Taryn Pream created a brochure on Internet safety that has been distributed nationwide and overseas to schools, families, and law enforcement agencies. After falling victim to Internet harassment and terrorism herself, Taryn decided to turn her negative experience into a positive one by educating other Internet users about how to stay safe.

Taryn, then a student at Lincoln High School, began her project by spending many hours researching and compiling information about Internet safety and use. Then, with the help of a graphic artist friend, Taryn put together a draft of her brochure. She showed it to several community service organizations and received enough donations to print 10,000 copies of her final product, entitled Shut the Door. Most of these were distributed within her own community, but Taryn also sent one to every law enforcement center and school district in Minnesota. Shortly afterward, nearly 70,000 additional copies were delivered to 38 other states and several foreign countries. As a result, Taryn received many requests to speak about Internet safety and her own experience. She explained, “When I hear from other people that they feel better because they learned from my experience, it makes all the work I’ve put into my brochure worthwhile.”
(Thief River Falls, Minnesota: 1998)
Story Courtesy of Prudential Spirit of Community Awards 2000