely to the rank of
Eagle Scout. For my Eagle Scout Service Project, I constructed a pavilion for the town
of Farmington at Tunxis Mead Park waterfront. My hobbies include swimming, biking,
skating, skiing, camping, fishing, reading, drawing and innovating. I invest my extra
time and money into what I call “projects”. They are fun things that I build and
experiment with, including a tree fort and terrain course.
I live with my mother and father and two brothers in a loving and caring family.
We encourage each other to be the best that we can be each and everyday. But
sometimes we just like to watch a good movie together.
Atticus Garvin Moll
18 Wyndwood Road
Farmington, CT. 06032
860-673-7078
garvin@attg.net
The American Youth: The Future is Ours
by Atticus Garvin Moll
American citizens have a duty to their country. It is every citizen’s duty to put a
check on the powers of the federal government. It is every citizen’s duty to defend our
country in times of need. Most important of all, it is every citizen’s duty to vote. As
American youth, we cannot participate in elections, or join the armed forces. Therefore,
we have our own responsibilities. We have to support the country and the president in a
different way. In order to support President Barack Obama, we have to take full
advantage of the opportunities given to us, primarily our education. As my mom has told
me countless times, “…knowledge is power…” The more knowledge we have, the better
we can prepare ourselves to handle the issues of today and tomorrow. It is our duty to
help those in need. It is our responsibility to help others that are less fortunate than us.
The American youth is the future of our country. We are the future workforce.
We will become the nation’s future leaders. In order for us to have a prosperous future,
and a prosperous country, it is essential that we receive the best education possible. But
just receiving an education is not enough. It is our responsibility as the future leaders of
this great country, to embrace our opportunities with an eagerness to learn. It is our
responsibility to go to the schools that are provided to us each and everyday and work to
the best of our abilities at all times. When an opportunity arises, it is each student’s
obligation to take advantage of that opportunity. It is each individual student’s
responsibility to be a self advocate for himself or herself.
In difficult times such as we see today, the president needs cooperation from all
American people. As youth, we need to better educate ourselves not only in the
classroom, but in what is going on in the rest of our world. As youth, we should
understand why our country is “unofficially” at war with Iraq and with Afghanistan. We
need to understand why there is a mortgage crisis and how it has led to the downfall of
our country’s economy. We should understand why insurance companies, banks and
automakers are asking to be bailed out by the federal government. We should understand
the rights that are entitled to us by the constitution and we should understand our
responsibilities as citizens of this country. I believe the president and his administration
will do their best to work as hard as they possibly can to ensure our safety and well being
and to help heal our countries economic woes. We have to keep up our end of the
bargain. We have to take the initiative to stay informed. We have to take the initiative to
perform to the best of our abilities in our daily routines at school. It is important to stay
informed on current events. It is also important to know our history. It is true that by
studying the past, we can keep history from repeating itself. As American youth,
studying the past will help us understand why our country is in the position it is in today.
It will give us inspiration and insight into what can happen tomorrow and into what we
can do to help shape what will happen.
The major cause of prejudice today towards any group is due in large part to
ignorance. If racism was broken down to its root causes, one would find that there is no
logic behind the hate. The same goes for sexism and all types of prejudices. One would
see that it is a mindless tradition that is passed on through generations. To be a truly
moral person, you have to be educated. To be a truly powerful person, you have to be
educated. I challenge all youth that live in America to come together. Invite someone
who looks, and sounds different from yourself to break bread with you. Invite someone of
a different creed, race, or religion. Do this so that you can simply get to know someone
new. Learn about them and their beliefs. Learn about their culture and their way of life.
Listen to them with an open mind and heart and with respect for their culture, knowing
that it is different from your own. I challenge my generation to come together. I
challenge them to expose themselves to the unknown and to get out of their own comfort
zone. If we can erase the stigmas that separate us, we will not only be doing a great
service to ourselves, but we will be doing a great service to our government and to our
country.
I have been heavily involved in my community. I believe that it is everyone’s
responsibility to help someone that is less fortunate than oneself. There is a reward that
comes with helping another less fortunate person. There is an amazing feeling that
comes to you when you make someone’s life a little easier. Being a member of the Boy
Scouts of America has given me a great opportunity to reach out to my community. I
always donate my time whenever I can. I help restock the local food pantry every year. I
have donated my own money to Covenant to Care, a local organization that helps kids my
own age by supplying them with things they need to function in every day life. These are
things that I take for granted and that they find themselves in dire need of due to no fault
of their own. I have donated my time and effort to fight cancer by participating in our
town’s local Relay for Life. I have raised money to help fight Multiple Sclerosis and
have ridden my bike with my dad and brothers around the island of Manhattan in the MS
Bike Tour. I have helped my fellow scouts with their respective Eagle Scout service
projects and have lead them to help me in completing my own Eagle Scout service
project. I have done a lot outside of scouts as well, including buying meals for the
homeless, and doing yard work for the elderly. I do not do this for recognition; I do this
because I feel it is my duty and it is my responsibility. When President Obama calls upon
American youth for service, I feel I am ready, willing and able to do so and I feel I am
ready to lead my peers to do the same.