The Character Counts! Advisory Council is delighted to announce that due to recent contributions from the community, the Laws of Life Essay Contest will once again be offered to local students as a way to express how the Six Pillars of Character (Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship) have positively affected their lives.

As a part of their Thankful Thursdays, Hemingway’s Restaurant donated 20% of all dinners ordered on Thursdays in July to the QAC Character Counts! Program. The owners, Steve and Biana Arentz, presented the check for $1085 to Jacki Carter, Positive Youth Development Coordinator, at the Queen Anne’s County Chamber of Commerce After Hours Mixer on September 16, 2010.

Also that evening, Biana Arentz donated her part of the winning 50/50 raffle ticket to Character Counts!, which added $65 to the contributions for Character Counts! After a brief announcement from Carter that the contributions would all be applied to the Laws of Life Essay Contest, which was only $150 short of being fully funded for this year, Mr. Mareen Waterman stepped up with a donation to fulfill that requirement.

The Character Counts! Advisory Council is very grateful for the community and individual support, which enables us to continue our efforts to strengthen the personal character traits of the youth in our county and empower them to share their stories through this outstanding essay contest.

Feel free to contact Jacki at 410-758-6677 or jcarter@qac.org if you have any questions.  QAC Character Counts! is a part of Community Partnerships for Children & Families, our Local Management Board.