Star Defenseman Angela Ruggiero has been nominated for the prestigious national Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service by an Athlete, presented by All Stars Helping Kids, a national nonprofit founded by NFL Hall-of-Famer Ronnie Lott. Fans can “get in the game” and help Ruggiero win by voting on the All Stars Helping Kids website (www.allstarshelpingkids.org) and via text message beginning in August and running through November 15^th.

To vote for Ruggiero text STAR36 to 55333.

Ruggiero joins other impressive nominees, including Steve Nash, Mia Hamm, and Venus Williams. Past winners of the Jefferson Award include Oprah Winfrey, U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy, and Bill & Melinda Gates.

Ruggiero founded the Angela Ruggiero Girls Hockey School which provides girls with guidance and time with professional hockey coaches to help them reach their goals.  She also serves as a spokesperson to the Women’s Sports Foundation, and was the former director for Project Hope, providing educational opportunities to young Chinese athletes. To learn more about her service, visit her profile on www.allstarshelpingkids.org.

All Stars Helping Kids was founded by NFL Hall-of-Famer Ronnie Lott in 1989 with the goal of promoting a safe, healthy, rigorous learning environment for disadvantaged kids in low-income communities. All Stars achieves this mission by pooling the resources of athletes, corporations and individuals to support high-performing academic and physical enrichment programs.

The Jefferson Awards for Public Service is a prestigious national recognition system honoring community and public service in America. The Jefferson Awards were established in 1972 by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, U.S. Senator Robert Taft, Jr. and Sam Beard to establish a Nobel Prize for public service. Today, their primary purpose is to serve as a “Call to Action for Volunteers” in local communities.