At its April 15, 2026 club meeting, the Seward Rotary Club recognized Seward High School senior, Brianna Potratz, as the February Youth Rotarian of the Month. Brianna is the daughter of Kevin and Janelle Potratz. Youth Rotarians of the Month are selected based on their service, scholarship, leadership, and citizenship efforts during high school. They receive a book scholarship for college and a bag of information about Seward. Monthly Youth Rotarians are also finalists for the Seward Youth Rotarian of the Year award which will be presented at the annual SHS Honors Night.
Brianna demonstrates academic excellence with her 4.0 GPA, membership in National Honor Society, Honor Roll achievements, and 2023 participation in the American Math Competition.
Brianna’s school commitment is demonstrated through her participation in Cross Country, Quiz Bowl, Track and Field, Musical, and Choirs. Notably, she has earned letters in Cross Country and Track, and has also volunteered for track club and Unified Track and Field to support other athletes. She is dedicated to music excellence demonstrated through her ensemble participation in the 2024 and 2025 school musicals and her CUNE Summer Chamber Choir participation the past three summers as well as the CUNE Honor Choir in 2023, Select Choir since 2022, and the National LCMS Youth Gathering Honor Choir in 2025.
Outside of school, Brianna has been involved in other community activities as well including dance since 2013 and her church youth group since 2021.
Brianna has more than 40 hours of community service hours documented. She has helped at the concession stands for various school activities, vacation Bible school, little kids track club, and hallway decoration at school. She has served at the National Guard Museum, the Seward County Historical Museum Society, Concordia University, her church, and a variety of other projects through the Bluejay Way Community Service Day. Brianna says that because of her service, she better appreciates the events she attends because she can “understand how much behind-the-scenes work is needed to make them run smoothly.” She also shared that she believes that “community service is not only about big service projects but also about serving those around me in small ways such as picking up chairs after events or helping clean up trash she sees lying around.”
In addition to her service, academic, and leadership excellence, Brianna has demonstrated and grown her skills through work opportunities in the Seward and surrounding communities through her employment in childcare at Little Learners since 2024, many hours of summer babysitting since 2021, and as a pet sitter.
Brianna plans to study elementary and special education at Concordia University Nebraska following graduation in May 2026.