Thirty color guards from around the state competed at the Pine Belt Arena on the Toms River North campus Saturday. Among the eight classes -- Middle School, Independent, Scholastic and World -- the color guards came to compete throughout the day. This event was sponsored by the booster organizations of Toms River High Schools East and North Marching Bands. More than 300 spectators cheered on their favorite color guards. The Barnegat High School Guard dedicated thier show " A Letter To You" to Billy Gross, a 16 year old boy with stage four cancer, and all the loved ones who have suffered with …

Name: Amanda DeMauro, 18, Manchester School: Manchester Township High School Accomplishment: Amanda is an avid bowler. She finished first place in the 2009-2010 N.J. Junior Gold Sport Travel League Girls Division, won the 2010 Shore Conference A South high series after bowling a 724, and helped lead the Hawks to the 2009 NJSIAA Group II state title. Key to Awesomeness: Amanda credits her success to sportsmanship and uses what she learns at the lanes in her everyday life. She has maintained a 3.92 GPA and recently signed a letter of intent to play on Monmouth University’s bowling team next …

Name: Gavin Rozzi, Forked River School: Lacey Township Middle School Accomplishment: Gavin may get straight A’s, be in all honors classes, and a member of the Student Council and the track team but he is also a young entrepreneur, successfully running his own computer repair company. “Gavin Rozzi Computer Repair” has been profitable, and he has made several thousand dollars to date. Key to Awesomeness: Gavin taught himself everything there is to know about computers and began his business at the age of 12. He repairs computers that were unable to be repaired at well-known establishments, …

Name: Madison Cummins, 9, Belmar School: St. Rose Grammar School Accomplishment: Madison is the youngest black belt in her karate school, Full Circle DoJang Tae Kwon Do Academy in Wanamassa, as she became a first-degree decided black belt at the age of 8. She has won over 20 tournaments and recently competed in the Mercer County National Karate Championships at Rider University in Lawrenceville. Madison placed first in Kata, first in Point Sparring, and won the Grand Championship round. She is currently a member of her karate school’s Demo team and is training to become a karate instructor. …

Name: Erin McGuire, 17, Lacey Township School: Lacey Township High School Accomplishment: Erin is ranked in the top 2 percent of her class with a grade point average of 4.66. She is a two-year member of the National Honor Society and has been on the high honor roll throughout her time at Lacey Township High School. Her SAT scores also exceed the 1,400 mark in math and critical reading. Key to Awesomeness: Erin is well rounded, selfless, and humble, Principal Will Zylinski said. Erin is a member of the gymnastics and track teams and has been awarded for her academic excellence as a varsity …

Name: Thomas Vacca, 12, Manchester School: Manchester Middle School Accomplishment: Thomas made the Principal's Honor Roll two marking periods in a row. Key to Awesomeness: Thomas is in the Manchester Middle School Honors Program and has been on the Principal's Honor Roll multiple times. He also participates in cross-country track and little league baseball. Thomas is an avid gamer and is a member of the middle school band where he plays the saxophone and is learning keyboard. NOMINATE A WHIZ KID Know a great kid who made Eagle Scout or helped your local soccer team win the championship? They…

Name:  Giana DiMicco, 17, Lacey Township School:  Lacey Township High School Accomplishment:  Giana is a four-time varsity letter winner of Lacey Township High School’s Coed Cheerleading Team. She made varsity as a sophomore and was Co-Captain her junior year and Captain her senior year. Giana competed with the cheerleading team at the Elite Coed Competition, placing third in the nation. She was named National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) All-American Cheerleader for four years and Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) All-American Cheerleader for three years. This year, Giana was chosen…

Name:  Joey Cole, 14, Toms River Township School:  Toms River Intermediate North School, Grade 8 Accomplishment:  Joey won his school Spelling Bee and continued on to compete in the Asbury Park Press Spelldown. Key to Awesomeness:  Joey competed in the Asbury Park Press Spelldown securing a slot in the top 18 out of 99 other participants. Along with being a great speller, Joey is a well-rounded student receiving both High Honor Roll and Student of the Month at his school. Joey’s extracurricular interests include singing and acting which led him to star in the school play two years in a row. …

THIS WEEK’S SPOTLIGHT: ○     Name: Nicole Cafiero, 17, Lacey Township ○     Accomplishment: Nicole cheered for the high school football team for four years and is the captain of the COED Cheer team, which placed third in the nation in 2011. Aside from athletics, Nicole has maintained honor roll every marking period. ○     Key to Awesomeness: Nicole is also very involved in volunteer work. She helps coach Pop Warner Cheerleading, volunteers at cheer clinics, and mentors the Lacey Middle School cheerleaders. Nicole has taken college courses at Ocean County College and plans to attend Richard …

THIS WEEK'S SPOTLIGHT: ○      Name: Chris Hartley, 14, Manchester ○      School: Manchester Township Middle School ○      Accomplishment: Chris is a wrestler and says he has a lot of willpower on the mat. “When I’m in the circle, I become a different person. If you combine that with strength, you have a lethal combination,” he said. ○      Key to Awesomeness: Chris hopes to attend M.A.T.E.S Academy and would like to pursue a career in the medical field.   NOMINATE A WHIZ KID Know a great kid who made Eagle Scout or helped your local soccer team win  the championship? They may be our next …

THIS WEEK'S SPOTLIGHT: ○      Name: Holly Miller, 17, Howell Township ○      School: Howell High School ○      Accomplishment: Holly has been performing gymnastics since she was 2 years old and competing since she was 9. She's been on the varsity squad and is captain for her senior year. ○      Key to Awesomeness: She also is part of A.D.A.P.T., which is a club at Howell High School that educates students on the dangers of alcohol and drugs. She's been the captain of her Relay for Life team over the past two years and she was inducted into the National Honors Society as a junior. She was …