By Cheryl Smith
With all his efforts geared toward putting smiles on the faces of area youth, author and prize-winning writer Orion Jean wasn’t prepared for the news that would put a huge smile on his face, courtesy of Disney.
His acts of kindness are not going unnoticed.
Recently Orion was in South Dallas, at the Ideal Neighborhood Association’s T.R. Hoover Community Center, spreading kindness to the tune of thousands of books distributed to a steady stream of children of all ages.
Following that event, a team from Disney surprised the Jeans with a family trip to Disney.
The Disney Team was on site at the book giveaway and later made the surprise presentation to the Jeans in their Mansfield home.
Orion will also be featured on the “Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade, Saturday, December 25 (10:00 a.m. – 12 p.m. EST/PST) on ABC.
Their trip to Florida, a state that they are very familiar with since Mr. and Mrs. Jean are both graduates of Florida A&M University, is just one of the many honors Orion is racking up.
Named one of America’s top 10 youth volunteers of 2021 recently by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards during the program’s 26th annual, and second fully virtual, national recognition celebration, Orion was selected from a field of more than 21,000 youth volunteers from across the country. Orion has earned the title of National Honoree, along with a scholarship of $5,000, an engraved gold medallion, a crystal trophy for his school, and a $5,000 grant from The Prudential Foundation for a nonprofit organization of his choice.
The Association of Fundraising Professionals of Fort Worth Metro Chapter also honored him as the 2021 Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy!
