Scholar athlete, Jeremiah Bledsoe, has received the Hershey Heartwarming Hero Award for his community service initiative to support the elderly. He is a Junior at Nolan Catholic High School in Ft. Worth, Texas, and for the past 10 years, has been visiting local nursing homes donating items to elderly residents.

The collaboration between Hershey and Youth Service America supports youth who are changing America. Jeremiah was selected as a hero and also received funding to support his community service initiative.

When asked why he decided to target the elderly, he said, “The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals help us to identify global issues. I selected SDG 3: Health because we are living during a global pandemic and we cannot leave our elders behind.”

Youth Service America believes that youth, communities, and democracy thrive when we all work together for the common good. Youth Service America (YSA) selected Heartwarming Young Heroes with creative ideas to foster meaningful connections, promote inclusion and teach empathy. With support from Hershey’s Heartwarming Project, YSA awarded up to $50,000 in grants for youth-led service projects and community-building activities.

This is just the beginning for Jeremiah as he demonstrates what it means to be a leader. He looks forward to serving others by using social enterprises as a framework to develop solutions for problems in our society. His social enterprise, J8 Creative, provides creative multi-media solutions. A percentage of the proceeds of J8 Creative supports elderly residents in senior living facilities. In addition to being a youth entrepreneur, Jeremiah also enjoys playing football at Nolan Catholic High School, photography, and digital media.