Shamrocks Sweep Top Honors in V.F.W. Essay Contest
January 8, 2008

A pair of Saint Patrick High School seniors swept the top two places in the Veterans of Foreign Wars “Voice of Democracy” District Two Essay Contest. Erik Schmidt and Bogdan Ivan, who finished first and second respectively in the Saint Patrick Essay Contest, took first and second in the district as well. The theme for this year’s contest is “My Role in Honoring America’s Veterans.”

This is the first year that the V.F.W. has allowed two entrants from the same school to be submitted to the district competition. The Shamrocks took full advantage of this change by taking the top two places in the district. Schmidt and Ivan each received a trophy, a medal, a certificate and a monetary award for their efforts.

Schmidt advances to Springfield, where he will represent Saint Patrick and District Two in the V.F.W. State Competition against other district winners. They will be competing for an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., sponsored by Target, as well as other national scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $16,000.

Created in 1947, the Voice of Democracy (VOD) scholarship program is an audio-essay contest for high school students in grades 9-12 that annually provides more than $3 million in scholarships. The first-place winner, who competes with all the first-place VFW Department winners, receives a $30,000 scholarship that is paid directly to the recipient’s American university, college or vocational/technical school.

The VOD program is endorsed by the National Association of Secondary School Principals' contest criteria and is designed to foster patriotism by allowing students the opportunity to voice their opinion in a three to five minute essay based on an annual theme.