The bootie
By Marie Walker
Leetonia, Ohio
Honorable mentionTears flowed from my eyes while I hung the little red and white stuffed elf. It was Carol’s favorite Christmas...
Merry mischief
By Sharon Sweda
Huron, Ohio
Honorable Mention“Doggone it!”Janet hears Henry’s familiar bellow. She knows, without looking or hearing the stomp of his boots, that in an...
Of Christmas chores and country kindness
By Jennifer Bryan
Paris, Ohio
Honorable MentionThe frosty morning air stung my nose as I stepped out the door of our farmhouse. My parents’ boot prints...
Through the eyes of a child
By M. Merlin Acker
Wooster, Ohio
Honorable MentionFarmer Jim awoke early one bright spring morning, traveling to the steep eastern slope on his farm overlooking a...
A question of faith
By Chet Cornman
Freeport, Pa.
Third placeThe floorboard creaked and Amy froze. Someone was out there all right. Carefully, oh so carefully, she extended her neck...
An unexpected gift
By Michelle Starkey
Mechanicsburg, Ohio
Second placeThe weather had turned cold and dreary with rain clouds hovering over the small town of Mechanicsburg when Jim Samuels...
The winning Christmas story
By Kim Villalva
Millington, Tenn.
First placeThe phone call shocked Vernon Lee. He had won first place in the library’s Children’s Christmas Story Contest.He shifted...
The Christmas gift
By Abbey Benninghoff
Bessemer, Pa.
Age 17
Honorable mentionUp at dawn, doing chores at six years of age may sound crazy, but for Grace, she thrived...
There is joy: A true story
By Anna Perkins
Westfield Township, Ohio
Age 16
WinnerFamily. A Christmas tree. Singing carols on a neighbor’s doorstep. Watching her children’s delight at receiving the...
A friend for Christmas
By Jaclyn Krymowski
Hinckley, Ohio
Age 12
Honorable MentionSarah watched the winter snow fall fast, thick and heavy. This would be the loneliest Christmas ever. For...
