The Sir Keithlyn Smith Foundation in collaboration with Observer Radio’s Voice of the People is pleased and proud to announce the winners of this year’s Voice of the People Summer Reading Program Art Competition. The winners were Ms Kelsey Cochrane, 9 years old, from the Piggots Primary School (1st prize), Ms Rhekeisha Manning, 10 years old from the SDA School (2nd prize), and Mr Brandon Canoville, 15 years old, of the Clarehall Secondary School.
The prizes awarded were a laptop computer (first prize); a US$100 Amazon gift card (2nd prize) and a US$50 gift certificate to Best of Books (3rd prize).
Following the third successful year of the Reading Project broadcasted on Observer Radio’s Voice of the People radio program with Paul Quinn and Franz deFreitas, students were asked to tell the story of Mary Prince with art. Mary Prince, an enslaved woman, who lived in Antigua for most of her adult life, was the first woman of colour to petition the British Parliament, and she played a significant role in the passage of the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, which ended slavery in all of the British colonies.
Students were encouraged to tell their stories in paintings, drawings, digital art, dioramas, or collages. This year, the committee was pleased to select the 3 winners from a large pool of submissions.
Congratulations to all of the young people who participated in this year’s competition. The book selection for next year’s Summer Reading Project will be announced early next year.
Also acknowledged in this project are members of Antiguans and Barbudans for Constitutional Reform and Education (ABCRE), Friends of the Antigua Public Library – NY (FOAPL-NY), The National Public Library, the National Museum, and Barbara Arrindell of Best of Books, for their support of this annual activity.
