Second Semester Begins with Student Speeches
Westchester Country Day School opened the second semester of the 2021-2022 school year by gathering as a school community to hear speeches from the winners of a school-wide essay contest.
It has been a school tradition for several years to invite students in Lower, Middle and Upper School to write essays in response to quotations that focus on service, care for others and perseverance. These essays are judged by the division heads, and the three divisional winners present their essays to the student body in an assembly.
This year’s winners are as follows:
Fifth grader Rosie Fielden wrote in response to Martin Luther King Jr.’s quote, "If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward."
"When Martin Luther King Jr. was put in jail, did he give up? No. He kept trying to give everyone a fair life. He inspired so many people to dream big and follow your heart, but whatever you are doing you have to keep moving forward, just like Martin Luther King Jr. said." -- Rosie Fielden, Fifth Grade
Eighth grader Selah Goins wrote in response to Maya Angelou’s quote, "Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud."
"Times are hard now, sure, but times will always be hard. There will always be at least one wrong thing in your world, and the best way to get through it is to find a way to help others. You need to hold out your hand and accept someone else’s darkness to fully achieve your own moral light. Being a rainbow alone will leave you with overflowing positivity, swimming in a fake happiness, but being a rainbow in another person's life can teach you how to overcome your own cloudy days and see the sun ahead." -- Selah Goins, Eighth Grade
Ninth grader Cooper Singer wrote in response to Ghandi’s quote, "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."
"Serving others is a core value I find in myself and the Westchester community. Service is defined as the action of helping or doing work for someone. The principle of serving others is the key component in being part of the Wildcat Nation. I have been taught this value throughout my career at Westchester by taking part in C.A.R.E.S. Crews events such as Change for Change, wrapping books for Northwood Elementary School, and participating in canned food drives as well as Middle School service learning days. These programs have taught me that just taking a small part of the day or week to do something for someone else can make a difference ... I think the beginning of the year is the perfect time to make a commitment to help others through service, and I challenge each of you to do so."
