Highland Park High School’s Blanket Award winners lived out the school’s motto, “Enter to learn. Go Forth to Serve,” through their volunteerism and accomplishments while on campus.
Boone Bonfield and Cate Young, the 2026 award recipients, served together on the student council and dedicated a combined 672 hours to community service.
Both also managed to maintain a GPA of at least 4.44 while spending three hours each school day on extracurricular activities. They said their motivation was simple — they wanted to spread happiness to other people.
“That was my goal throughout high school, to be a joy and a light in a place where there’s a lot of pressure to perform, achieve, and get in the right college,” Bonfield said. “So getting to be this person who actually has a role to go love people, to serve people; that was really special to me.”
Young likewise said she’s fortunate to have had opportunities to give back.
“I was so lucky to be raised in a community that facilitated so much learning and education, both in the classroom and in extracurriculars and around the community,” she said. “I feel honored to have tried to give back to it as much as I could.”
Bonfield said he particularly enjoyed working with Voice of Hope Ministries, a faith-based organization serving children and families in West Dallas and beyond through academic support, spiritual formation, and community engagement. While volunteering, Bonfield realized that, despite living different lives, the people he was assisting shared his struggles and ambitions.
“I feel like they taught me just as much as I probably taught them just from getting to hear their stories, and hear what they’re about,” Bonfield added of the people he served through Voice of Hope Ministries.
He is an Eagle Scout who also has served with Brother Bill’s Helping Hand.
“It’s such a great privilege to have the opportunities I’ve had in high school to serve, to lead, to get to be part of student council honor council ambassadors,” Bonfield said. “To have that role and practice what it means to enter to learn, go forth to serve.”
Young said she served on the student council all four years of her high school career, in addition to playing on the varsity basketball team and volunteering.
Young said she particularly enjoyed serving with CitySquare Food Pantry, Genesis Women’s Shelter, and New Friends New Life.
During her sophomore year, she founded Club 72, an organization celebrating women’s athletics on campus. The club is named for 1972, the year Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in any education program or activity, was passed.
“That was an honor for me to get to lead things like that,” Young said. “And now getting to pass it down to a couple of younger girls who are super tenacious and excited to keep the message going — those are the things I loved being involved in.”
After growing up across the street from one another, serving on the student council together, and being recognized as the 2026 Blanket Award honorees, Bonfield will head to Vanderbilt University, while Young will head to Princeton University.
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