Established in 1996, the Student for Peace Award is presented to a young person whose academic and extracurricular activities reflect a commitment to justice and a future of peacemaking. In 2019, the award was named in memory of Athena Smith Ford, the 2001 recipient and an outstanding advocate for justice and peace throughout her short lifetime. Athena remains a model for young people who seek to create justice and peace in their communities.
Lillyan Mahmoud
The Peace and Justice Center honors Lillyan Mahmoud with the 2026 Student for Peace Award for using her voice, experiences, and compassion to foster understanding and create a more welcoming community. Beginning as a seventh-grade student at Crestwood, Lillyan worked to educate her classmates about her Muslim faith and background and to challenge negative stereotypes and assumptions about immigrants and Muslims. She has continued to use her experiences to promote understanding and peace.
Now a senior at Crestwood High School, Lillyan carries that commitment into her community service. As secretary of her school’s Interact Club, where she has served for two years, she helps lead service projects. Outside school, she takes part in a community youth group, helps at a health clinic, provides translation, and shares information with people adjusting to life in a new country. Her school’s guidance department often asks her to welcome and support students who have recently arrived from Pakistan and the Middle East.
Lillyan pairs this service with strong academic and extracurricular leadership. She has been a member of the Junior and National Honor Societies since seventh grade and will finish five AP courses by graduation. She also works part-time and serves as head stage manager for the Theatre Club after three years with the crew. She plans to study biomedical science in college, with a focus on biobehavioral health.
By helping others navigate unfamiliar circumstances and find a sense of belonging, Lillyan shows the everyday work of peacemaking: listening, welcoming, educating, and building bridges among people.
Join us for the 2026 Peace Awards Celebration!
We invite you to celebrate with us on Sunday, October 4, as we honor this year’s award recipients. The afternoon will begin with a reception and award ceremony at 2:00 p.m., followed by an early dinner at 3:00 p.m., at Appletree Terrace, 4 Newberry Estate, Dallas, Pennsylvania.
We’d love to have you there — please register for the dinner here. Dinner is $50.00 for general admission, or $35.00 for students and those on a limited income.
You can pay however is most convenient for you:
- Online: via PayPal at peaceandjusticecenter.com/donate, through October 1
- By check: made out to “Peace and Justice Center” and mailed to Peace and Justice Center, 57 N. Franklin St., Wilkes-Barre, PA 18701 (please mail by September 20)
Past Honorees
The 2025 honoree was Alison Moyer, J.D., Widger School of Law, Villanova University.
Alison Moyer, a native of Mountaintop, is a 2025 graduate from Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law and 2020 graduate from King’s College. During her time as a law student, Alison represented asylum seekers through Villanova’s Clinic for Asylum, Refugee & Emigrant Services. In spring 2024, she and her clinic partner successfully secured asylum for a client from Guatemala in Philadelphia Immigration Court after the client had waited over five years for her hearing. She continues this line of immigration advocacy and work at the Law Office of John C. Visher where she prepares asylum applications, guides clients through interviews, and assists with adjustment and work authorization filings. Alison is also committed to advancing justice for the wrongfully convicted. As a legal extern with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project in Philadelphia this past spring, she reviewed case records. She helped develop post-conviction innocence claims for incarcerated individuals who have spent decades behind bars. Through her legal work, Alison strives to ensure that vulnerable communities have a voice and access to justice. While completing her undergraduate degree at King’s Moyer worked as an intern at the Peace and Justice Center, particularly supporting the summer peace camp preparations as well as helping with organizing the Sabol speaker event.
2024 Honoree: Margaret Elmir
Margaret Elmir describes herself as a first-generation American, celebrating the fact that both of her parents are immigrants and that she comes from a multicultural household. Margaret began her connection to Peace Camp as a seven-year-old camper and continued to attend until high school, when she took on the role of teen volunteer, serving for four years. In that role, Margaret often sought out tasks she could do to help, whether with campers or in the kitchen. Margaret says she is drawn back to Peace Camp every year because of “the experiences it brings to me, whether it’s learning about other religions, taking care of children, or preparing food for all the campers it gives me a sense of joy that I get to help others, and be more aware of other peoples religious beliefs.” She is grateful for the nomination and for the supporters who keep Peace Camp going “so other kids could have the same experience I did.” Last spring, Margaret graduated from Valley West High School, and this fall started her first year of college at the University of Scranton, where she is majoring in Biology on the Pre- Med track.
2024 Honoree: Madelyn Evan
Maddie Evan recently graduated from Wyoming Valley West High School and is now attending the University of Pittsburgh, majoring in civil engineering and minoring in business. Maddie has been playing the cello for seven years and was a member of the orchestra, chamber orchestra, and district orchestra in high school. Maddie loves the outdoors, whether it’s biking, hiking, kayaking, or just going on a walk, which made outdoor Peace Camp activities special for her. This past summer was Maddie’s fourth year participating in Peace Camp, and she says she is “so grateful for the opportunity to work with kids while guiding them in making this world a better place for everyone! The daughter of Mark and Heather Evan, Maddie has also volunteered her time and talents through Junior Leadership and Key Club.
2024 Honoree: Frances Scarboro
Frances Scarboro has volunteered with Peace Camp for the past four summers. Older volunteers noted how engaged Franny was with all camp activities and appreciated her patience with young campers. The experience had such an impact on Franny that she decided to devote her senior project at Lake-Lehman High School to Peace Camp. Frances is now in her first year of studies at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, where she is majoring in English. In her spare time, Frances enjoys origami and reading obscure short stories. She is the daughter of Cris Scarboro and Jill Baer.
2024 Honoree: Leaf Hancuff
Leaf Hancuff has volunteered at Summer Peace Camp since 2019, and his favorite activity is teaching the campers to make origami butterflies. Leaf has also been a counselor and art assistant at Archbald Girl Scout Camp. Leaf is currently attending Wilkes University and studying Environmental Science and Digital Media Arts. His parents Noreen O’Connor and Rich Hancuff are proud of Leaf’s dedication to peace and justice.
2024 Honoree: Isabella Lachinova
Isabella Lachinova has been part of Peace Camp since she first attended as a camper in 2013. In the summer before she began 9th grade (2021), Isabella brought her enthusiasm and energy to the role of teen volunteer, and has continued to do so for the last four summer Peace Camps. As she noted, “…each year I’ve grown with the kids and loved my experience each year I’ve been back.” In addition to impressive scholastic achievements—including obtaining the seal of biliteracy and completing the the international baccalaureate program—Isabella participated in the swim, soccer and softball teams, as well as marching band, district band, regional band, and concert band. As no surprise to those familiar with Peace Camp, Isabella completed 100 hours of community service, After spending her early years at Wyoming Valley West schools, Isabella graduated from high school in Florida last spring. She now attends the University of Tampa, majoring in Communications and Media.
2023 Honorees: Marissa Jason, King’s College, and Lauren Kozicki, West Chester University
2022 Honoree: Eowynn Bogdon
Over a decade ago, Eowynn Bogdon started attending Peace Camp for Kids as a young child. The experiences were meaningful ones for her, so much so that she started to volunteer as a helper in her teen years. And her talents were noticed. A few years ago, Eowynn began bringing her musical talents—including her ukulele—to Peace Camp, and she could be counted on to joyfully lead otherwise restless campers in songs about peacemaking and justice.
Eowynn also brings a calm and reassuring demeanor to her interactions with people at Peace Camp, both young and old. It’s rare not to see a smile on her face. When asked to reflect on her journey with Peace Camp, she responded:
“From the time I was seven years old I started attending Peace Camp each summer. All of the Peace Camp committee were role models to me, they watched me grow up until I was old enough to be part of the peace camp committee myself. It is a privilege to be able to work with the Peace Campers and watch them learn and grow as confident, kind, and intelligent peacemakers. I always strive to be as good of a role model for the children in my community as the Peace Camp committee was for me as a child.”
2021 Honorees: Mustafa Almeky, Lakina Hughes, Winter Jenkins, and Kaylee McNeil
In early June 2020, a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest took place on Wilkes-Barre Public Square, fittingly on the same day the charge against Derek Chauvin in the death of George Floyd was upgraded to second-degree murder, and all four Minneapolis police officers involved were taken into custody. Ignited with outrage that their loved ones could someday face this same police brutality, then first-year local high school students Lakina Hughes, Winter Jenkins, and Kaylee McNeil turned to Facebook to spread the word of their BLM protest later that week. With multiple brothers, Winter especially had her family in mind when she saw the video of George Floyd being abused by an officer. When the event began, the square quickly filled with nearly 200 people carrying signs that read “no justice, no peace” among other slogans of support. With everyone gathered, Wilkes University senior Moustafa Almeky aided the high schoolers in leading chants and kneeling for a moment of silence for the tragedies suffered, and often ignored, in the black community. Wilkes-Barre Mayor George Brown and Police Chief Joseph Coffay likewise took a knee in solidarity. The young leaders all emphasized that violence can never be answered with more violence. As the chants died down, some speakers took the opportunity to highlight the importance of voting while a voter registration table was available on the square during the rally. His family being originally from Egypt, Moustafa did not want to see racial injustices continue here in the United States and echoed the others’ concerns that officials who will make the necessary changes for equality to be achieved need to be put in power. Lakina served as one of the speakers and expressed tearfully that she is sometimes scared to leave the house because of how some people automatically look down on her for being black. The audience raised the signature BLM movement clenched fist as Lakina shared that she fears what the world will be like for her children if the black community continues to be killed due to the color of their skin and white offenders not being held accountable. Once the speakers had their voices heard, the crowd marched across the Market Street Bridge as police cars safely escorted them across traffic. As the protestors came back down the Pierce Street Bridge, they halted outside the Luzerne County Courthouse yard. To further recognize the cruel death of George Floyd, everyone lay on their stomachs with their hands behind their back as they shouted, “I can’t breathe.” They stayed in this position for nearly nine minutes, just as George Floyd did as he was suffocated by an officer’s knee pressing on his neck. The marchers then returned to the square and soon dispersed. After the 3-hour-long protest in the blistering heat, the young leaders – Lakina, Winter, Kaylee, and Moustafa – felt proud of their work. Kaylee reflected that the turnout of people from different cultures and races meant so much, as it showed that the black community isn’t alone in its fight against racial injustice.
2020 Honoree: Janelle Sherman
Janelle Sherman is a Wilkes University 2021 alumna who majored in psychology and nursing and minored in women and gender studies. She is a crusader in fighting food insecurity by giving at-risk families fresh produce and generating scholarship that empowers women to defend themselves against gender inequality. During the summer of 2019, Janelle partnered with food justice advocate Clancy Cash Harrison and the Wilkes-Barre YMCA’s Power Scholars Academy and Tasty Thursday summer programs to distribute a total of 10,849 pounds of free, fresh produce to over 900 families. For the 6-week Power Scholars program, she created weekly educational activities for students in grades 1-5 that emphasized fruits and vegetables for a healthy life. While working for Tasty Thursdays, Janelle helped to secure produce from CEO and SCI Retreat in Hunlock Creek for free pop-up produce stands throughout Wilkes-Barre. To introduce children to how tasty vegetables are, she provided families with samples and a recipe card for a nutritious dish utilizing the fresh ingredients. With the international honor society in psychology, Janelle also set up free pop-up produce stands at Wilkes where she distributed nutritional information to students and faculty. To further connect children with the Earth and healthy food, she participated in procuring and giving free produce at Hillside Farms’ annual Grief Camp for children who lost an immediate family member or are experiencing family instability. In addition to promoting healthy food, Janelle has served as a Wilkes research assistant. She was tasked with collecting and analyzing data concerning ways young women can protect themselves from sexism. In March 2019, she presented the findings at the preeminent International Society for Research in Child Development’s biennial conference, which thousands attended. Now as a graduate nurse in Behavioral Health Services at First Hospital in Kingston, Janelle continues to offer help to people experiencing food insecurity and/or domestic violence.
2019 Honoree: Sara Ahmed
On May 19, Sara Ahmed will be the first person in her family to graduate from college. As she completes her bachelor’s degree from King’s College with a major in biology, Sara will realize the fruits of not only her diligent efforts but also those of her hard-working parents who emigrated to the United States from Egypt as young newlyweds. Many more people will reap the benefits of Sara Ahmed’s dedication to peace, justice, and interfaith and intercultural understanding. As a student, Sara has been involved in a number of activities to promote peace and justice. She most recently spoke at the Standing Against Terror: United with Our Muslim Neighbors event on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre, held in response to the terror attacks in New Zealand. Sara has been a leader of the Multi-Cultural and International Student Club; she recently participated in a SERVE trip to Puerto Rico and a Quest retreat through Campus Ministry. Sara was also part of a study abroad program in Peru, which included intercultural dialogue between King’s students and young Peruvian English language learners. Ms. Ahmed is committed to promoting peace and justice at King’s College and in the Wilkes-Barre community as a whole. Sara has also been instrumental in educating the King’s community on interfaith issues and presented on this activity at President Obama’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge at Gallaudet University in 2016. Sara uses the knowledge she gains to encourage and educate those around her. She is a brave and passionate student, especially where justice and advocacy are concerned. Sara’s goal is to one day travel the world and do research that will impact the lives of many people. She is a very worthy recipient of this award.
2018 Honoree: Julianna Stella
Julianna Stella is a senior Social Work student at Misericordia University, where she serves as the president of the Social Work Association and as a member of the directing team of Campus Ministry in charge of the Catholic Relief Services ministry. The team promotes education and advocacy on campus and hosts events such as hunger banquets and climate change, immigration, and human trafficking simulations. Julianna is also the advisor to the Circle K Service Club and a mentor in the Social Work Intern Mentoring Program. Currently, she interns at Catholic Social Services in the Immigration and Refugee Resettlement Program. Outside of school, she serves as Vice President of the Wyoming Area Kiwanis and works as a part-time lifeguard at the Holiday Inn. After receiving her undergraduate degree, she will attend the University of SUNY Buffalo for a Masters in Social Work and Macro Practice. Her passion and purpose is service to others, and she aspires, as best expressed by her campus minister and dear friend, “to be kind, work hard, and cultivate joy.”
2017 Honoree: Chelsea Taylor Collins
Chelsea Collins is a recent graduate of Marywood University’s Graduate School of Social Work. During her time in school, she was the graduate assistant overseeing the Center for Social Justice and Community Collaboration in which she organized events such as a diversity event for undergraduates and a solution-focused panel dealing with heroin and opiate addiction in Northeastern Pennsylvania. She spent a year interning as the onsite social worker at the Scranton Lackawanna Human Development Agency and the past year interning at Senator John Blake’s Scranton office. She hopes to continue her efforts for promoting intersectional social justice by working in public policy and research. Chelsea is well deserving of the Student for Peace Award as her inspiration is anyone who spreads love and peace in the face of adversity. She started a blog, ctsneak.wordpress.com as a way to start a discussion on political and social issues such as criminal justice, race, and gender, as a way to simplify complex problems to educate and collaborate with others. Her aspiration is to do good, help people who may not have a voice, and work in public policy.
2016: Angela Costigan and Katie Gereda
2015: Aoife Burke, Becky Revitt, Andie Sullivan, and Luke Sullivan
2014: Jarred Kraft, Mr. J
2013: Arisa Lucia Gereda
2012: Jordan Marsh and Adam Zapotok
2011: Stanley Chan
2010: Sarah Klee
2009 William Browne
2008: Diya Das
2007: Britney Brewster
2006: Amanda Shonk
2005: Donald Stefanovich
2004: Abigail Myers
2002: Greg Elliott
2001: Buddy Shah and Athena Smith Ford
2000: Jude Pannell
1997: Justin Scappaticci
1996: Brian Hebling
