The Georgia Rotary Student Program (GRSP) is proud to announce Isabella Velasquez Gallardo as the 2025-2026 recipient of the Lynn Clarke GRSP Women in Leadership Award. The Bolivia native and Georgia Gwinnett College (GGC) student has distinguished herself through extraordinary leadership, a nurturing spirit and a deep commitment to fostering international harmony. Currently pursuing a degree in Environmental Science with a 3.5 GPA, Isabella has emerged as a vital voice on her campus and within the Rotary community, consistently demonstrating her desire to grow as a leader who listens, learns, and connects across diverse cultures.
Throughout her time in Georgia, Isabella has balanced a rigorous academic load with significant advocacy work. As a peer leader in GGC’s HACER (Hispanic) Learning Community, she was recently selected to represent her campus at the HACU Conference in Washington, D.C., where she advocated for educational opportunities for Hispanic students. Her dedication to community service is equally impressive, seen through her volunteer efforts with the CarePoint Food Pantry and the Grizzlies Serve campus initiative. Reflecting on her journey, Isabella noted that education plays a vital role in building respect and compassion, stating that when we build understanding, we effectively replace fear with friendship and conflict with cooperation.
Isabella’s path to this recognition was marked by a unique twist of fate, joining the program as a last-minute substitute through the direct scholarship program. Her Trustee and host father, John Petrillo, describes her as the ideal ambassador for Rotary, noting that she has become a “contributing club member” who provides regular updates on campus life and service projects. Her presence has made a lasting impact on her host community, proving that “some things are meant to be” as she embodies the core Rotary value of Service Above Self in every interaction
The Lynn Clarke Women in Leadership Award is named in honor of Lynn Clarke, a former longtime member of the Rotary Club of Bremen and a licensed attorney in Georgia for 50 years. Lynn dedicated more than two decades to the Georgia Rotary Student Program as a District Chair, District Director, Trustee and host mother. Lynn was named Trustee Emeritus for during the GRSP Winter Meeting held in January and will be formally recognized in July. This prestigious scholarship, resulting from a $100,000 anonymous donation made in her honor in 2017, continues Lynn’s legacy of advancing world peace through understanding.
By receiving this honor, Isabella Velasquez Gallardo joins a distinguished lineage of international ambassadors dedicated to representing their home countries, their universities, and the spirit of the Georgia Rotary Student Program. In addition to this honor, the award includes a $1,000 check.
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