Neha Gupta, now a freshman in the Schreyer Honors College at Pennsylvania State University, has been awarded the International Children’s Peace Prize Award for her outstanding work helping over 25,000 impoverished orphans. The Prize is an initiative of the Dutch KidsRights Foundation and is awarded annually to a child for his or her dedication to children’s rights. Neha is the first American to receive this award. She began her journey towards improving the lives of children globally at just nine years old. Ten years ago, Neha became the CEO and Founder of the non-profit organization Empower Orphans. Since founding the organization, she has raised over $1,000,000 and assisted over 25,000 underserved children. Neha’s service projects have ranged from sponsoring surgeries for polio victims, to installing filtration systems and waters wells, to hosting eye and dental camps.
She accepted the award at a ceremony in The Hague, Netherlands, from Netherlands' King Willem-Alexander, former archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu, and 2014 Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai. Learn more about the award and view the ceremony http://www.childrenspeaceprize.org/.
During her acceptance speech, Neha said, “I extend to you all an invitation to engage in the world—to make a difference in the lives of the kids who are sick and in need of care, who have to fight for their educational rights, or who simply need our love. Not only will your actions make a difference in someone else’s life, but they will also enrich your own. Together, we can bring about real and lasting change, and create a world in which each life is made whole—full of promise, hope, and compassion for others.”
Following the awards ceremony, Neha spent four days in London with Nobel Laureates Desmond Tutu and Kailash Satyrarthi attending the anti-slavery event organized by the Reuters Foundation.
An aspiring pediatrician, Neha hopes that Empower Orphans will expand and one day establish a global presence. She intends to join the ranks of the doctors currently serving diligently in her child-oriented service organization. At Pennsbury High School in Yardley, Pennsylvania, Neha was a member of the tennis team, the women’s chorale department, and Student Council. She was also a student representative on the district school board and she served on the member selection committee for the World of Children Awards. Neha received the 2014 Claes Nobel Academic Scholarship, and she was also a recipient of the 2013 Greg Goff Leadership Award offered through the NSHSS Foundation. She was selected as the first place winner in the Zinch Community Service scholarship competition for NSHSS members in 2013 as well. Neha was recognized by Mr. Nobel during the NSHSS Scholar’s Day Program in Washington, D.C. in 2013.
NSHSS congratulates Neha on her world-changing accomplishments achieved through her Empower Orphans organization.
View more photos on the Empower Orphans website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Empower-Orphans/173363152721734