In eighth grade Andrew was on a biology field trip to a farm. He said, “When we first got there they passed around a chicken and let us hold her and bond with her. It was then that they told us our first ‘experiment’ would be chopping this chicken’s head with an axe and dissecting her … On this same trip they took two of my classmates hunting and killed a deer … The day after the trip I immediately stopped eating meat and decided that I would dedicate my life to speaking up for animals, because they cannot speak for themselves. It was a little later that I learned further about our food industry and chose to become a vegan.”

Not too long after this trip, Andrew discovered that the Humane Society of the United States had a student advisory board. “I emailed them to see how I can become involved and they asked me to become a member. On this board, I advised the organization on how they can best reach the youth with a message of compassion for animals. It was there where I met a girl not too much older than me who had started her own nonprofit organization. I was extremely impressed and inspired. It was then, at age fourteen, that I started Live Life Human (www.LiveLifeHumane.org) … Along with these accomplishments, I have been on the youth advisory boards for both peta2 and Mercy for Animals, advising them on their campaigns. As someone who was so dedicated to educating young people about vegetarianism and showing compassion towards animals, I became a youth outreach intern with Mercy for Animals … Another organization I have been involved in is Youth Empowered Action (YEA) Camp, a summer camp that empowers teenagers to take action on a cause they care about.” YEA Camp is all vegan. Andrew was an intern and counselor in training for three summers.

“A huge thing I learned in my activism career is to only take on what you can handle, and only work on the effective projects. I now try to take on the projects that I know will save the most animals. I am lucky in that I know exactly what I want to do with the rest of my life, as I have chosen to dedicate my life to helping animals. I plan to get my undergraduate in biology and then apply to veterinary schools … There are also not too many vegan veterinarians and I would like to set an example for that community … Awarding me a scholarship is an investment in the future of the vegetarian movement as a whole. I will be working to help animals and spread vegetarianism throughout my career. I plan to be involved in the vegetarian movement for my entire life. The (scholarship) money will truly be used to make the vegetarian movement stronger.”

To apply for the 2016 scholarships, go to: https://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

To financially support additional scholarships or internships, you can donate at www.vrg.org/donate; The Vegetarian Resource Group, P.O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203; or call (410) 366-8343.