On January 22nd, the essays for the Optimist Club Essay Contest were due to Essay Contest Chairman, Stacey Timmerman. This year’s essay contest was sponsored by Optimist International and our North Augusta Optimist Club, and the essay prompt was “Reaching your Dreams by Choosing Optimism.” All students under the age of nineteen were eligible to participate. The winner of the North Augusta essay contest will be awarded with a medallion and a cash prize and will be entered into the District Contest. Second and third place winners also receive a cash prize. The District Contest includes all other South Carolina entries. If you win the District Contest, you will be awarded a plaque and a $2,500 college scholarship. Both Fox Creek High School and North Augusta High School have had winners in the District Contest in the past, and senior Emily Hammerberg won on the local level last year.
The sponsor of the contest is Optimist International. According to their website, “Optimist International is a worldwide volunteer organization made up of more than 2,500 local Clubs whose Members work each day to make the future brighter by bringing out the best in children, in their communities, and in themselves.” North Augusta Optimist Club is one of the local clubs, and their main goal is to help and support North Augusta’s children and teens. Along with hosting the Essay Contest, North Augusta Optimist Club also holds pancake breakfasts and Christmas tree sales.
Last year’s prompt that Emily Hammerberg had to write about was “Is Optimism the Key to Success?”. Hammerberg described her essay saying, “I wrote in favor of this statement and said that it was. I wrote about fixed versus growth mindsets in relation to how Michael Jordan was rejected from his high school basketball team and would stay up all night practicing and stayed optimistic. And look where he is now! I also wrote about Taylor Duncan, an autistic man who was not allowed to join any baseball teams who then went on to make an all-inclusive national baseball team for those with disabilities. I finished with writing about hiker Aron Ralston, a hiker who was trapped and crushed by a boulder for several days until he eventually amputated his own arm to escape.” Her essay won her $100, and she said that the experience introduced her to many amazing stories and even changed her opinion on the power of optimism.
Good luck to all North Augusta students who submitted their essays!
Picture by: Ann Marie Partl
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