The Bethel Park Rotary Club’s May Student of the Month is Bethel Park High School senior Lauren Heh. She was recently recognized at a small luncheon at The Garden Restaurant [4912 Gardenville Road, Pittsburgh, PA, 15236].
Lauren is an excellent student who carries an outstanding 4.53 GPA. She is also the co-president of Best Buddies and vice president of the Student Government Association. Lauren also serves as the vice president of the Class of ‘23 Ways and Means Committee. Other groups that command Lauren’s time include the National Honor Society and the Principal’s Advisory Council of Students (PACS).
Lauren is also an accomplished athlete. She was a co-captain on the Hawks girls soccer team, scoring nine goals. She was also a member of the 4x400 meter relay team that recently took the silver medal at the WPIAL championships in Slippery Rock, Pa. Lauren was also a captain of the Unified Indoor Bocce team, which won the South Division championship and finished ninth out of 89 regional teams.
In coed Unified Indoor Bocce, teams compete on 60-by-12-feet courts, rolling their rubber bocce ball underhand on the PVC court in hopes of getting closer to the jack (a smaller ball that serves as a target and is sometimes referred to as a “pallino”) than their opponents. It is part of the Unified Sports program (UCS) of the Special Olympics, which promotes social inclusion through shared training and competition for people with and without intellectual disabilities.
Heh became involved in inclusive activities at a young age, including the Miracle League, and that mission remains very important to her.
“Being a part of Bethel Park’s first-ever Unified Sports team was beyond gratifying,” she said. “It was just such a thrill to compete as peers alongside some of our exceptional students and watch them experience what it’s like to compete and have success as a high school student-athlete.”
In May, Heh signed a non-binding pledge to continue to work with the Special Olympics in her post-high school career.
Outside of school, Heh has worked at Fiori’s Pizza since she was 15 years-old. Her sisters Julie and Jennifer also work at the pizzeria.
Heh will attend the University of Pittsburgh in the fall. She is one of six children of Paul and Janet Heh. Her siblings are Bridget (23), Meredith (22), Sean (21), Julie (19) and Jennifer Heh (15).
Students are nominated for Bethel Park Rotary Student of the Month by administrators, teachers, students, or community members. They are chosen based on academics, scholastic, extracurricular, civic honors and awards, organization membership, and leadership.
At a monthly luncheon, honorees receive a certificate acknowledging their contribution to their community. For more information on Rotary and its mission, please ask any Rotarians about it or visit bethelparkrotary.org. You can also visit their Facebook page.