Mueller wins poetry award
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| Valmeyer High School senior Ryan Mueller at his home in Fults. Mueller recently won a poetry contest and will be featured in a national anthology of poems. Terry Smith photo |
Mueller, a senior at Valmeyer High School, wrote the poem as a class assignment and it was submitted to "Poetic Power," a publication of Creative Communications in Utah.
It was selected from thousands of entries as one of the top 10 in his grade division. The contest was hosted for all students in grades K-12, with the divisions broken up into three year increments.For his efforts, the poem will be published in the poetry anthology "A Celebration of Young Poets."
Each top 10 winner received a complimentary copy of the anthology and a $50 savings bond.
"Poems are selected for their literary merit, creativity and social significance," Dr. Tom Worthen, editor of the publication, said. "Too often the efforts of young writers are unrecognized and they lose their motivation to express themselves."
Creative Communications also awards more than $13,000 each year in Language Arts Grants to schools to further encourage young people's writings.
Other winners from Illinois include: Dana Humen from High Land Middle School in Libertyville; Tara Marie Krkljes from Mary Seat of Wisdom School in Park Ridge; Pilar Bonilla from West Chicago Middle School in West Chicago; Tiffany Fortune from St. Barnabas Catholic School in Chicago; Hanna Cho, Jennifer Bora and Allison Gauthier from William Fremd High School in Palatine; Joe Kelly from Brother Rice High School in Chicago; Usman Iqbal from Schaumburg High School in Schaumburg; Keri McKay from Monmouth Roseville High School in Monmouth; Jaylynn Stewart from Taylorville Sr. High School in Taylorville; and Annie Newberry from Boylan Catholic High School in Rockford.
