The believer
By Carlee Dunham
Castalia, Ohio
Age 11
Honorable Mention
Once upon a Christmas Eve, a young boy named Charlie did not believe in Santa Claus. He...
The Stocking Surprise
Second place: Mark Llewellyn, of New Castle, Pa.
Doreen’s eyes, glassy in this state of reverie, wandered from one hand to the other. Arthritis found...
The meaning of Christmas
By Destini Smith
Vickery, Ohio
Age 12
Winner
De was in school. It was the end of the day, right before the bell rang, when her...
The Christmas tree
By Brandon Hozian
Kirtland, Ohio
Age 11
Winner
There once was an evergreen tree that got planted in a forest. It wanted to grow to be a...
The bootie
By Marie Walker
Leetonia, Ohio
Honorable mention
Tears flowed from my eyes while I hung the little red and white stuffed elf. It was Carol’s favorite Christmas...
A coal camp Christmas
Second place: Alex Keck, 17, of Hanoverton, Ohio
It was early December of 1933, the height of the Great Depression in the tiny Pennsylvania coal...
Christmas Wishes
Rachel BarkleyAge: 11Uhrichsville, OH
Mary sighed. All she had ever wanted for Christmas previous years had been a horse. But now she had pushed wanting...
Holiday writing contest, youth division 2009
Christmas stories of love, wishes, lessons learned and animals filled our mailbox and inboxes in the past few weeks and we couldn’t have been...
A question of faith
By Chet Cornman
Freeport, Pa.
Third place
The floorboard creaked and Amy froze. Someone was out there all right. Carefully, oh so carefully, she extended her neck...
2009 Adult writing contest and youth art winners
The holidays have a special meaning to all of us. It could be the sights and sounds of the children sled riding down the...
