Jonah Tran '22: Servant, Humanitarian

At Convocation on January 14, Jonah Tran '22, per usual, sat among his classmates in the Chapel of the Holy Cross. He listened to the presentation by Jesuit's Director of Counseling, Jim Ranieri, while also maybe letting his mind wander to what was going on in his life.

Perhaps Tran was thinking about his recent acceptance to Notre Dame. Or how, as a two-year starting offensive lineman, he had helped the football team to the State Championship last month.

Or maybe Tran was looking ahead to his classes that day. A phenomenal student, Tran's course schedule includes five AP classes and in the fall his lowest average in any course was a 94.6, and he earned a 98.3 in AP Latin. Tran also is a stellar saxophone player in the Jesuit orchestra. And he is a leader in the service club Agmen Christi and the Pro Life Club. Tran and his brother, Noah Tran '20 also established their own service initiative a few years ago, providing care packages to the homeless.

So, Tran had a lot on his mind. But as Mr. Ranieri kept speaking, about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and about Anne Frank, eventually, slowly, Tran realized what was happening: he was being introduced as the recipient of the Florida Holocaust Museum's Anne Frank Humanitarian Award, which is given to a student who has shown exceptional compassion through service and humanitarian efforts.

View below several photos and video of the presentation by Ranieri. Below that is the transcript of Ranieri's presentation in announcing Tran as the award recipient 

 

 

JIM RANIERI PRESENTATION OF ANNE FRANK HUMANITARIAN AWARD - JAN. 14, 2022

"The true measure of a man is not what he does in times of comfort and convenience but what he does in times of conflict and controversy." MKL Jr.

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." Anne Frank

This first quote comes from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.. who we honor and celebrate this weekend. A man of compassion and courage, a true Humanitarian and the reason we have a 3-day weekend. The other quote didn't come from political leader, religious icon or social activist. The brilliant thought about not wasting time to improve the world came from a 14-year-old Jewish girl.... A young person, very much like you all. We know about Dr. King's struggle in the civil rights movement. Our young girl her faced her own formidable foe in the Nazi regime as they were hunting and killing families like hers. I believe what makes these two so special and the reason we're talking about them right now is their courage and compassion. It was through their words and action that gave hope to others and expressed the enduring power of compassion. The ultimate beauty of their lives is that if we live our lives with radical compassion and care for others it is an extremely powerful thing and you need not wait a single moment to get started.

This young girl, her name is Anne Frank. Every year Jesuit HS takes part in the Florida Holocaust Museum's Anne Frank Humanitarian Award. This award goes to a junior who has shown exceptional compassion through service and humanitarian efforts. They live the Museum's mission in bringing hope and positive change to their school and the world.

We would now like to recognize and honor this now senior... He is a member of Agmen Christi and has travelled to Belle Glade to work with the migrant children. He is member of the Pro Life club and traveling to D.C. for the march. He has volunteered with the Special Olympics.

He and his brother through their compassion and a simple conversation with a man on the street corner developed a project to create care packages for the homeless. They gather donations and create a small package of goods (water, hand sanitizer, toiletries and food). The idea is that you can keep a few packages in your car and give them out when you encounter someone on the side of the road in need of help. But what is really neat is beyond just handing out a package from your car window they make it a point to try to have a short conversation as well. When his older brother left for college and the pandemic hit the easy thing would have been to just give up on the project. But he made it a point to try to keep it alive despite these hurdles. He realizes that "the smallest act of service can have a big impact on someone's life."

On behalf of Jesuit HS and the Florida Holocaust Museum we are pleased to recognize the 2021 Anne Frank Humanitarian recipient... Jonah Tran.