Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018
BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
PAGE 9A
LAWS OF LIFE ESSAY CONTEST BANQUET HELD
Pictured above are winners from Apalachee and Winder-Barrow high schools in the local Georgia Laws of Life Essay Contest along with board members of
the Rotary Club of Winder, which sponsored the contest. Winners were recognized at a banquet Friday. Submitted photo
Laws of Life Essay Contest winners recognized at banquet
The Georgia Laws of Life
Essay Contest is a character
education and ethics literacy
program for high school stu
dents. The contest challenges
students to write their own
stories, beginning with a per
sonal motto of their choosing,
such as “Honesty is the best
policy,” or “Be the change
you wish to see in the world.”
In their essays, students reflect
on the values that mean the
most to them - values such as
generosity, courage, persever
ance, honesty, integrity, and
compassion.
The Rotary Club of Winder
sponsors the contest locally
and awards cash prizes to
winning teachers and stu
dents at both Apalachee and
Winder-Barrow high schools.
Contest winners at both high
schools were invited to share
their essays at a recognition
banquet Friday. Winners
from Apalachee included
Omar Al-Obaidi (lOth-grade
and overall school winner)
and Whitney Jira (12th-grade
winner).
Winners from Winder-Bar
row included Timothy Cloar
(lOth-grade and overall
school winner), Tyler Grif
fin (ninth-grade winner), Itati
Lara (1 lth-grade winner) and
Jakayla Sullivan (12th-grade
winner). Honorable mentions
from Apalachee included
Christina Martinez and Dylan
Stovall. Honorable mentions
from Winder-Barrow includ
ed Amanda Goss, Marcelo
Pomaya-Ramos, Davontae
Rowtham, Mariano Morata-
ya and Jessica Kasongo.
The Laws of Life Essay
Contest is the sole program
of the Georgia Rotary Clubs
Character Education Pro
gram. The goals of the con
test dovetail with the motto of
Rotary International - “Ser
vice Above Self.” The essay
contest is the largest one of
its kind in the United States.
This year, 60 high schools
across Georgia participated.
More than 46,000 students
wrote essays, and Rotary
clubs in Georgia awarded
$20,000 in cash prizes.
“These students recognize
the importance and power of
successful communication.
Communicating well in writ
ing is a key to success,” said
Beth McIntyre, Rotary Club of
Winder member and a board
member of the Geoigia Rota
ry Clubs Character Education
Program. “As an added ben
efit, it is nice to see students
from both Barrow County high
schools celebrate each other in
such a positive light.”
Citizenship continued from 1A
SWORN IN
Barrow County resident and Nigeria native Emelda
Ekete is pictured at her United States citizenship
swearing-in ceremony recently. Submitted photo
have sent in application forms.
“It’s gathering some legs
and getting a little better. We’re
having more and more folks
in Barrow show interest in it”
Drennan said, adding finan
cial assistance with paying
the $725 application fee is
available to people who make
below a certain income.
Manchi, who came to the
U.S. about 20 years ago to
help look after her firstborn
son's children, had already
been enrolled in GED class
es when she decided to take
advantage of the free citizen
ship class. She said the class
was very beneficial for her and
helped prepare her adequately
for her interview.
“I recommend it to any
body,” Manchi said. “I'm from
an English-speaking country
so I found it a little bit easier
than some people might. The
class really helps on the civics
end. It’s very important if you
can to go to the class and learn
what they’re looking for from
you in the interview.”
The naturalization interview
includes a speaking test where
a United States Citizenship
and Immigration Services offi
cer will assess the applicant’s
oral skills and ability to carry
on a conversation in English,
a reading test where the appli
cant must read aloud one out
of three sentences proficient
ly in English, a writing test
to demonstrate writing ability
in English, and a civics test
where the applicant will be
asked up to 10 out of a list
of 100 questions and must
answer six correctly in order
to pass.
In addition to going over
the material, Drennan prepares
his students by showing them
videos of actual interviews and
even doing mock interviews.
“I really focus on the com
prehension of it” he said.
“When it comes to the citi
zenship interview, if you try
to do memorization instead
of comprehension, the (immi
gration officers) are trained to
catch that.
“The interview is kind of
the scary part, but once you do
it, if you’re fully prepared and
do it correctly, you can pass in
seven or eight minutes and be
out of there.”
A little bit of patience is also
required of applicants who
typically have to wait several
months from the time their
application is sent to when it is
processed and they go through
their interview and are sworn
in.
That was the case for
Emelda Ekete, who came to
Barrow County from Nigeria
to join her husband in 2013.
Ekete did not take Drennan’s
citizenship class but she had
access to the same material
through audio tapes that she
could listen to while driving
in her car. She said it took
her almost nine months to
get from her application to
her swearing-in ceremony in
March in Atlanta.
“It took a long time and
I was wondering what was
going on, but it was worth it,”
Ekete said. “I was so excited
(at the swearing-in ceremo
ny).”
Drennan said the goal now
is to increase awareness about
the class in a community
where he says there are plenty
of people who can use it.
He said Lanier Tech is look
ing for a venue to offer the
class during evening hours
to accommodate people who
have to work during the day
and can’t make the Tuesday
and Thursday afternoon ses
sions.
Adult Literacy Barrow
executive director Sally Brown
said the organization is also
looking into adding transpor
tation for people to and from
the Wimberly Center.
Drennan understands that
some people may be appre
hensive about taking the class
but stressed there are financial
aid opportunities available.
“Some people may be ner
vous because they may have
had a problem with the law in
the past,” he said. “But as long
as you make sure whatever
past problems are taken care
of, those things won’t block
you if you're doing it right
now. A lot of people are want
ing to do everything the right
way, and if they just take a
chance, it would help them
tremendously.”
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Attend The Church Of
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51 W. May Street • Winder, GA
770-867-2800
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951 Bankhead
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Winder
770-867-7471
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770-867-9136
W. May St., Winder
IHe Are All Connected
And all who
believed were
together and had all
things in common;
and they sold their
possessions and
goods, and
distributed them to
all, as any had need.
R.S.V. Acts 2:44-45
ft
HARRISON
GOLDEN GOODNESS
HARRISON POULTRY
WAL-MART
SUPERCENTER
440 Atlanta Hwy. NW
Winder, GA
(770) 867-8642
Farmer’s
Prescription Shop
770-867-9072
Matthew
9:22
Isaiah
53:5
A ristotle claimed that humans are
political animals, meaning that we
live in a political society or
community, remarking further that only a
beast or a god would live by himself
away from others. One implication of
this view is that our minds are part
and parcel of the social fabric. Our
minds develop socially, by being
raised to speak a particular language
in a particular culture. And we are
literally connected to other people's
brains in that the smile on our face will
register in their brain and cause their brain
to make them smile, and their smiles will
have the same effect on us. We have been
taught the message of individualism for so
long that we don't often see the many ways
in which we are connected. Our minds truly
are social, think of how often we complete
each other's sentences or feel each other's
joys and sorrows. But, the philosophy of
individualism emphasizes our separateness
and makes us think that we can be just as
fully human as distinct individuals, as we
can when we are part of a larger group like
a family or a society. Since we live in a
world where it is possible to live alone, and
more people are choosing to do so, it
appears that at times we hold up the
individual as more important than the
collective.
Q/Uc/noiial {PaiA
SOUTH Funeral Home and Cemetery
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Accepts: Trees - Stumps - Leaves
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Winder
770-867-9402
winderinertlandfill.com
PATRICK INERT
LANDFILL INC.
NEW HORIZONS
MEDICAL INSTITUTE
I 14 N. Broad St.
Winder, GA 30680
(678) 963-0387
info@newhorizonsmedical.com
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AUTO REPAIR, INC
770-307-1733
Fax 770-868-1878
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STORE HOURS:
Mon.-Thvrs. 8om-9pm • Fri.-Sat. Sam-1 Opm
• CLOSED ON SUNDAY •
208-A North Broad St. • WINDER
“Every Grave Deserves a
Memorial of Distinction”
ATHENS
MARBLE &GRANITE
COMPANY
Atlanta Hwy. Bogart GA 770-725-6761
O’Neal, Broach & Still
Certified Public Accountants
VServing Barrow County Since 1975”
18 W. Candler St. • Winder, GA 30680
770-867-2149
Mark Still, CPA
Rodnev Broach, CPA
If you would like
to be a sponsor,
please call
Susan Treadwell
at 678-863-1014