Patriot's Pen, a youth-essay writing contest endorsed by the National Association of Secondary School Principals' , is a nationwide competition that gives students in grades 6,7 and 8 the opportunity to write essays expressing their views on democracy. Annually, more than 115,000 students participate in the contest.
Contestants write a 300-400 word essay based on an annual patriotic theme. The first-place winner receives a $10,000 savings bond and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington D.C. The top national winners each receive a savings bond anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000.
For more information contact the Post, or use the contact us page.
Student Information:
Students can enter by submitting the required entry form, along with their essay, to a local VFW Post.
*Historically, the theme (annually chosen by the VFW commander-in-chief) is purposely kept broad in scope to allow the participant flexibility in interpretation to encourage originality. Since the VFW is a patriotic organization, the annual theme always will be related to patriotism.
The theme for 2009 is
"When is the Right Time to Honor Our Military Heroes?"
Deadline for submission is Nov 1, 2009