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Emily Norman

AMHERST - Emily Norman says she would volunteer every day at the Amherst Survival Center, if it were open more.

Instead, Norman, 17, a junior at Amherst Regional High School, heads to the center after school every Thursday from 3 to 7 p.m.

"I've met so many interesting people, heard their stories and learned life lessons," she said. "A lot of people are going through hard times. All have hope. Even though they need to come for food, they are still happy, they believe better things could happen."

And they do. She started at the center in the fall of 2007 and has heard good news. "They come back and say 'I found a job; things are turning around for me.'"

Norman, the daughter of Christopher Norman and Lauren Crasik of Amherst, is being recognized for her volunteer efforts. She will receive this year's Outstanding Youth Award in the Paragon Awards program.

While there are many volunteer opportunities, her goal is clear: "To make a difference and be hands-on," she said.

That's why she decided to help at the center. She also volunteers twice a week at Verite, researching forced labor in Guatemala and inputting data. "I'm interested in social justice," Norman said.

Her hands-on work includes Hurricane Katrina reconstruction in New Orleans.

"It was horrifying to see nothing was done," she said, after seeing the state of cleanup and rebuilding efforts firsthand.

Norman has traveled to Texas to help her mother work with undocumented immigrants, specifically minors being abused in detention centers. "It's important to bring attention to the issue," she said.

To that end, she plans to write a piece for "The Graphic," her high school newspaper.

Norman spent five weeks in South Africa last summer with the Experiment for International Living, working with an indigenous group. Her host family had no electricity or running water.

She said she learned lessons about consumerism in America. "You can live without stuff. It's interesting to see the contrast - and they are fine."

At school, Norman serves as secretary of the ARHS Community Service Club, which organizes volunteer opportunities for students.

The club has helped at Not Bread Alone, Shelter Sunday and the Apple Harvest Festival that benefits the Amherst Family Center. As for the future, she is thinking of becoming a premed major at Earlham College in Ohio, her parents' alma mater. Her goal is to work with Doctors Without Borders. She said people are sick in South Africa and don't have easy access to medical or dental care.

What does she get out of volunteering? Life lessons, she said.

"That's big. I meet new people at the survival center. My eyes are open to big problems. It's easy to get caught up in high school, but there's more out there," Norman said.

"The survival center is such fun," she added. "If I have a bad day, I go there, and I'm so happy when I get back."