June 4, 2008

The Michigan Center for the Book today announced that two Michigan students are among the eight Grand Prize winners of the national 2008 River of Words Environmental Poetry and Art Contest. With the theme of watersheds, the annual contest is designed to help youth explore the natural and cultural history of the place they live and to express, through poetry and art, what they discover.

Patty Schlutt, age 13, of Crossroads Middle School in Grand Rapids won for her poem called "Stories Told With the Sand Whipping in Our Faces," available to read online at http://riverofwords.org/poetry/2008/03.html.

Nima Dorje, age 8, of Wines Elementary School in Ann Arbor won for her painting, which can be seen online at http://riverofwords.org/images/2008/2008art/dorje.jpg.

"It's the first time the national River of Words contest has had two Grand Prize winners from one state. We're very happy and proud about this!" said Michael R. Moore of Michigan Technological University's Department of Humanities, who serves as the River of Words Michigan regional coordinator.

The contest is open to any child 5-19 years of age. About 100 poems and artworks from both U.S. and international entries are selected as finalists each year. All winners receive ribbons, books and/or art supplies, t-shirts and other prizes. Eight Grand Prize winners - four in poetry and four in art, in four different age categories - are chosen from the U.S. entries. These winners receive an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. to attend the award ceremony at the Library of Congress.

The Michigan Center for the Book sponsors the contest - conducted nationally by California-based non-profit organization River of Words, in affiliation with the Library of Congress Center for the Book - at the state level.

The Michigan Center for the Book, a program of the Library of Michigan and the center's affiliates, aims to promote an awareness of books, reading, literacy, authors and Michigan's rich literary heritage. New affiliates are welcome. For more information about the Michigan Center for the Book and its programs, visit www.michigan.gov/mcfb.

The Library of Michigan is part of the Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL). Dedicated to enriching quality of life and strengthening the economy by providing access to information, preserving and promoting Michigan's heritage and fostering cultural creativity, the department also includes the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the Michigan Historical Center. For more information, visit www.michigan.gov/hal.

Read more press releases from the Department of History, Arts and Libraries (HAL).