Maine Public Service Co.

    PRESQUE ISLE, Maine – Maine Public Service awarded five students $100 savings bonds for first-place Earth Day essays and posters, created to identify the theme: What’s Worth Saving in Your World?  The winners were announced in honor of Earth Day, April 22. First-place winners received a recognition plaque, $100 savings bond and a gift certificate donated by Maine Potato Growers. Teachers of the first-place winners received an environment book. Second-place winners received a plaque and $75 savings bonds. Third-place winners receive a plaque and $50 savings bonds. All winners received an Earth Day T-shirt, and all participants received Earth Day certificates of achievement.
    Look for the posters and essays at the Aroostook Centre Mall.
This year’s poster winners are: First place, Megan Ouellette, grade 1, Pine Street School; Second place, Emma Peterson, grade 2, Wellington School; and Third place, Camden Dumont, grade 1, Hilltop School. Posters drawn by Jennifer Robbins, grade 1, Hilltop School, and Dylan Johnston, grade 2, Wellington School, were selected for honorable mention.
Winning essays for grade 3-5 are: First place, Mikey Michaud, grade 5, Zippel Elementary School;
Second place, Luis Merced, grade 4, Madawaska Elementary School; and Third place, Kerrigan Arnett, grade 4, Easton Elementary School. Honorable mention was awarded to Mariah Cyr, grade 5, Zippel Elementary School.
Grade 6-8 winners are: First place, Andrew Smith, grade 8, Southern Aroostook Community School; Second place, Jonah Bacon, grade 7, Easton Junior/Senior High School; and Third place, Marissa Parlin, Grade 8, Easton Junior/Senior High School. One essay was selected for honorable mention; Sarah Plourde, grade 7, Easton Junior/Senior High School.
Winners in the grade 9-10 division are: First place, Kelsey Park, grade 9, Presque Isle High School; Second place, Deidre Dicker, grade 9, Presque Isle High School; and Third place, Lucas Mathers, grade 10, Presque Isle High School. An essay written by Kori Kinney, grade 10, Presque Isle High School, was selected for honorable mention.
Grade 11-12 winners are: First place, Adam Chandler, grade 12, Presque Isle High School; Second place, Michael Hersey, grade 12, Presque Isle High School; and Third place, Kyle White, grade 11-12, Easton Junior/Senior High School.
April 22 marked the 37th anniversary of the original Earth Day. The international focus on Earth Day reflects the global scope of all major environmental issues, including global warming, deforestation, ozone depletion, the rain forest and hazardous, toxic wastes.
Carol McElwee and Denise Bosse of Caribou judged the Earth Day entries, along with Nancy Chandler and Gina LeBlanc-Eggert from Maine Public Service.
Pleased with the huge number of participants in the contest, MPS Supervisor of Conservation and Education Services Nancy Chandler said, “This year we received more than 600 creative ideas from writers and artists. What they thought worth saving in their world ranged from saving themselves by keeping their bodies physically fit to saving endangered species. One writer described “riding a bike with my friends and breathing the fresh air – the thing that is most worth saving in my world is oxygen.” A twelfth-grade student wrote, “Our world is a very precious place. It was created with the essentials to support human life. Many people take Earth for granted and don’t realize what is becoming of our innocent planet. If we don’t take more caution, the ground-level ozone will become more polluted and the ozone in the Earth’s upper atmosphere will continue to deplete towards dangerous means.”
There are many reasons why we love planet Earth. Maine Public Service is proud to celebrate Earth Day through the many talented writers and artist in its service territory.         Remember, you can make a difference during this 37th anniversary of Earth Day. Plant a tree, fix a leaky faucet, eat healthy and treat nature right – just some of the many suggestions from the Earth Day essayist.