Student essays show dreams, goals
Elizabeth Peterson reads her first-place career contest essay as nurse Debbie Hill (left) and senior Kyleigh Gamez (right), who worked on the contest for her senior project, look on.
MOSES LAKE - Children dream of big things when they're growing up - being an astronaut or a lawyer, a nurse, a fashion designer, joining the Marines. Students in the fifth through eighth grades were invited to write an essay on their plans for the future, and the winners read their essays at a recent Moses Lake School Board meeting.
Omar Cantu, Xavier Hines and Samuel Otey were the top three in the fourth and fifth grade, and Goziechi Abonyi received an award for the most creative essay. Elizabeth Peterson, Brennan Cleverly and Corina Lybbert were the sixth through eighth grade winners, and Morgan Evans received the most creative essay award.
The contest is sponsored by the school district and the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce, said organizer Melody Jensen. Fourth through eighth graders write about their career goals, and also how they plan to get there.
About 250 students submitted essays, Jensen said.
"What their dream is, we want to encourage that," Jensen said. To do that, Jensen solicits donations of items connected with the kids' chosen careers. "It's always really cool stuff," she said.
Omar Cantu's plan is to join the Marines, and the Corps sent him a cap. Elizabeth Peterson wants to be a hospice nurse, having watched how they cared for her family during her father's fatal illness. The Moses Lake Walmart donated a set of nurse's scrubs.
Brennan Cleverly plans to follow in his parents' footsteps and become a farmer, and received a sign for "Brennan Cleverly Farms." Xavier Hines wants to go into space, and he received materials on an astronaut's career from the Museum of Flight in Seattle.
Big Bend Community College, Staples, the Seattle Art Institute, and Gonzaga University also sent various materials, and students received swim passes from the high school.
In addition to the winners, essay judges announced the next 20 top submissions. They were Madison Krough, Kendyl Crum, Daniela Valdivia, Ben Gultay, Diana Babak, Chloe Jones, Conrad Johnson, Maddy Atnip, Helen Kincaid, Kristin Vega, William Ent. Taya Rogers, Heidi Vega, Joshika Suresh, Yesenia Villanueva, Abby Steffler, Jaidyn Backus, Yomara Figueroa, Jonathan Tanguma and Wayne Blanchard.