Winners of the Sertoma Club of Broad Ripple 2018-2019 National Heritage Essay Contest

The Sertoma Club of Broad Ripple has sponsored the National Heritage Essay Contest for 38 years. The contest is open to sixth grade students in public, private and parochial schools in the Greater Indianapolis area. The topic students were asked to address in their essays was "What Freedom Means to Me."

Sertoma believes that participation in the National Heritage Essay Contest encourages students to better understand the founding principles of our country and to consider how those principles affect their lives today.

This year, 19 schools totaling 84 classrooms submitted essays, with over 2,100 essays written. From these essays, 17 finalists were identified for consideration as one of the three Grand Prize winners and one Honorable Mention.

The students, parents, relatives, teachers and principals attended a special luncheon hosted by the Sertoma Club of Broad Ripple during which the Grand Prize winners read their essays and were presented with plaques, copies of the Constitution and The Bill of Rights, as well as monetary awards.

The Grand Prize winners selected were:

First Place Prize Winner - Grace Barnes, Creekside Middle School. Teacher - Amy Stuck

Second Place Prize Winner - Beatriz Lacerda, Creekside Middle School. Teacher - Amy Stuck

Third Place Prize Winner - Thalia Fecher Birdas, St. Richard's Episcopal School. Teacher - Andrea Neal

Honorable Mention Prize Winner - Claire Wilmore, The Orchard School. Teacher - Justin Burris