Children’s Aid Young Adult Wins Grand Prize in 'Youth in Foster Care' Contest

May 23, 2008

Twenty-year-old Donnie Malloy’s powerful essays about his experiences in foster care have won him a Grand Prize of $1,000 in the Tenth Annual Child Welfare Fund Awards for Youth in Foster Care. Donnie, who entered foster care at the age of 10, is one of five Grand Prize winners in the contest. The Awards are administered by Youth Communication, a nonprofit youth development program and publisher, and are designed to publicly recognize youth in foster care for their talents and persistence.

Donnie’s social worker at Children’s Aid, Rebecca Tangen, nominated him for the award because of his achievements, tenacity and dedication to his younger siblings and the importance of education.

Malloy, currently a pre-law student with a 3.5 GPA at SUNY-New Paltz, wrote an essay about his life-altering experience at college. As the first in his family to attend college, he takes very seriously the opportunities offered and feels a responsibility to younger family members.

In his second essay for the contest, Donnie wrote about his relationship with his mother, who passed away when he was in high school. He expressed his feelings of frustration that he couldn’t be more involved with her while he was in foster care. Despite his mother’s death, he still graduated from high school on time and with strong academic standing.

Donnie and the other winners will be honored at a ceremony in mid-June in New York City. In the fall, at the start of his junior year, Donnie will transfer to Stony Brook University on Long Island.