Monticello student athlete receives inaugural Deseret News All-state Humanitarian of the Year award

Monticello High School senior JD Keyes was named 1A All-state Humanitarian of the Year on Thursday, December 16 by the Deseret News in the inaugural year for the award.

According to the DesNews, “Keyes has been actively involved in his community throughout his time in high school but being a senior this school year his commitments have expanded in many different areas, and he goes about fulfilling them with a grateful smile on his face.

“He serves on both the Hope Squad and San Juan Youth Coalition, two organizations dedicated to helping students’ mental health. He’s also a student body officer and co-runs the school’s ‘Project 21 Angels’ program, Monticello’s version of Sub for Santa.”

Monticello Head Football Coach Reed Anderson told the DesNews, “As a senior on the football team he also helps organize and participate in our service we do as a team. We spend significant time each season helping out our businesses in town.

“San Juan County being the poorest county in the state, we are always grateful for the support our community gives. Because of this we spend a few whole days each year doing service for our community. As a senior JD helped organize and run it.”

Asked by the DesNews what motivates him to be of service in his community, Keyes responded, “I owe a lot to my family. They have taught me everything I know. I truly believe it is because of them I have a desire to help people.

“As a kid who grew up loving superheroes, I put my mother and father in that category. They would do whatever it took. They taught me to love and care for my younger siblings. Eventually that grew into helping anyone I could and I truly love serving others.”

For nearly a century, the Deseret News has highlighted the outstanding accomplishments of high school football players in Utah with the publication of all-state teams in each classification.

This year, the publication expanded its postseason awards to highlight the incredible accomplishments of student athletes off the field with the inaugural Humanitarian of the Year award.

The award highlights outstanding student athlete citizens who go above and beyond every day to make a difference in their school and community through a variety of different means.

Coaches in each classification were asked to nominate players from their team, and nominees were voted on by coaches throughout the state.

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