Caroline Steed was awarded the 2019 Annie F. Oliver Volunteer of the Year Award by the Savannah Speech and Hearing Center in February for her outstanding hard work and commitment to volunteerism.

“I am incredibly grateful to have received this award,” Steed wrote in an email. “It is such a special award and to see my name alongside other volunteers of the year since the 1970s was so surreal and a true honor.”

Steed volunteered over 188 hours of her time at the Savannah Speech and Hearing Center.

“Volunteering and giving back to your community gives you this incomparable sense of worth,” Steed said.

Steed spent her time serving at hearing screenings at local schools, Stroke Group, Sound Start Auditory/Oral Preschool and other fundraising events with the Savannah Speech Hearing Center. She has also volunteered with Autism Speaks and various events through the National Student Speech Language Hearing Association on Armstrong’s campus.

“During 2018, Caroline volunteered in all our programs; a weekly Stroke Support Group, hearing screenings in public and private schools and especially in the Sound Start Program,” Ann Curry, volunteer coordinator at the Savannah Speech and Hearing Center, wrote in an email. “Caroline brings warmth, commitment and compassion in all her volunteer endeavors.”

Steed plans to graduate from Georgia Southern with a bachelor’s in communication sciences and disorders. She will attend graduate school where she will earn her master’s degree in order to pursue a career in speech-language pathology.

Sarah Smith, The George-Anne Candidate, gadaily@georgiasouthern.edu