By Ashley Winterstein

The Laws of Life are the values and ideals that guide the decisions people make every day. These leading principles may vary for each person based on the experiences that influence their life.

The Annual Laws of Life Essay Contest asks middle and high school students across the mid-shore area of the Eastern Shore to write about the principles that are most important to them. Using the Six Pillars of Character (Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship) as a guide, each student is asked to share personal accounts of the experiences that have shaped their young life.

1143 essays were submitted this year from Caroline, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot Counties. One essay was chosen from each participating school and both the student author and teacher of that student received recognition for their time and talent.

Many parents, teachers, and community members gathered at the Awards Celebration at Chesapeake College on March 23, 2011 to honor these 20 winning essays. Also in the audience to show their support were Supervisor of Student Services John Schrecongost, Character Counts! Coordinator Jacki Carter, Kent Island High School Principal Denise Hershberger, Queen Anne’s County High School Principal Conrad Judy, Queen Anne’s County High School teacher Tracy Pritzlaff, Centreville Middle School Principal Jaquelyn Wilhem, Centreville Middle School Teacher Marsha Wilder, Matapeake Middle School Principal Leigh Veditz, Stevensville Middle School Principal Sean Kenna, and Stevensville Middle School Teacher Kelly Sell.

Five deserving students from Queen Anne’s County accepted their awards that evening, including Lilia Torchio from Centreville Middle School, Sharon Wei from Matapeake Middle School, Emma DePanise from Stevensville Middle School, Melissa Crowhurst from Kent Island High School, and Brian Mountain from Queen Anne’s County High School.

This year, the judges recognized two overall Middle and High School Winners and three Honorable Mentions for their inspiring essays. Two Queen Anne’s County students were among these select few. Emma DePanise received an Honorable Mention Award and Melissa Crowhust received one of the overall High School Awards.

Both DePanise and Crowhurst focused their essays around the Character Counts! Pillar of Caring, but used examples from their own life experiences. DePanise shared memories of volunteering alongside her grandparents in a homeless shelter in Baltimore. “I realized that a lot of homeless people probably don’t have a family like I do. I am so lucky to have my health, and people who care about me and support me. I know that all people don’t have the feeling of security that I have,” wrote DePanise in her essay. This experience made her a more compassionate, appreciative, and understanding person.

In her essay, Crowhurst described her experiences visiting a senior center. She met one member who she describes as, “grumpy, stern and unapproachable” but against all odds they became fast friends. Crowhurst spent an entire summer getting to know “Mrs. Ruth” and they enjoyed many conversations, laughs, and reminiscing. In her final days, “Mrs. Ruth” admitted how much she cared for Crowhurst and in her essay, Crowhurst shared how much those words meant to her, “She was a grumpy, elderly woman in a corner but she taught me a lesson. Everyone in life needs someone to care about them. It may be a student who is getting picked on, a friend struggling with a problem, or simply a stranger who could change your life.”

Kathryn Adams from Cambridge-South Dorchester High School was recognized as the as the overall winner and recipient of the $2,500 scholarship in honor of Albert Kennerly and his life-long support of good character.

All five top winners shared their essays aloud with much confidence and poise. Their personal stories demonstrated how good character is guiding the decisions and lives of young people today. The contest and celebration offered them the opportunity to take a positive risk by sharing their own experiences with the public, which is one of the key objectives of the grant to Enforce Underage Drinking Laws, and helped them focus on the positive people and events still shaping their young lives.

The guest speaker, Brian Boyle, also shared his inspirational story about learning how to live again after a near fatal car accident the summer after he graduated from high school. He has since competed and finished multiple Iron Man competitions, despite the severe injuries he experienced in 2004. All 20 students and their teachers received signed copies from Boyle of his book, “Iron Heart.”

Jacki Carter, Coordinator of the Queen Anne’s County Character Counts! Program, feels that, “Each one of our selected students should feel proud of their winning essay. This year was particularly tough to judge due to the caliber of the writing and its related understanding of the pillar message. Thank you to the families, schools and character coaches for your dedication to the character counts message. The community should take notice of the words of our youth and how they were impacted by others in their family and the community. All adults are important role models for our youth. And our youth have a lot to offer our community and the world. It was quite an energizing night.”

The Character Counts! Advisory Council would also like to thank the essay readers from Queen Anne’s County: Cara Gossard, Mary Ruth Meredith, Nancy Roe, Jeff Straight, Kathy Easter, Victoria Homan, Demetrio Beach, Jennifer Stansbury, and Winkie Wilson for taking the time to read and evaluate a portion of the entries. They would also like to thank the teachers for their support of the contest and congratulate this year’s essay winners for their hard work and fantastic essays.

If you would like to read the five winning essays from Queen Anne’s County, please visit www.peopleofcharacter.org for the link! Each week in April, The Bay Times will also print the winning essays for Queen Anne’s County.

For more information about the Laws of Life Essay Contest contact Susan Luby at 410-819-0386. For the Character Counts! program in Queen Anne’s County, please contact Jacki Carter at 410-758-6677 or jcarter@qac.org. Queen Anne’s County Character Counts! is a part of QAC Community Partnerships for Children and Families, our local management board.