STRATFORD - The Stratford Library Teen Department, in collaboration with South End Community Center, recently awarded prizes for winners of the 4th Annual Black History Month Essay Contest.
The celebration "was a special event in conjunction with the nationwide observation of “Black History Month,” organizers said in a statement.
About 200 essays and pieces of artwork were submited to the contest. Contributors included children and teens from St. James, Wooster and Flood Middle schools and Wilcoxson and Stratford Academy elementary schools, organizers said.
The program featured guest speaker and Stratford High School student Esther Jean-Marie, who gave a power-point presentation about her summer in Mali with the SHS BuildOn project.
The Library's Youth Review Board also reviewed books about notable African-Americans at the event.
Among the Middle School winners were: 1st Place: Emma Sullivan, 2nd Place: Jerry Dinan (both Wooster); and 3rd Place: Cora Barber (St. James).
Honorable Mentions were awarded to Kalea Coles (Wooster), Kyle Souza (St. James) and Justin Cruz and Monica Gorton (Flood). In the K-6 category, Kaitlyn Page (Wilcoxson) took 1st place and honorable mentions went to Kevin Perillo and Zachary Dillon, both from Stratford Academy.
In the photo, l to r, are Cora Barer, Emma Sullivan, Kalea Coles, Jerry Dinan, Justin Cruz, Monica Gorton and Kyle Souza