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Students Produce Inspiring Essays for America & Me Contest

Eagle Creek Academy student Samantha Rondeau won first place in the local competition. Her essay is included in the article.

Three students from Eagle Creek Academy in Oakland Township have been named local winners in the 43rd annual America & Me Essay Contest, sponsored by Farm Bureau Insurance.

The three students, who earned the first-, second- and third-place awards for their school, are Samantha Rondeau, Andrew Abela and Alex O’Donnell respectively. All three received an award certificate for their achievements. As the school’s first-place winner, Samantha’s name was also engraved on a plaque for permanent display in the school.

Several thousand eighth-grade students from more than 400 Michigan schools participated in the 2011-2012 contest. The contest encourages Michigan youngsters to explore the greatness of America and its people. The topic of this year’s contest was “My Personal Michigan Hero.” 

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Samantha’s first-place essay now advances to the state level competition, from which the top 10 essays in Michigan will be selected. The authors of the top 10 essays will receive a cash award of $1,000 and will be honored at a banquet later this year. 

This is the essay Samantha wrote and entered into the competition:

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How I think of it, everybody gives you something to hold on to. I admire a little bit of something from everybody. Whether its sports, school, arts, or anything, everybody is smart. Every person has talent, one person in particular has helped me realize this, and every day I am learning.

As we all know, we’re all different. But have you ever thought in depth about that? For someone who is older but, not as intelligent as someone younger, I imagine it must be tough for him to complete schoolwork every day. He works ten times harder than everyone else. Sometimes, a person who is smarter doesn’t always know what it’s like. The person that is my hero is in love with a sport that is challenging and takes skill. We all support him, and I know he loves when he gets to play. After each practice, he comes home and works really hard on homework. Helping him is a good solution, but so is being patient. I think the best thing about him is that he keeps trying.

There are other cool things about him. He loves music and is an amazing singer. He practically knows all songs and all the lyrics. Almost every day he lays on his bed listening to music. He says it’s what calms him down. When he seems mad I may ask and he’ll tell me, other times he’ll stay quiet and say he’s fine. Acting is also something he’s very good at. I remember one time I asked him, ‘Does it ever bother you how people only ask you about football?’ He responded, ‘Yah, it really does because there’s more to me than my just my athletic skills.’ That is when I understood the reason he is quiet sometimes. It’s because he’s thinking. He is a very good observer and at understanding people. I like how when he has a thought, he won’t always say it.  I think he wants people to figure it out. Many times I think this is cool, other times I want to hear what he has to say. Like one time, I remember we were playing ping pong and we were talking about a time in the summer when our brother wanted to do one activity and then a different one. My hero didn’t state how he thought our brother always wants attention, because the way he ended by saying,”Oh, never mind,” and I knew that he meant we would do it our brother’s way. There to say, he is a caring person.

We have to learn that there are people in this world who will stay with us forever. They will be with us forever. No matter how different every person is, we should accept everyone for who they are or what they do. Especially, family members because they are ones we should love. That is why my personal Michigan hero is my special, forever older brother, Jim. 

Note: This announcement and essay was sent to the Oakland Township Patch by Eagle Creek Academy.

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