Local students awarded by Dripping Springs VFW

The Dripping Springs VFW has encouraged students to participate in the Patriot's Pen and the Voice of Democracy contest for many years. This year there were a handful of participants, most of which competed in the 6th-8th grade Patriot's Pen competition.

The Patriot’s Pen is a nationwide, VFWsponsored youth essay competition (between 300 to 400 words), and the 2020-2021 theme was, "What is patriotism to me?" In the local competition, students Gracie Oldham and Emily Shelton tied for second place. They received a medal, certificate and evenly split the second and third place money as a reward. The first place winner of the local Patriot’s Pen contest was Jackson Oldham. He, too, received a certificate and a medal, as well as the first place award money.

The Voice of Democracy contest is a more advanced competition for 9th-12th grade students. Students participating were required to make a recorded essay, which means they would need to write and record themselves, presenting a five to six-minute essay. The winner of this year's local Voice of Democracy contest was Connor Nauert. He was awarded a certificate and prize money as well.

Nauert's required theme was, "Is this the Country the Founders Envisioned?" When asked about what side he chose to write on, Nauert said, "I really wanted to talk about both sides of the arguments--how a lot of things happening now are not what they wanted and how a lot of things were."

These contests are a way the VFW can give back to the community. Moreover, these awards are also a way for students to learn more about our nation's veterans and appreciate all they have sacrificed for us.

"I think that it is very important that youngsters in this community appreciate veterans of all shapes and sizes and the sacrifices they made; it is always a wonderful theme," Commander Jerry Martin said," It is a good opportunity for these kids to write or say what the United States means to them. It is a good opportunity for them to express themselves about Americanism because that is important."