“Water, the Cycle of Life” was the theme for the 2011 poster and essay contests sponsored by the Beaufort Soil and Water Conservation District and the N.C. Association of Conservation Districts.

Students in third through sixth grades from various schools in the county submitted entries.
James Allen, Beaufort SWCD chairman, presented cash prizes at a recent gathering held at the Agricultural Center in Washington. Each first-place winner received $25 and a chance to compete in the next contest level, the Area V competition. Each second-place winners received $20.

Poster contest winners are:
Third grade: first place — Aniya Haywood, S.W. Snowden Elementary School; second place — Elyse Brinn, Northeast Elementary School. Aniya took second place in the Area V contest.

Fourth grade: first place — Shea Stender, Northeast; second place — O’Shae Burgess, S.W. Snowden.

Fifth grade: first place — Lauren Dotson, Girl Scout Troop 3556; second place — Danielle Hodges, John Small Elementary School.

Sixth grade: first place — Christine Potter; second place — Breanne McDonald — both from S.W. Snowden. Christine took third place in the Area V contest.

Adults who submitted the winning entries received $25 cash prizes. They are art teachers Travis Manley, S.W. Snowden; Kathy Brinn, Northeast Elementary; and Hope Woolard, Girl Scout Troop 3556 leader.

Sixth-graders enter an essay contest with the same theme as the poster contest. The district’s winner of $25 is Kennedy Richard from P.S. Jones Middle School. Her essay also won third place in the Area V contest. Her teacher, Dawn Landen, received a $25 cash prize from the district for submitting essays from which the local first-place winner was chosen.

The district also awarded honorable-mention certificates and goodie bags to several students. Poster-contest awards went to Micah Gruninger, Kendall Watkins, Tyler Melton, Maddie Brodie, Dianna Hyatt, Sydney Walker and Bryanna Clark at John Small School; Samantha Warren, Katie Hopkins, Haley Cahoon, Miranda Jones and Mollie Tetterton at Northeast Elementary School; Amelia Woolard with Girl Scout Troop 3556; and Shannon Miller, S.W. Snowden School. Essay-contest awards went P.S. Jones students Joshua Dillon, A.J. Howard, Nathan Rader and Joeie Turner.