GAINESVILLE, FL — Today, Congresswoman Kat Cammack announced Kartikeya Rajderkar of Gainesville as a Congressional Award Silver Medal recipient.
Rajderkar, a local Eagle Scout and Eastside High School student, is one of 3,797 young people to receive the award this year and the only from Florida’s Third Congressional District.
The Congressional Award provides opportunities for young people to unleash their potential by achieving personal goals focused on volunteerism, character development, and fitness. Established in 1979 by the United States Congress, the Congressional Award is the United States Congress’ award for young Americans, and is non-partisan, voluntary, and non-competitive. The program is open to all youth in the U.S. between the ages of 14 and 24 regardless of ability, circumstance, or economic status.
“Congratulations to Mr. Rajderkar on his impressive accomplishment,” said Congresswoman Kat Cammack. “The participants of the Congressional Award make real differences in our communities and Kartikeya truly represents the very best of young students nationwide. His dedication to earn the rank of Eagle Scout while participating in a variety of service projects throughout the community is admirable, and I’m excited to present him with this honor.”
To earn the silver medal, Rajderkar completed hundreds of hours of service in the community while pursuing art, track & field, and music. As an Eagle Scout, Rajderkar completed his Eagle Scout project with a local food bank, building railings for the stairs to the loading docks. With the help of 20 other volunteers, he completed his project and earned the highest rank attainable.
Rajderkar is also passionate about art and music, entering fine arts competitions across North Central Florida. During his high school career, he earned several ‘excellent’ and ‘superior’ ratings for violin, earning first place at the State Violin Convention in 2021 for his fiddling solo. As a member of the Eastside High School Varsity Cross Country and Track teams, Rajderkar helped his team to region and district wins the last three years, making it to the state championship for the 5K race.
He also earned Lake Forest Volunteer of the Year, participating in a wide variety of volunteering activities with the Alachua County Public Library, Lake Forest Elementary School, India Cultural & Education Center (ICEC) in Gainesville, the Natural History Museum, and the Good News Summer Arts Camp in High Springs.
Rajderkar will be honored during a visit with Rep. Cammack in Gainesville later this week.
