Faith Hilterbrand and Jolie Regan have shelved books, prepared craft materials, sorted book donations, and performed other tasks at the Hendrick Hudson Free Library as part of an ongoing four-year partnership with the district's SAILOR program. The two student volunteers have now worked more than 100 hours in the past year, and they were given a prestigious honor for their efforts on Wednesday.

Faith and Jolie were awarded as recipients of the President's Volunteer Service Award during a ceremony at the Hendrick Hudson Free Library on Nov. 1, 2023. The award, which was founded 20 years ago, is a nationwide civil award bestowed by the President of the United States that recognizes the important role of volunteers in our society.

"Jolie and Faith work very hard and truly love what they do at the library," SAILOR teacher Christina Feal said.

During the ceremony, Faith and Jolie were presented with their award certificate, a pin, and an official sweater from the Hendrick Hudson Free Library. The students also presented Library Director Jill Davis and Children's Librarian Terri Jersey with a bouquet of flowers before trying on their new sweaters.

They were joined by Davis and Jersey, along with Lauren Casey, a SAILOR teaching assistant who supported the two volunteers during their work hours.

"We are so lucky to have such amazing, dedicated participants in Jolie and Faith to fulfill these duties each week," Jersey said. "We were pleased to have the opportunity to show them our gratitude."