Celebrate, sponsor, highlight? Also, promoting is a way for those without badges to 'unlock' other accounts? As in, once you have an unlocked account, you can promote any newcomers without restriction?
Vouch and Sponsor? They seem effective to me,, but are the connotations correct? Are we creating a new-age Fremasonry or The Loyal Order of Water Buffalo? (For those Flintstones fans). To me "highlight" seems closer, not there yet, but is there a way to communicate "This account has demonstrated they are here to add more than they take, or not spam the crap out of us all?"
Of the connotations that can be relayed, I found 'highlight' as the least personable. To escape from guessing intentions in diction, I'm more a fan of 'circledot' or 'wheel' or 'some hubski-esque word without meaning'. Keeps it central to the site and no room for interpretation.... you just circledot them, take know? EDIT: This sound weird, but the more I think about it, why not 'orange'? That's what we all see as our own posts/comments.