For teenager Lauren Maunus, 14, the YMCA’s Youth in Government program gave her the opportunity to make life better for her severely allergic sister Rachel, 11, and all other Florida students affected by food allergies. While attending the Florida Youth Legislature State Assembly,

Lauren, a student at South Fork High School in Stuart, drafted a bill that would require schools to post ingredient lists in cafeterias highlighting the most high-risk ingredients: milk, wheat, tree nuts, peanuts, eggs, fish and shellfish.

Lauren Maunus, 14, left, and her sister Rachel, 11, who has severe food allergies, serve seniors at a fundraising event. (Photo by AMY SMITH, TCPalm.com)