Holiday essay contest winners

Assemblymember Ann Carrozza met the five winners of her annual holiday essay contest that is held in the public and private schools in the 26th Assembly District.
Open to students in grades 2 through 6, this year’s theme was Halloween. There was only one winner per grade, making it five winners out of over 500 applicants. All participants received a New York State Assembly Certificate of Merit and the winners were awarded a gift card from Barnes and Noble bookstores.
As Eva Catania, mother of fourth-grader Elise Catania prepared her daughter to meet Carrozza on Thursday, February 8, a great deal of pride shown through her eyes.
“Both my husband Joseph and I were very proud of Elise,” Mrs. Catania explained, “She generally does well in school, but the fact that she was dedicated enough to complete this optional essay on her own shows responsibility and her love of writing.” When asked what inspired Elise to take part in the contest she bashfully replied, “My English teachers Ms. Knepper and Ms. Pandazis in school [the Bay Terrace School, P.S. 169 located at 18-25 212th Street in Bayside]. I also wanted to be a part of the contest because I like writing and I can express my feelings.”
Another lucky winner, third-grader Amanda Kearney was excited for different reasons. “She was very thrilled to have won, we just moved from Bayside about two weeks ago and Amanda was feeling a bit upset,” mother Wanda Kearney explained. Moreover, “When her previous English teacher called and informed us that she won, it was a nice remembrance of Bayside for her.”
Wanda and her husband Patrick watched with smiles as Amanda explained how her love for Halloween triggered her ideas for the essay. “Every time I went trick or treating, I paid attention to everybody’s costumes and got ideas about what to write,” she said.
As the girls stood by Carrozza’s desk while she signed their certificates, it was hard to tell who was more excited, the girls or their families.
Carrozza continues the annual tradition of the holiday essay contest because for her “the essays are both interesting and entertaining.” Carrozza also believes that “it is critically important and increasingly rare for children to have such great writing skills.”