Honor Anthony Amato Award

Senate Resolution No. 1464 BY: Senator BRESLIN HONORING Anthony Amato upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of the 2016 Hispanic Heritage Foundation National Youth Award WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize and pay tribute to those young people within the great Empire State who have made strong contributions to their communities and who serve as role models for their peers; and WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to honor Anthony Amato upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of the

2016 Hispanic Heritage Foundation National Youth Award; and WHEREAS, A senior at Bethlehem Central High School, Anthony Amato is one of only eight high school seniors to win this prestigious award; the national winners were selected from hundreds of regional awardees and approximately 20,000 applicants nationwide; and WHEREAS, Each student received grant money for his or her education, a project or idea; these exceptional young people also gained entry into Latinos on Fast Track (LOFT), a fraternal organization which partners with the Hispanic College Fund to prepare and position emerging Latino professionals; and WHEREAS, LOFT connects thousands of regional and national Youth Award winners with guides, resources, fellow members and professionals; included among the more than 30 training programs, workshops and informal panels held annually, are the LOFT Coding Jam Session, in which minority youth are bilingually taught how to use HTML and CSS coding, and the LOFT Video Game Innovational Fellowship, wherein 25 LOFT fellows aged 15 to 25 are challenged to create and develop a video game addressing a social issue; the final product is then presented to the White House and to the United States Congress; and WHEREAS, The National Youth Awards celebrate Latino high school students who excel in the classroom and community, and for their achievements in one of the following categories: Education, Healthcare and Science, Community Service, Mathematical Sciences, Innovation and Technology, Engineering, Media and Entertainment, and Business and Entrepreneurship; and WHEREAS, Anthony Amato, who runs his own business connecting freelance graphic designers with businesses looking to hire, won the Business and Entrepreneurship award; and WHEREAS, Anthony Amato taught himself product advertisement and web management and design; with this knowledge in hand, he created an affiliate website while still in middle school; even then, he had instinctual, savvy and clever approaches, such as offering customers exclusive bonus offers, to get commission revenue through his site; and WHEREAS, During his junior year in high school, Anthony Amato launched his very own online freelance agency, New York DesignScapes, which offers graphic design services; currently, he works as Chief Manager of his agency where he has other freelancers working under him; he also manages the agency's finances and also works establishing all customer communications; and WHEREAS, A young man of many talents and interests, Anthony Amato is an accomplished ballet dancer and soloist for the Albany Berkshire Ballet's production of The Nutcracker and a violinist in the school orchestra; he is also a photographer and cinematographer, as well as a Teen Ambassador for the Ronald McDonald House and volunteer at the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy, where he helps to create and maintain trails in their preserves; and WHEREAS, With his sense of civic duty and his commitment to others, Anthony Amato represents the best development of the potential which is inherent in our most precious resource, our youth; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to honor Anthony Amato upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of the 2016 Hispanic Heritage Foundation National Youth Award; and be it further RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to Anthony Amato.