Christmas poster contest winners

First-place winners, one in each of four grade categories, were chosen from among 402 entries in The Visitor’s annual Christmas contest. Young artists were invited to complete and then illustrate the sentence: “In this Year of Mercy, this Christmas I will … .”

Entries were judged on originality and artistic ability as well as how well the artist interpreted the theme and how well the artwork would reproduce. The first place winners each received a $50 prize.

Colby Faber – Grade 6 Parish: St. Mary, Help of Christians, St. Augusta – “I do know that we have to have a lot of peace and mercy for everybody in this world. We need to share that peace and mercy with others.”

Marissa Willenbring – Grade 11 Parish: SS. Peter and Paul, Richmond – “I hope this poster will inspire people to pray… . It is so easy to pray and you can do that anywhere and anytime. We should also look at people that we might not always consider, like the prisoner. We might only think of them as bad. We might not always see them as lonely or most in need of our help. And also to consider those people who have left the faith. We should really be helping them and supporting them along the way so they turn back to God and feel comforted and continue living in God’s love.

Celine Schoenecker – Grade 9 Parish: St. Paul, St. Cloud – “I hope that people see that everyone is equal. We just can’t let these refugees drown when there’s something we can do about it. I don’t have much but every little bit helps.”

Ava Haggerty – Grade 3 Parish: Sacred Heart, Flensburg – “I thought that I could make something really Christmas-y so I made a tree with all the presents under it. If I was giving away a Barbie doll, I would fix it up by brushing her hair and getting her all dressed up. I would give it to someone who doesn’t have much light in their day.”

Honorable mentions

Grace Koenig – Grade 5 – St. Boniface Parish, Cold Spring

Karleen Gerads – Grade 12 – Annunciation Parish, Mayhew Lake

Matthew Kahl – Grade 9 – Annunciation Parish, Mayhew Lake

Carolyn Sowada – Grade 9 – St. Paul Parish, St. Cloud