The Rotary Club of Hamlin/ Lake Ariel had an essay contest this past spring where students were asked to write about how they can help and improve the environment.
Western Wayne High School students placed in the competition. Bridgette Flannery, junior, took first place; Jamie Bryan, senior, placed second; and Carter Swingle, senior, placed third. Flannery also placed second in the District which is comprised of 41 Rotary Clubs.
Flannery along with writing is involved in a variety of activities at Western Wayne High School including: band, vice president; drama club, graphic design officer; anime club, secretary; and chorus, secretary. She is also a part of National Art Honors Society, The National Society of High School Scholars, and Northeastern Youth Wind Ensemble.
Flannery discussed the enjoyment she found in writing the essay for the Rotary Contest.
“My favorite part of writing the essay was to show how I can help the environment around me,” Flannery explained. “ I didn’t realize how much I have done for the environment because it was just second nature.”
In her winning essay, Flannery, who aspires to study music therapy and education in college, describes how she feels she can make a difference in the environment by doing tasks that seem small but actually help the environment in a big way such as recycling and walking instead of driving places.
To close her essay, Flannery reflects on how helping the environment has helped her to grow as a person emotionally.
“I never realized how much I affect the environment, but I also never realized how much the environment affects me. I thought that only I could affect the environment around me, but the environment can shape a person as well. I also didn’t realize how depressed I was by not taking care of the environment around me,” Flannery writes in the closing of her winning essay. “ By planting flowers that help produce oxygen and making the place I live a little brighter, I became a happier person. Everyone needs to do their part to make this world a cleaner and safer place to live.”
