Published: May 12, 2008 11:30 am            

Reading Rainbow awards given out

Listen To The Story

Staff Report

The annual Reading Rainbow award presentation ceremony was held recently at Cedarhurst Center for the Arts in Mt. Vernon.

Open to children from kindergarten through third grade, The Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators Contest encourages children to write and illustrate their own stories. Last year 45,000 children submitted stories nationwide with nearly 300 students participating in the local contest. Cedarhurst Center for the Arts is a partner with WSIU Public Television of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in the presentation of The Reading Rainbow awards. The exhibition is sponsored by Beck Bus Transportation Corp. and cosponsored by The Southern Illinoisan.

Beth Spezia of WSIU Broadcasting commented that this year's entries were some of the best entries she has judged. “Each year the task of choosing award winners gets more difficult as the storylines and illustrations seem to get more interesting each year,” Spezia commented.

The following students were presented first place and honorable mention awards: first place, kindergarten — Jonah Wiggins of Murray, Ky.; honorable mention, kindergarten — Camryn Danielle Parker of McLeansboro; first place, first grade — Ryan Jurich of Herrin; honorable mention, first grade — Taewon Kim of Carbondale; first place, second grade — Brent Harris of Radom; honorable mention, second grade — Jared Greer of Makanda; first place, third grade — Aidan Anthony of Carbondale; honorable mention, third grade — William Conner Beasley of Marion. The eight award recipients received colorful Reading Rainbow backpacks.

The following students were also recognized, and presented certificates, as authors of the “Top Highest Scored Entries”: Alex Terrance Barnfield — Geff; Allison Rose Dyer — Mt. Vernon; Amy Harris — Radom; Andrew Masters — Troy; Annibelle Harrison — Mt. Vernon; Betsey Meleg — Troy; Blake Renken — Troy; Brennan Hutson — Altamont; Brook Leigh Dunn — Coulterville; Caleb Holzclaw — Johnston City; Charles Sanders — Carbondale; Elijah Greer — Makanda; Elijah Montgomery — Mt. Vernon; Ethan Murrah — Pittsburg; Gabriela Renee Benyas — Carbondale; Hason Majid — Makanda; Hye Jee Kim — Carbondale; Ian McGhee — Mt. Vernon; Isaiah Barker — Troy; Justin Mace — Eldorado; Kylie Measimer — Carbondale; Lauren Eberhart — Johnston City; Libby Schaefer — Granite City; Macy Sanchez — Benton; Mikala Wiggins — Murray, Ky.; Rachael Niermann — Chester; Reagan Ridgway — Herrin; Savannah Grimes — Dieterich; Shreya Nair — Mt. Vernon; Skylar Freeman — Flora; Tony Lakotich — Johnston City; Trisha Nair — Mt. Vernon.

Located on Richview Road, Mt. Vernon, Cedarhurst is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free and tours are welcome. For more information and to schedule a free docent tour of Cedarhurst, call 242-1236 or visit their Web site at www.cedarhurst.org.

An activity of the John R. and Eleanor R. Mitchell Foundation, this program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency. Support for this program has been provided, in part, by the Schweinfurth Foundation.

        

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