By the second grade, Amanda Stewart had mastered two routines. One was getting herself to school each morning with her teeth brushed, hair combed and lunch packed. The other was finding her mother each day after school, keeping her away from strangers and guiding her safely home.

Stewart’s childhood didn’t fit the mold of neglect. Her mother was present, just not in the way a parent should be, she wrote in her application essay for the Exchange Club of Columbus’ overall Accepting the Challenge of Excellence of the Year Award.

Now a senior at West Lowndes High School, Stewart has come a long way from those early days marked by wrinkled clothes, matted hair and worn-out shoes. As she stepped forward on Thursday at Lion Hills Center to accept the award, Stewart stood tall with a bright smile and long, cascading braids.

“I feel very proud,” Stewart said after the luncheon. “My parents are very proud. I know that my mom is going to be incredibly excited. I’m going to call her, and she’s not going to stop talking about it. I’m just so grateful.”

The A.C.E. Award, presented Thursday at the Exchange Club of Columbus’ annual Youth and A.C.E. Awards Luncheon, recognizes local high school students who have faced and overcome adversities with excellence.

Exchange Club member Anne Marie Higgins read from Stewart’s biography, “By second grade, Amanda had already outgrown her mother, and she felt she was the parent.”

“Amanda’s grandmother helped with bills, got groceries, cooked a couple of times a week, but believed the rest was Amanda’s mother’s job,” Higgins read.

Stewart wrote that her biological mother prayed over her belly while pregnant, hoping she would give birth to a “smart baby.” That intelligence and hard work have carried Stewart far.

Stewart said she prides herself on being one of few students to earn an associate degree from East Mississippi Community College as a high school senior. This fall, she plans to major in radiological sciences at Itawamba Community College with hopes of becoming an MRI technician.

But more than anything, Stewart hopes to provide children the kind of support she once needed.

“Some kids may need help with homework while their parents are at work,” Stewart wrote in her essay. “Others may need a ride to school because their parents’ cars don’t work. I want to provide that. My disadvantages have encouraged me to be the person I needed.”

Marlie Tolleson, a senior at New Hope High School, was also recognized during the luncheon as the overall winner of the Youth of the Year Award. This award honors students who demonstrate academic excellence and a commitment to community service.

In her essay, Tolleson wrote that to make a great impact, a person must do two things: contribute and serve.

Tolleson said she puts those values into practice through her work with her church’s nurseries and youth programs.

“My favorite thing about serving with the younger kids is that I get to help them start their walk with Christ,” Tolleson wrote in her application essay.

Tolleson plans to continue her service this summer as a church camp volunteer in Louisiana. She also lends a hand each year to United Way, wrapping Christmas presents for families in need.

“I’m grateful that I was chosen for this award,” Tolleson said following the ceremony. “It just shows that hard work really does pay off, and others see how hard people are working around them.”

Tolleson plans to attend EMCC in the fall to study nutrition and food sciences.

Six other local students were also honored as award winners at the event.

A.C.E. Award winners included Ryoma Kurosawa of Caledonia High School, Savannah Massey of the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science and Adam Malone of New Hope High School.

Youth of the Year Award recipients included Ramse Jefferson of MSMS, Ella Shepherd of Caledonia High School, Joseph Jackson Wallace of Victory Christian Academy and Braycee Jade Fenster of West Lowndes High School.