Shannon Groves, a senior at Broad Run High School, was awarded with a Certificate of Appreciation, honoring her as Student Volunteer of the Month, Oct. 18. The small ceremony took place at the Mills Recreation Center during the regular "Lakes and Ponds Committee" meeting of the Ashburn Village Community Association (AVCA).
Groves has been committed to conducting monthly chemical tests on up to 12 different ponds and streams in the Ashburn Village Community, to determine how healthy the water is. After each test is complete, she files a testing report with the association to inform the residents of their water quality. Grove's interest in completing these tests on a regular basis increased after doing an environmental study for a science fair project, in which she won first place.
In 2005, she recruited a team of volunteers to assist with cleanup work in the Beaverdam Run Stream. The team's work has been recognized by the "Save Our Streams Program," of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation and by the governor.
Name: Shannon C. Groves.
Town/Neighborhood: Ashburn Village.
Years in the Community: 10.
Occupation/Position: Senior at Broad Run High School.
Achievements: The most unusual has been illustrating and co-authoring two history books for The Journey Through Hallowed Ground.
Family: Live with my parents.
What do you like or dislike about your community?: I enjoy seeing all the wildlife around and in the lakes and streams in Ashburn Village.
Favorite local restaurant/place: Chili's, Sweetwater CafŽ, Cheesecake Factory.
Sports Interests/Activities/Hobbies: Running, biking on the W & OD Trail, drawing and reading.
Community Ties: I feel like I have a special relationship with the Ashburn Village Lakes & Ponds Committee and Mike Roberts since they have encouraged and supported my water testing and stream cleanups.
Community Concerns: Helping to avoid polluting our watershed so there won't be any mutated fish, fish kills and dead zones in the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay.
Community Ideas: Community-service oriented activities for teenagers after school.
Personal Goals: College to major in biological science, then to medical school.
What community "hidden treasure" should more people know about?: The Ashburn Village Sports Pavilion, which is so big it can't be hidden, but it seems that not enough people use it.
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