Whether he realizes it or not, Blake Campbell has become a pioneer of sorts.

A senior at Palmerton Area High School, Campbell recently received a DAR Good Citizen Award.The award is given to outstanding high school seniors for their contributions to their communities and schools.This was the first time Palmerton entered the competition. Campbell scored the highest amount of points on the required essay on how to be a good citizen.Campbell's essay went on to the state competition, where he received an honorable mention. Criteria for judging were dependability, service, patriotism and leadership, the national DAR requirements.In order to earn the accolade, Campbell had to write a timed essay, fill out an application paper, and submit an outline of his extracurricular activities and community involvement."The essay was about patriotism," Campbell said. "I approached it from the perspective that the various cultural and ethnic backgrounds of the American people make us unique and enhance our American identify."All told, there were nine winners from area schools in the competition, which included Northern Lehigh, Northwestern Lehigh, and Dieruff.Campbell said he was especially excited to find that he made it to the state level."I was the only one selected for the award in my class, and I knew it would be a great honor to receive it," he said. "I was thrilled; I I felt like my hard work had been rewarded."Campbell said he felt a sense of exhilaration after he won the award."I was chosen to receive this award because I'm a hard-working student," he said. "I also take part in a lot of extracurricular activities and try to see situations in new ways."Above all else, Campbell said he gained confidence, and was able to meet some really great and interesting people, through his participation in the competition."It was very encouraging to receive such a great honor," he said. "In general, though, I got a lot of enjoyment from seeing my hard work pay off."More commonly referred to as DAR, Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage society that is a nonprofit, 501 (c) (3) charitable organization dedicated to patriotism, historic preservation and education.