Shonnetta Henry, 18, is the 2008 Boys & Girls Clubs of America National Youth of the Year.

When she was a child, the odds were stacked against her. Shonnetta Henry grew up poor and fast. Her single mother struggled to raise three kids while her dad was in jail, but Shonnetta was still determined to win big.

Shonnetta joined the local Boys & Girls club not as a passive participant, but as a leader. She mentored and tutored younger kids, organized community service projects like National Youth Service Day, and created the poetry and spoken word outreach program, Ink about It.

As the 2008 Boys & Girls Club of America National Youth of the Year, Shonnetta, now 18, has taken herself from the crapshoot of poverty in Denver to the Oval Office to meet President Bush and visit the offices of both presidential candidates to discuss youth issues. As National Youth of the Year, she'll tour the U.S. and the world as an example to youth about what they can achieve. On top of that, she won a big scholarship that allowed her to start her studies at the University of New Mexico.

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Melissa Urfirer, 17, started Shoot For Success to help kids at a homeless shelter learn to express themselves.

When kids experience tragedy, they don’t express themselves as easily as adults do. Seventeen-year-old Melissa Urfirer saw that when she taught poetry at a local homeless shelter. Some kids didn’t take to it very easily, but their feelings were brought out when Melissa brought out disposable cameras.

The kids eagerly captured the scenes of their lives, writing quick cathartic captions about what they saw. Melissa saw the shots as art. She also saw how the photos represented their ability to dream.

That marked the beginning of a program Melissa started during her freshman year of high school called Shoot For Success. The images have since been published in a book, “As I See It…” and some of the photos have been displayed in museums and galleries around New York. The organization has received a prestigious grant that allows it to offer scholarships to some of the kids who contribute, really allowing them to aim for success in life.

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Julian Adler, 13, started From My Hood to Your Hood to give sweatshirts to hurricane victims.

When we look at major disasters like hurricanes in the United States, many of us think, “My goodness, how can I help?” In many cases, everything is needed, starting with basics like soap and food. And really, we all have something we could part with, right?

Julian Adler looked at Katrina and then looked into his closet. He saw the devastation and a way he could help. Julian is 13, an age many Jewish kids celebrate their Bat or Bar Mitzvah. In his neighborhood, they observe a custom where sweatshirts are given out as party favors. Some kids can end up with as many as 100 hoodies! Julian knew they didn’t need all of them, but knew that the victims of the hurricane did.

He started From My Hood to Your Hood, donating sweatshirts to youngsters who lost everything. He then applied for charitable shipping with FedEx and got it. Now he’s thinking of how he can help the ‘hoods effected by Gustav.

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Christian Siriano, 22, is the youngest winner of 'Project Runway'.

Yup, we know he’s “fierce”. As the youngest winner in “Project Runway” history, Christian Siriano both embodies it and has inserted the word into our pop culture lexicon.

At 22, Siriano’s winnings equipped him with $100,000 seed money, a new car (you can imagine what he calls it), a spread in Elle magazine and the opportunity to sell his line on bluefly.com. Beating out people twice his age, he rightly deserves the “fashion prodigy” label. His ripe ambition as a teenager took him to the Baltimore School for the Arts and the American Intercontinental University in London to study fashion design, after which he worked with the likes of Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen.

Despite the recent whirlwind of attention, including a "you’ve made it" spoof on Saturday Night Live, Siriano says he’s humbled by the buzz. He doesn’t take for granted the fact that he had no job or no money just months ago. Now that he’s made obvious the word critics use to describe his first show to debut in New York during Spring Fashion Week, he’s working on the collection.

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Charlie Smith, 24, is president of the College Republican National Committee.

Twenty-four-year-old Charlie Smith will speak at the GOP's national convention alongside some of the most powerful Republican leaders in the United States. As of a week ago, he told us he was still working on his speech. “When they called me and told me it would be in prime-time on Thursday, I was surprised. But I think my message is simple for young people,” he says.

As the president of the College Republican National Committee, Charlie mobilizes conservative students across the country. With many of his friends serving overseas, he thinks one of the biggest issues this election cycle is national security. In fact, Charlie was compelled into his role after watching media coverage of 9/11.

Charlie isn’t sure if politics is in his future. For now, he likes pulling the strings from behind the scenes for a young constituency that people assume vote the other way. Oh, and still has to get to St. Paul for the convention. He's driving with a group of students who have gone cross-country only driving in "red" districts. Alas, Charlie won't be renting the car, because he's not old enough.

Update: Watch the CNN.com Live interview