The Virginia Knights of Columbus named two local high school seniors, Teagan Wentland and Austin Baron, winners of the organization’s statewide annual young woman and man of the year contest, respectively.
The awards and a small cash prize were presented in person during the Virginia Knights’ annual meeting in Herndon last month. Local Knights’ councils offered nominations and more than 50 were received in each of the competitions.
“Teagan and Austin were both without a doubt the most balanced young man and young woman in Virginia through the complexities of grade point average, in school activities, classes taken, faith-based activities outside of school (and) contributions to society and their communities,” said Mark Zaccagnini, general programs director for the Virginia Knights and organizer of this year’s competition. “Out of all the (nomination) packages sent, Teagan’s and Austin’s stood out tremendously.”
Wentland is a homeschooled senior and parishioner of Holy Trinity Church in Gainesville, where she participates in and leads a number of youth ministry activities. She maintains a robust academic and extracurricular schedule, including as a standout performer on a competitive track and field team. In addition, for the past six years, Wentland has operated a pet care business, caring for and sitting domestic and farm animals, including horses, cows, chickens, dogs, cats and more. She will attend Ave Maria University in Ave Maria, Fla., in the fall.
She called winning the award a surprise because no one told her she had been nominated.
“I was very surprised, and a little taken aback. I’m very honored to have been considered, given that there are so many amazing young men and women in this diocese, some of whom I call my closest friends,” she said.
Baron is also an accomplished student, athlete and contributor to the local community. A senior at Stone Bridge High School and parishioner of St. Theresa Church, both in Ashburn, he established a nonprofit, Knot Perfect, dedicated to alleviating world hunger. Knot Perfect sells homemade dog toys to raise funds. Last year, Baron competed on NBC’s “America Ninja Warrior” TV show, in which elite athletes try to complete an extreme obstacle course, to advocate for the cause and has raised $25,000 overall, which facilitated more than 80,000 meals through efforts including Cross Catholic Outreach’s You(th) vs. Hunger meal packing events at St. Theresa. He plans to attend the University of Notre Dame in the fall.
“As I was running through the (America Ninja Warrior) course, I was hanging on to the obstacles not just for me, but for the 1 billion people around the world who go to bed hungry each night,” Baron said. He hopes to compete on the program again in the future.
He called winning the Knights’ competition an honor and humbling.
“I am hoping God will use this award to reach more people who have a heart to help me feed the hungry,” Baron said.
Find out more
To support Knot Perfect, go to knotperfect.org. To learn about Teagan and Co. Petcare, go to facebook.com/teaganandcopetcare.
