VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A 5th grader at Kempsville Meadows Elementary School in Virginia Beach has earned one of the highest honors in student safety patrol — and then got another surprise on top of it.
Noah Mason is a dedicated safety patroller at the school. Why does he do it? Noah says, "To make people feel safe and comfortable around the school."
Noah oversees about 26 student patrollers at Kempsville Meadows. His duties include helping younger students in and out of cars, leading kids through the hallways, and raising and lowering the flag each day, a duty he takes very seriously, "Because it's the flag of our country and we need to respect it," Noah said.
Recently Noah was named Triple A's regional patroller of the year----"I felt very surprised and yeah, I didn't, I didn't know I'd win that," Noah said. And then he picked up the national title after that. His mother, Angel Chaudhry, said the national recognition was overwhelming.
"Shock, shock. I mean, to be the top in the nation. Is amazing," Chaudhry said.
School safety patrol advisor Cynthia Byrd said Noah stood out from the beginning. "From the start he was such a great leader and he's just made such a big difference this year," Byrd said.
Principal Christa Market said Noah's impact is felt by every student who walks through the door. "He helps every child that comes through the door. It doesn't matter if it's a kindergartner that's in tears because they don't want to leave their mom or, you know, a 4th grader who needs help carrying a project down the hallway," Market said.
Virginia Beach Police Department School Resource Officer Kris Sessoms said working alongside Noah has been a rewarding experience.
"It's been great working alongside him. You know, just seeing the respect and admiration that his peers have for him and you know how much he's grown and just we're just all proud of you," Sessoms said.
His mom said her son's character extends well beyond the school grounds. "He is, he is just such a good kid. He's very helpful. He has strong leadership at home, at church, at school. We're just so proud of him," Chaudhry said.
And for all of those reasons we presented Noah with a News 3 Everyday Hero Award, along with a $425 Visa gift card from community partner Southern Bank. That amount is higher than the normal amount by $125 to commemorate Southern Bank's 125th anniversary.
As for what Noah plans to do with his $425 gift card — he said he doesn't know yet.
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