This year’s contest had over 25 entries from children and teens in Westfield. They ranged from haikus to villanelles, limericks to sonnets. The subject matter was just as diverse from chicken nuggets to flowers, grief to happiness. Though this year, it seemed the young people of Westfield were focused on one particular subject: the ocean. There were five poems about the ocean. We are all looking forward to the summer time!
The Youth Poetry Contest was broken up into grade groups. We had the Intermediate group which consisted of 4th, 5th, and 6th graders. Next, the Middle School group of 7th and 8th graders. Finally, we had the High School group featuring 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. All of the poems were judged blindly on a scale of 1-10 by a panel of five Westfield Athenaeum Librarians.
Now on to the winners!
The Intermediate group:
First Place: “Tomorrow’s cloak of sorrow” by Noah Gaffney
Second Place: “Myrtle the Sea Turtle” by Anthony Beluzo
Second Place: “I Am Kind and Gloomy” by Kylah Traska
Third Place: “The Library” by Gianna Beluzo
The Middle School group
First Place: “Ocean Memory” by Sophia Bazukin
Second Place: “How I wish to see y’all again” by Goodness Odonewkway
Third Place: “Flower Garden” by Shannon King
The High School group:
First Place: “iridescent” by Griffin Parrow
Second Place: “More than a woman” by Alicia Rossi
Third Place: “Oh What a Shame It Is” by Katie Rabtor
Congratulations to our winners! And to all those who participated. It takes a lot of courage to submit your writing for strangers to read. Please continue to write, you’ll only get better with time! For all our youth writers, keep an eye out for our Short Story Contest starting on July 1, 2021.
