Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • January 22, 2014 FLOW Area Post 5702 announces essay contest winners by Frank J. McMahon Franklin Lakes Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5702 has announced the Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District winners of the annual Voice of Democracy con- test. This year’s theme was “Why I’m Optimistic about Our Nation’s Future.” The first place winners at their schools were Victoria Summers, a junior at Ramapo High School and Matt Gorab, a sophomore at Indian Hills High School. Ashlyn McK- enna, a Ramapo sophomore won second place; and Kris- ten Arnold, Ramapo senior won the third place award. Siena Mayer-Costa, a sophomore at Indian Hills won the second place award in that school, and Dante Freese an IHHS senior won the third place award. The first place winners were awarded checks for $150, while each second place winner received checks for checks for $100, and the third place winners each received checks for $75. VFW Post 5702 member Bob Talan, Ramapo High Social Studies Supervi- sor Joseph DelBuono, and Indian Hills Social Stud- ies Supervisor Keely Leg- gour presented the student awards at a recent school board meeting. The contest, which has been the VFW’s premier scholarship program since 1947, was designed to foster patriotism by giving high school students the oppor- tunity to voice their opin- ions about their personal obligations as Americans and their responsibilities to the country. The students wrote and then recorded a three to five minute essay. Each essay was judged on the basis of originality, con- tent, and delivery. Original- ity is worth 30 points, and content and delivery are worth 35 points each. In Summers’ first place essay, she described the optimism expressed by cer- tain people from the 1890s through the 2000s, point- ing out how each person had reasons to be optimis- tic about the future of the nation, but always seemed to acknowledge that there were still problems to be solved. Summers provided examples of that optimism along with the problems that were faced during each of those times. She said she is optimistic about the future of the U.S. because the nation has overcome so many problems in the past. “While solutions to problems will not happen overnight, they will happen if citizens of this great country stick together, work hard, and persevere,” Summers stated. “I am optimistic because the country has an unbreakable, extraordinary sense of unity, pride, and innovation and has overcome each and every challenge that has come its way.” In Gorab’s first place essay, he described how the coun- try was founded and gained its independence and pledged to preserve the principle of human rights. He pointed out how the country was based on the Puritan demand for reli- gious freedom and, as time went on, African Americans were freed from slavery in 1870 and women gained the right to vote in the 1920s. Gorab stated, however, that gay individuals have not been granted full equality and in some people’s eyes are looked upon as second class citizens. He described two court cases involving same sex couples and he pointed out that many gay marriages have taken place in the 14 states where they are legal. “The world is turning, but slowly,” Gorab acknowl- edged. “Statistically, most Americans, regardless of reli- gion or race, are supportive of gay marriage. . .the time has (continued on page 17)