Prizes: 1st Place = $300; 2nd Place = $200; 3rd Place = $100
Contest Rules:
1. Must be a Livingston County student in grades 7 through 12, including alternative school equivalents.
2. Submission essay must be uploaded to this form, including the permission for entry from your parent or caregiver.
3. Essay must be submitted via the google form by October 24, 2025 by 5:00 pm. Google Docs must be set to "can view" when shared.
4. Winners are encouraged to attend the Grant Sweet Memorial Essay Winner Announcement to read aloud their essays. The event is held Tuesday, November 11 at 7:00 pm in the Library's Community Room.
5. Winners will be notified by telephone and email. The decisions of the judges are final. Neither the judges' decisions nor the essays reflect the opinions of the Cromaine District Library, the Friends of Cromaine Library, or any other sponsoring organization or individual.
6. Winning essays may be included in the Hartland Memorial Day Parade Booklet of 2026, and will be shared on the Cromaine District Library Facebook page and website and other affiliated social media sites.
ESSAY GUIDELINES:
1. Spend at least one hour interviewing a veteran or person with a military service history.
2. Write an essay summarizing what you have learned through the interview.
3. The essay must be entirely written by the student, although quotations from others may be used.
4. Your essay must be typed, double-spaced, in at least size 12 type. Please limit yourself to 250 words.
5. Include at least one meaningful quote from the service person you interviewed.
6. Include at least one sentence sharing what it means for you to have learned about this service person's contribution.
6. Grammar, spelling, and sentence construction are important, but MOST important is expressing what the veteran or service person believes their contribution was.
Suggested questions to help you conduct your interview:
1. What is your name?
2. When did you serve our country?
3. What do you remember about what was happening in our country during that time?
4. What do you remember about what was happening in our world during that time?
5. Where were you stationed during your service?
6. What do you remember most about where you were?
7. Looking back, what did it mean to you to serve in the military during this time?
8. Were you proud of your service? Were you scared?
9. What did your family and friends say to you about going into the military? Were they proud or scared?
10. If I were your son, daughter, niece or nephew, and I wanted to enter the military, what advice would you give me about the contribution I would make?
11. What should I remember about your military service to help me in my day-to-day life?
DEADLINE:
All applications (this Google Form) and essays must be turned in by October 24, 2025 at 5:00 pm.
AWARD:
The winners will be given prize checks and a certificate at either the Grant Sweet Memorial Essay Winner Announcement held Tuesday, November 11 at 7:00 pm in the Library's Community Room, or at a Cromaine Library Board of Trustees meeting.
Grant Sweet, in whose memory we hold this essay contest, cared deeply about the veterans who have served this country and had a tremendous respect for their contributions. All essays must reflect that respect; essays indicating disrespect for veterans or the military will be omitted from judging.
