WHS Students Take Top Honors in Photo Contest in Conjunction With
Wellington United Nations World Peace Celebration
Wellington, FL (September 22, 2011) – Three students from Wellington High School took top honors in a photo contest, which was part of the annual international World Peace Celebration, sponsored locally by the Rotary Club and Village of Wellington. September 21 is the day declared by the United Nations General Assembly as the International Day of Peace, a day devoted to commemorating and strengthening the ideals of peace both within and among all nations and peoples.
In a ceremony at Wellingtons Peace Park on September 21, Allison Parssi, senior (1st place), Taylor Podder, junior (2nd place) and Briana Erickson, junior (3rd place) were honored to see their photographs on display. They were further honored when each was presented with a check for their efforts. The contest was open to all high school students in Wellington.
Also honored at the event were students and teachers from schools in the area who produced poems, essays and posters. Taking top honors in the poetry contest were Natalie Gomez, a student at Wellington Landings Middle School and Emerald Cove student Judy Yang. The high school essay contest winners were Kayla Goldstein from Palm Beach Central and Tyler Bergman from Wellington High School. The winning poster was submitted by Veronica Garcia-Para, a student at New Horizons Elementary. Her poster became the official poster of the celebration.
The evenings events included a flag presentation by the PBSO Color Guard; songs by The Traditions choral group from Palm Beach Central; the reading of may peace prevail on earth in 8 native languages; a proclamation, delivered by Wellington mayor Darell Bowen, designating September 21 as World Peace Day in Wellington; the presentation of an award to Wellington High School student Jake Romano, who received the SMART award (Student Mediator Award for Resolution Tactics); and the release of a dozen white doves by Eternal Doves of Florida.