Rob Stephens:
2005 NETAID GLOBAL ACTION AWARD HONOREE

Net Aid 2005 Global Action Awards Honorees

Coming from such a selfless, philanthropic family, it is no wonder that Rob Stephens is such an exemplary teen.

His parents, Drs. Chad and Jane Stephens, adopted Rob's brother, Joe, in 1999 while Chad worked in Kenya as a medical missionary. Joe had been abandoned in a Nairobi street market, and taken to New Life Homes, an orphanage that rescues abandoned babies, many of whom are HIV-positive. The Stephenses, touched by the plight of AIDS orphans in Africa, created the Amani Children's Foundation to raise funds for New Life Homes so that they can build orphanages throughout Kenya.

Through their work, Chad and Jane have much to be proud of -- but their greatest accomplishment, perhaps, may be their son, Rob, who is following in their footsteps.

As a junior at Mount Tabor high school, Rob realized how important it was for his community to grasp the plight of African AIDS orphans. He spent the following summer volunteering at the orphanage in Kenya, and became even more starkly aware of the crisis.

When he returned home to Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he was more determined than ever to raise funds and awareness for the orphanage in Kenya. He decided to create different projects to appeal to different students, getting the art students involved by having them create necklaces to raise funds, and having athletes and fans participate in a statewide charity basketball game that Rob put on.

Because he was also taking classes at the Career Center, he had access to a larger network of students from other area schools as well. He also recruited teachers and younger students, to ensure that his project would thrive long after he graduated.

He even led a group of 20 students and teachers to Kenya where they visited HIV/AIDS clinics, local orphanages, and saw the work of other charity organizations in action. The delegation also joined students from Nairobi University in a conference focusing on "working across borders to stop the spread of AIDS."

Rob Stephens was one of five honorees for NetAid's 2005 Global Action Awards , honored at a public awards ceremony at New York's Jazz at Lincoln Center on November 9, 2005. NetAid is a nonprofit that thrives to educate and empower young people to take action against poverty around the world,

Currently Rob is a student at the Univeristy of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He remains active in his work to help the plight of African orphans as an Amani scholar.