The Lafayette Public Library has announced the winners of the 21st annual Writes of Spring Writing Contest.
This year, the Writes of Spring received 245 student entries, officials say.
The contest was open to students in grades K-12 who reside in Lafayette Parish or in the surrounding parishes: Acadia, Iberia, St. Landry, St. Martin, and Vermilion. Students submitted their own original unpublished work (in English, French, Mandarin Chinese, or Spanish) in one of the following genres:
• Poetry (1-3 poems, 100 lines total)
• Fiction (K-6 graders: max 750 words; 7-12 graders: max 1,500 words)
• Personal Narrative (K-6 graders: max 750 words; 7-12 graders: max 1,500 words)
He are the winners:
Elementary School Fiction [Kindergarten, First, and Second Grades] First place: Alice Martin, “Finding a Unicorn” (St. Pius Elementary) Second place: Mason Richard, “The Big War” (St. Pius Elementary) Third place: Colette Bourque, “Snail vs. Frog” (Cathedral-Carmel School) Personal Narrative [Kindergarten, First, and Second Grades] First place: Sutton Gardner, “A Day at the Boardwalk” (Cathedral-Carmel School) Second place: Wyatt Roth, “My Trip to Costa Rica” (St. Pius Elementary) Third place: Amelia Allain, “My 7th Birthday” (Woodvale Elementary) Poetry [Kindergarten, First, and Second Grades] First place: Rozi Olivier, “Born on the Bayou" (Episcopal School of Acadiana) Second place: Cecilia McCormick, “Spring Blessings” (Episcopal School of Acadiana) Third place: Kate Toups, "My Childhood” (Martial Billeaud Elementary) Fiction [Third and Fourth Grades] First place: Jeffrey Lowry, "Maddie and Olive” (Cathedral-Carmel School) Second place: Luna Bowles, "The Waterfall” (Academy of the Sacred Heart) Third place: Liam Taylor, "Wild Safari Ride” (Teche Elementary) Personal Narrative [Third and Fourth Grades] First place: Elizabeth Hollier, "Crooked Stick, Straight Line” (Cathedral-Carmel School) Second place: Karmyn Babineaux, "Teche Fest” (Teche Elementary) Third place: Cate Casbon, “Birthday Biloxi Trip” (Cathedral-Carmel School) Poetry [Third and Fourth Grades] First place: Catherine Powell, “A Ghost Like Me” (Martial Billeaud Elementary) Second place: Adelyn Guillory, “Nature Heals” (Martial Billeaud Elementary) Third place: Lily LeBlanc, "The Ocean” (Sts. Leo-Seton Catholic School) French Fiction [Third and Fourth Grades] First place: Amelie Broussard, "La Louisiane” (Prairie Elementary)
Here's the photo from the upper grades presentation:
Middle School Fiction [Fifth and Sixth Grades] First place: Abdul-Hadi Mohammad, “Reflections” (Middlebrook Elementary) Second place: Sophie Wilson, “Syrens” (Episcopal School of Acadiana) Third place: Sophie Courville, “Vending Machine of Love” (Ascension Episcopal School) Personal Narrative [Fifth and Sixth Grades] First place: Sharada Kulkarni, “Houston Again” (Middlebrook Elementary School) Second place: Kylie Lagrange, “Zipping Through the Sky” (St. Pius X) Third place: Andrew Naquin, “The Sea Bull” (St. Pius X) Poetry [Fifth and Sixth Grades] First place: Emersen Chen, “Pi” (Episcopal School of Acadiana) Second place: Sophie Leblanc, “Revenge” (Paul Breaux Middle School) Third Place: Nora Manganello, “A Dream” (Episcopal School of Acadiana) Fiction [Seventh and Eighth Grades] First place: Addyson Taylor, “Lesson Learned” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy) Second place: Graycen Daly, “The Unlucky” (Ascension Episcopal School) Third place: Jerusha Johnson, “Sandman” (Homeschool) Personal Narrative [Seventh and Eighth Grades] First place: Grace Schwarz, “Remember” (Episcopal School of Acadiana) Poetry [Seventh and Eighth Grades] First place: Olivia Christich, “A Lesson Learned” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy) Second place: Madison Frazier, “Imaginary Life” (J.H. Williams Middle School) Third place: Kaylee Borel, “Clouds” (David Thibodeaux STEM Magnet Academy) High School Fiction [Ninth and Tenth Grades] First place: Marc Canter, “Why We Moved” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy) Second place: Spencer Howat, “The Dawning” (Ascension Episcopal School) Third place: Naomi Cuccio, “The House” (North Vermilion High School) Poetry [Ninth and Tenth Grades] First place: Trinity Dugar, “The Definition of the Word: Black” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy) Second place: Virginia Chirdon, “Hellfire” (Lafayette High School) Third place: Jenny Forest, “Anatomy of Love” (Teurlings Catholic High School) French Fiction [Ninth and Tenth Grades] First place: Annamarie Buxton, “Le requin et le petit poisson” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Second place: Isabella Congtang, “Le chien et le chat” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Third place: Spencer Furby, "Les Loups et le Renard” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) French Personal Narrative [Ninth and Tenth Grades] First place: Alexander Benton, “Un dîner amuse en Parée” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) French Poetry [Ninth and Tenth Grades] First place: Nicholas Blanchard, “Beau Paris” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Second place: Amielle Courville, “l'eau d'amour” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Third place: Reagan Barrios, “Les Vagues” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Spanish Poetry [Ninth and Tenth Grades] First place: Annette Rideau, “Que es todo?” (Opelousas High School School) Second place: Mya Lafanette, “Que es el amor?” (Opelousas High School School) Fiction [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Thomas Kovarik, “A Letter Found in the Sand” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy) Second place: Gracie Fontenot, “Peace of Mind” (Teurlings Catholic High School)) Third place: Ana Guilbeau, "Day in the Life of a Door” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Personal Narrative [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Aylin Yigiter, “FOCUS on the Perspective” (St. Thomas More Catholic High School) Second place: Abigail Inzerella, “From Falling to Flying” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Third place: Hutch Swilley, “Touchdown Miracle” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Poetry [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Chloe Ste. Marie, “Crepe Myrtle” (Ascension Episcopal School) Second place: Mary Thompson, “Silver” (Teurlings Catholic High School) Third place: Lily Bedenbaugh, “Where is She Now?” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) French Fiction [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Addison Romero, “Le dragon et la princesse” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) French Personal Narrative [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Noah Darby, “Au revoir, mon enfance” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) French Poetry [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Morgan Sellers, “Une mauvaise ruptue” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Second place: Brinnslee Picard, “Mon Premier Championnat de Foot” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Third place: Lilly Maestri, “La culture de la Louisiane” (St. Thomas More Catholic High) Spanish Fiction [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Precius Landry, “Nunca Cambiara” (Opelousas High School) Second place: De'vaun Jordan, “La maldición del campo de maíz” (Opelousas High School) Third place: Jacob Oglive, “Niño Perdido” (Opelousas High School) Spanish Personal Narrative [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Maya Jackson, “Mascarilla Puesta” (Opelousas High School) Second place: Mckenzie Galentine, “Cuando vives en el gris” (Opelousas High School) Spanish Poetry [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades] First place: Micah Thurman, “Bloque de aspecto extraño” (Opelousas High School) Second place: Cassandra Vazquez, “El diente de leon” (Opelousas High School) An anthology has been printed featuring the works of all 2023 winners.
Students whose work was selected were honored on Saturday, May 6 at an awards ceremony at the Main Library. Those unable to attend the awards ceremony may now pick up their anthology as well as an official certificate in the Youth Services Department of the Main Library.
