Alva Courier Unit honors Americanism winners
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[The American Legion Auxiliary Alva Courier Unit #487 honored winners of the Americanism Essay Contest at an awards banquet. Chester students in grades 7 through 12 participated in the recent contest. The students with winning essays, their parents, family members, teachers, administrators and contest judges were invited to the event. A delicious meal of mostacholi, side dishes and dessert was prepared and served by Auxiliary members to over 80 people at the American Legion Hall in Chester. Following the meal, the students read their essays entitled "America's Constitutional Freedoms". Monetary awards were presented and each student also received a Certificate of Achievement, flag decal, Presidents' ruler, small American Flag and bookmark. The creative essays expressed how "America's Constitutional Freedoms" impacted each student and the lives of Americans.
The American Legion Auxiliary annually sponsors the Americanism Essay Contest to encourage creative writing and to aid in teaching Good Citizenship and Americanism. The contest is divided into three classes for students in 7th-8th grades, 9th-10th grades and 11th -12th grades. Staff members from Chester Grade School, St. Mary's Catholic School, St. John Lutheran School, CHEST Home School, and Chester High School cooperated by having their students participate in this essay project. Over 220 essays were submitted to Americanism Chairman Carolyn Schwent and the essays were judged on the basis of content, organization and correct usage. Local retired teachers Emily Lyons, Linda Saunders and Mary Ann Stumpe served as judges. Essays were only identified with numbers for the judging and student names were not revealed. The Auxiliary gave monetary awards for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place essays.
The winners of this year's Americanism Essay Contest include:
Class I - 7 & 8 grades:
Chester Community Grade School
1st place - Cherree Miller (8th) - daughter of Jeremy and Staci Miller
2nd place - Alexzandrea Westbrook (8th) - daughter of Christina Lohman and the late Karl Westbrook
3rd place - Luke Hartman (8th) - son of Vernon and Julie Hartman
St. Mary's Catholic School
1st place - Rachael Niermann (7th) - daughter of Steve and Bernice Niermann
2nd place - Hunter Warhausen (7th) - son of Brad and Jennifer Warhausen
3rd place - Morgan Atchison (7th) - daughter of Tim and Wendy Atchison
St. John Lutheran School
1st Place - Lucas Doiron (8th) - son of Derek and Karen Doiron
2nd Place - Anna Valleroy (8th) - daughter of Mark and Angela Valleroy
3rd Place - Alyse Bollman (8th) - daughter of Tim and Shelley Bollman
Class II - 9 & 10 grades
1st place - Dustin Lilley (9th) - son of Gary and Charnelle Lilley
2nd place -Katherine Kerkhover (9th) - daughter of Ed and Rhonda Kerkhover
3rd place - Matthew Bohnert (10th) - son of Joe and Mary Bohnert
Class III - 11 & 12 grades
1st place - Andrea Wagner (11th) - daughter of Bryan Wagner and the late Karen Wagner
2nd place - Chris Dudenbostel (12th) - son of Randy and Debbie Dudenbostel
3rd place - Eddie Kerkhover (11th) - son of Ed and Rhonda Kerkhover
The First Place essays of Lucas Doiron, Dustin Lilley and Andrea Wagner advanced for competition at the Auxiliary District level.
Alva Courier members and Americanism Chairman Carolyn Schwent wish to thank all the students for their creative efforts, the local teachers for their guidance and cooperation, the families for encouraging the students and attending the event, and the judges for their hours of careful consideration. The Auxiliary Unit is proud to sponsor this annual event to honor outstanding students and will continue support of educational activities in the local schools and community.