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This is the tenth anniversary of the Legacy Project's annual Listen to a Life Essay Contest. We received a few hundred entries the very first year. Now we get thousands.
Yes, the prizes are cool. The Grand Prize is a specially autographed copy of the book that inspired the contest, Dream; a framed keepsake award certificate from Frame USA featuring the winning entry;
a Lenovo ThinkCentre computer; an iPod nano from Orchard Software; and $800 (for the winning team) plus $25,000 (for the school the winning entrant attends) of educational software from Orchard Software. 20 runners-up receive an MP3 player and $400 of Orchard Software.
Yes, young people who enter the contest develop important skills – interviewing, listening, writing.
By submitting their entry, they also have an opportunity for their work to be read and recognized by a wider audience.
But the BIGGEST benefit of this contest has always been the important intergenerational connections it encourages, builds, and strengthens. It's about learning about real life from real people, about the gift of legacy. Says one teacher, "I got several thank you's from parents just because they learned more about the grandparents interviewed and it was valuable for their entire family." Wrote a student entrant: "I see my grandma a lot, but not until this project have I really realized who she is."
Okay, I'm a little biased – having conceived and nurtured Listen to a Life over the years. Sometimes it's best to let someone else do the talking. I receive so many wonderful letters from teachers and parents explaining how they've enjoyed the contest and found value in it. This year, one very detailed letter captured the spirit of Listen to a Life perfectly. So, I'm going to turn over most of this space to Angela Bronson, a third grade teacher at Balboa Magnet Elementary School in Northridge, CA…
"For the past 15 years my class has participated in an intergenerational program I founded 15 years ago. Once
a month, I take my third graders to the Jewish Home for the Aging, JHA. The residents there range in age from
55 to 105 years."
"Each student has his/her own elderly buddy. They do a variety of projects, interviews, and just talk each month. The interview depends on what is taking place that month. For example, in February, the students interviewed their buddies about the presidents. They learned about FDR and the New Deal. Some of their buddies have lived through 17 presidents. Some of the buddies were friends with the presidents."
"I feel there is no better way for these 7, 8, and 9 year-olds, at this point in their lives, to learn about history, especially in a hands-on way that affects someone they know and relate to; they will remember this for their lifetime. The students use the information learned each month and write two biography books about their buddies. They give a copy to their buddies and keep the second copy for themselves and to share with the school community at our Young Author's Fair."
"During the interview, the students have learned to adjust to meet the needs of their buddies. Some buddies are hard of hearing, some are blind, some don't remember, and some say different answers to the same questions. The students do the best they can to get the information depending on the buddy and the mood of the buddy on any given day."
"After each interview, the students have learned firsthand about life, history, and relating to an elderly person. The students have also learned about compassion, not judging a person on looks and age, and how much of a difference they can make in a person's life. For some of the elderly people, the students are the only visitors they have. Also, it is the only time some of the elderly come out of their rooms."
"The stories and friendships formed, not only between the students and their buddies, but also the students' parents and the elderly, are very endearing and heartwarming. The students' parents have stated that this program has helped them with their own parents."
"Doctors and psychologists have come in and talked to the students about how their visits and friendships have made the elderly happier and this helps them live longer. The students can see the immediate impact. As they grow and mature, I'm certain they will understand the overall impact they made on these peoples' and other peoples' lives."
"For a program that was not even supposed to last a year, according to the administrators at both the JHA and my school, I'm proud to be starting the 16th year this September."
"Thank you very much for your Listen to a Life Contest.
I appreciate the opportunity you have given my students to share their stories and experiences. I hope it will also inspire other schools to build intergenerational connections."
The essays Angela Bronson's students submitted echoed much of what she wrote to me. Crucificio Nicholas Campa, 8, writes, "My buddy's name is Dorothy Hart. She is 92 years old. She is the best buddy a kid could ever have. She lives in the JHA. What I have learned from visiting the JHA is that they are people, too. They are warm, bony, loving, and like having kids around. Dorothy hardly comes out of her room unless I'm there. I am so impressed that old people learn new stuff and they have learned a lot of stuff already. This is a shocker. I learned that elderly people can do what non-elderly people can do. My buddy cares for me. She kisses and hugs me.
I love my buddy, too. She makes me happy."
Nathan Chung, 9, writes, "At the JHA, I visit Rosalie. She is 96 years old. We do fun projects and interviews. Rosalie may be blind, but she can do arts and crafts!
I put paper under what we are coloring and put an outline on what we are coloring, and she colors inside the outline. She helps me glue by pressing on the things we are gluing. I have learned that elderly people are soft, not hard and bony, caring, and not all grumpy and mean. They love our visits. I helped her live a longer, happier life and she taught me how to live right."
Kassidy Evans, 8, writes, "I got a buddy named Rose. She is 94 years old. Her dream was to grow up and travel to different places. She wanted to grow up to be independent. She wanted to change the world. Rose did all of them except the last one. Some advice she gave me was smile, always be happy, never give up, believe in yourself, and always try your best. I've learned that old people are the best. They love to help, but sometimes they need some help themselves. They are very caring. They have lots of history. Rose was at Martin Luther King's speech. I am always happy to see Rose. She is so kind. She makes me feel great and I am so comfortable with her."
Angela Bronson's students aren't among the official winners featured on the following pages. But I'm sending them a personal gift of an autographed copy of Dream because I think their project deserves a little special recognition – and you're never too young or too old to dream!
There are so many more entries that deserve recognition. Every entrant should know that every entry has been read with care and attention. I want to thank the thousands of young people, grandparents and grandfriends who took the time to participate in this year's contest. For the annual Listen to a Life Contest,
a young person 8-18 interviews an older adult 50 years or over about their life experiences - their dreams and goals, obstacles they overcame, pivotal experiences, and how they found hope – and submits a 300-word essay. We received entries from across Canada and the US. The youngest entrants are 8 years old. The oldest this year was 101 years and counting.
Listen to a Life wouldn't be possible without the support of some very important people. A huge 'Thank You' goes to our corporate sponsors who provide such wonderful prizes. Lenovo has been with us from the start, providing a computer as the Grand Prize. Frame USA gives us beautiful frames for the award certificates featuring each winning essay. And Orchard Software provides not only prizes for all the winning students, but a special additional prize for the Grand Prize winner's school, which means that the contest can enrich the lives of so many more students over many years.
Finally, without Jim Barry, an integral part of the judging committee and my right-hand man helping to judge this contest, I don't know what I'd do. He meticulously and respectfully goes over each entry. He writes notes that summarize key themes and strengths; he identifies spelling, grammar, and historical errors; he adds a dash of red pen or yellow highlighter here and there; and he marks pages with stars, asterisks, happy and sad faces. All of this comes together as we narrow the field and identify the top entries. It's an intense, multi-step process we've developed over these ten years, and it helps us achieve the fairest and best possible end result.
The next contest starts in September, so make sure you check the Legacy Project contest page for all the details. In the meantime, click below to find out the Grand Prize winner and twenty runners-up in the 2009-2010 Listen to a Life Contest. The runners-up are presented in no particular order, other than an interesting sequence that builds to a satisfying experience. Happy reading!
With warm wishes,
Susan V. Bosak
Chair, Legacy Project
Click here to go to the 2009-2010 Listen to a Life Contest Grand Prize winner and the 20 Runners-up |
