(WASHINGTON, DC) – Congressman Dennis Moore (Third District -- Kansas) congratulated sixth grader LaSandra Daniels on winning the President’s Environmental Youth Award (PEYA) for her leadership on a project to refurbish the Kansas City Kansas Community College nature trail.

“LaSandra is an excellent example of how each of us can make a difference,” Moore said. “The Kansas City community is better as a result of LaSandra’s work to protect the environment and address local concerns. I’m proud of her for showing others what can be accomplished with dedication, resourcefulness and hard work.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency created PEYA in 1971 to encourage children in grades K-12 to become more active in protecting the environment. Annual competitions in each of EPA’s 10 regions select winners for national recognition at ceremony in Washington, D.C. LaSandra is the Region 7 winner, which includes Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska.

“I learned that you should give back to your community and not listen to people who are discouraging,” LaSandra said. “You can do it.”

LaSandra attends Open Door Christian where she is active in the Urban Environmental Outreach Program for Kids (UEOP), a leadership group compromised of youth ages 4 to 17 in Wyandotte County. The students decided to restore the natural beauty of the Kansas City Kansas Community College nature trail after learning it was home to one of the oldest burr oak trees in the state.

UEOP partnered with community organizations on the project, including: the Green Team of Topeka; Sierra Club, Master Gardeners, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, National Guard of Kansas City; Wyandotte County Conservation District; United Way of Wyandotte County; Boy Scout Troop 211; General Motors employees; and future majors at Fort Leavenworth Academy. The trail, which has been closed for 12 years, will reopen at 9 a.m. on Saturday, October 25 at Kansas City Kansas Community College.