Three Moapa Valley fifth graders were recognized last month for their creative writing abilities. Terryl Adams, Caleb Boss and Micah Boss were the top three winners of the local round in the “Celebrate America Creative Writing Contest.” All three were recognized at the Nevada state level as well.
On May 19, all three boys and their parents attended the annual meeting of the Nevada Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyer’s Association (AILA).
At the meeting, Adams was announced as the first prize winner for the state of Nevada for his poem “Here I am America.” He was invited to read the poem to attendees of the meeting that evening. Adams’ work will now be entered into the contest at the national level.
An essay by Micah Boss received second place in the state contest. The third place essay was awarded to Caleb Boss.
All three students were awarded a certificate and a stipend for both the local and state level.
Local resident Nathalie Gottschalk, who is a member of the Nevada AILA, was the one who encouraged local school kids to enter the contest. She explained that there were about 30 entries at the local level.
Members of the Moapa Valley Education Foundation read through all of the entries and narrowed them down to the top three that would be sent to the state level. At the state level, contest judge Veronica Barisich from the 8th Judicial District Court selected the winning entry.
The “Celebrate America” contest has been in place since 1996 as a way of inspiring fifth graders across the U.S. to reflect on the contest theme: “Why I’m Glad America is a Nation of Immigrants.”
In an interview with The Progress, Gottschalk explained that the contest strives to instill in kids the value of the immigrant roots of their country.
“We are an association of immigration lawyers,” Gottschalk said of the AILA. “We want to promote that this country continues to welcome legal immigrants. We want to make sure that immigration is fair and that people can come here to incorporate into, and contribute to, American society.”
“Most of us, the families that are here, have come to America from somewhere else at some point in time,” Gottschalk added. “We can’t forget that this country was founded by immigrants. That is what makes America great!”
Adams’ poem will now be advanced to the national level. If he wins he would be invited to read his work at the national convention of AILA in Washington DC later on this year.
Last year’s contest had entries from 11 different states, so the competition is tough.
Here is the 1st place winning poem:
Here I am America
By Terryl Adams
From here I am running from fear,
For I have no home and mean
people are near,
They have tried but so most have
failed,
For some people already have
bailed.
I know it is a risk,
So I will try to do it very brisk,
I finally chose to set off tonight,
Even though it is not bright.
When I get to the dock,
I am stiff as a block,
Days and days I have been on this
journey,
And illnesses I have a variety.
Through the veil I see a pier,
Finally I am near.
As I’m on solid ground,
There is no threats around,
And I start to wonder,
When I was younger,
I never had something like this,
Now I have a family, a fortune,
and a fame
I can’t accuse me to blame,
I don’t need to fear,
For America, I am here.
