Walt Disney World singled out three winning Central Florida students and 100 additional finalists for outstanding character development and achievement in ceremonies Wednesday at the resort.
The annual Disney Dreamers and Doers program reviewed more than 500 nominees from schools in Orange, Lake, Polk, Osceola and Seminole Counties to select the winners.
The top three, named DisneyHand Shining Star award winners, are:
° Hayley Nielsen, a fifth-grade student at T.W. Lawton Elementary in Seminole County, created Christmas Angels, a toy drive for underprivileged children in Oviedo.
° Christopher Dela Cruz, an eighth-grader from St. John Vianney Catholic School in Orange County is the student council president and an accomplished athlete in volleyball, basketball, soccer, golf and track and field.
° Owen Fasolas, a student at Winter Park High School in Orange County, overcame significant challenges, maintains a 4.3 GPA in the county's most rigorous academic program and serves as captain of his school's football and wrestling teams.
The three award winners receive a four-day, three-night stay at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge and annual park passes for their families.
The 100 finalists received four theme park tickets, a certificate and pin and a Dreamers and Doers medallion.
In 2006, Walt Disney World Resort donated more than $22 million in cash and in-kind support to the community. Walt Disney World Cast Members also volunteered nearly 200,000 hours to benefit local non-profit organizations.
