Fajgenbaum's mother, Anne Marie, died of a brain tumor in 2004. A few days before her death, he promised her he would help students who also suffered with a sick loved one.

The Ravenscroft High School grad has done that and more. Fajgenbaum, now a junior at Georgetown University, created Students of Ailing Mothers and Fathers last year. The group offers support to students who are dealing with a sick or deceased loved one. That group grew into Students of AMF Angels, in which Georgetown faculty are paired with students to offer adult support.

Another arm of the organization is Students of AMF Involved in Nearby Teen Support or SAINTS. This group pairs college students with teenagers in the Washington, D.C., area.

A football player and pre-med honor student, Fajgenbaum sacrifices sleep to do the work needed to spread the word about the organization and its importance. He said many college students are at loss when it comes to finding support for their situation on campus.

"It's a very different and unusual time in college. Unless you tell someone, no one knows what you're going through," said Fajgenbaum, 21. "It's not the kind of conversation that kids discuss, and they suffer in silence."

Two weeks ago, he received the Lena Landegger Community Service Award, which comes with a $2,500 award. He also won the 2006 Lisa J. Raines Summer Scholar Award. The summer scholar is given a $5,000 research grant.

Fajgenbaum is planning to use the money to research the support groups of other colleges. The organization was also awarded two grants from UNC to turn AMF into a nonprofit and to continue research.

"I'm obviously very honored to get an award; it's a tremendous honor, but I didn't think you were supposed to get an award for community service," he said.

Fajgenbaum and his former Ravenscroft buddy Ben Chesson are working on helping schools across the country start chapters. There is already a chapter of Students of AMF at Chesson's school, UNC-Chapel Hill.

Fajgenbaum knows about struggling with a loved one's illness while trying to deal with college. His mother was diagnosed with cancer two weeks before his freshman year.

In January 2005, Fajgenbaum held a Bootcamp for Brain Cancer fund-raiser at Lake Lynn, raising more than $7,000 for the National Brain Tumor Foundation, a non-profit organization that helps brain tumor patients and their families.

Fajgenbaum is planning another fund-raiser on May 20 at Lake Lynn Park. The event includes a 5K run and fun walk and fitness activities. He's also sponsoring an AMF fund-raiser banquet on May 21 at the North Ridge Country Club on Falls of the Neuse Road.

"I'm totally amazed at what he's done," said Fajgenbaum's dad, David, an orthopedic surgeon in Raleigh. "He's doing exactly what his mom wanted him to do. Anne Marie was such a positive person and David has got that gene."

Fajgenbaum hopes the organization will one day offer scholarships.

"I want AMF to be able to help students all over the country to get the help they need," he said.

On Mother's Day, he and his family will go to St. Raphael Church, where his mom's ashes are buried.

"I feel so connected when I am there," he said. "A few weeks before she passed away she was so strong and was never sad. It was incredible. The promise I made to my mom keeps me going every day."