The Missouri Bar, along with the Missouri National Education Association (NEA) and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), honored 24 students at the 2015 Outstanding Citizens and Law Day Awards Luncheon held Wednesday, April 22, 2015, at the Missouri Bar Center in Jefferson City.
Reuben Shelton, president of The Missouri Bar, welcomed more than 90 attendees including award winners, their parents and teachers, to the awards luncheon.
“We celebrate all of our award winners today because the course of our nation – our great democratic republic – depends on the quality of our citizens,” Shelton said. “Your initiative, leadership and commitment to improving your communities by identifying inequities and correcting them, gives me great hope that old and new injustices alike will be stamped out.”
Eight high school seniors were recognized as outstanding citizens for demonstrating academic competence in government and civics courses, exceptional participation in civics and government related extracurricular activities, and performing exemplary community service.
The Outstanding Citizenship Program is a joint project of The Missouri Bar and DESE. The Missouri Legislature established the Outstanding Citizenship Award in 1990. DESE conducts the awards competition with assistance and financial support from The Missouri Bar.
Also at the luncheon, The Missouri Bar Young Lawyers’ Section and the Missouri NEA presented nine students in grades five through 12 with the Law Day Essay Contest awards. The winners were selected from 297 entries, depicting this year’s theme, “50 Years of Voting Rights.” Competing students were required to explain why voting is so important to our country and how we can make everyone realize the importance of voting.The contest is in celebration of Law Day, May 1, and is held annually to promote a greater understanding and appreciation of the law and the legal system among students.
Joining the celebration were another group of students whose talents shine in the area of creativity. Seven young artists, ranging from kindergarten to fifth grade, received the Law Day Art Contest awards from Missouri Bar Young Lawyers’ Section Chair Bryan Sanger.
The contest was created by The Missouri Bar Citizenship Education Program and sponsored by The Missouri Bar Young Lawyers’ Section. The art theme for this year was “Fair and Impartial Courts,” commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Missouri Non-Partisan Court Plan, commonly called the Missouri Plan. Participants were asked to reflect how the role of judges in the courtroom can be compared to the role of umpires or referees at a ballgame.
The winners of the 2015 Outstanding Citizens Awards are:
Tyler Adams, South Callaway R-I HS
Emma Cook, Meadow Heights HS
Jake Eovaldi, Parkway HS
Cameron Leahy, Fort Zumwalt South HS
Jessica Oliphant, Webster Groves HS
Sarah Veri, Carl Junction R-1 HS
Benjamin Vickers, El Dorado Springs R-2 HS
Tommie Walsh, Southern Boone HS
The winners of the 2015 Law Day Essay Contest are:
Grade 5
| 1st Place | Addison McDowell | Geggie Elementary |
| 2nd Place | Jenna Frank | Hodge Elementary |
| 3rd Place | Deona Timms | Glasgow Elementary |
Grade 7 – 8
| 1st Place | Erin Mach | Central High School |
| 2nd Place | Ellen Baker Resek | Crestview |
| 3rd Place | Gracie Jones | Republic Middle School |
Grade 10 – 12
| 1st Place | Sehreen Khan | Ruskin |
| 2nd Place | Stanley Janesko | Ruskin |
| 3rd Place | Halena Hadi | Central High School |
The winners of the 2015 Law Day Art Contest are:
K – 2
| 1st Place | Tony Taylor | Glasgow Elementary |
| 2nd Place | Madison Davis | Knox County Elementary |
| 3rd Place | Andrew Collard | East Buchanan Elementary |
Grade 3 – 5
| 1st Place | Carter Shreve | East Buchanan Elementary |
| 2nd Place | Paige Borgmeyer | Green Pines Elementary |
| 3rd Place | Aiden Morehead | Neosho Middle School |
| 3rd Place | Joyce Do | Cowden Elementary |
The Missouri Bar is a statewide organization that is dedicated to improving the legal profession, the law and the administration of justice for all Missourians. Created in 1944 by order of the Supreme Court of Missouri, it serves all 30,000 of Missouri’s practicing lawyers. The Missouri Bar provides a wide range of services and resources to its members, as well as the media, educators and the citizens of Missouri. To learn more about The Missouri Bar, visit www.mobar.org and www.MissouriLawyersHelp.org.
View the award luncheon’s photo album here:
