Using “mercy” as the driving inspiration, students of Catholic schools, parish religious education programs and youth groups sought to express their visions of life’s intrinsic value, entering the annual Diocese of Trenton Respect Life Poster, Essay and Video Contest.
“Moved by Mercy” was this year’s theme, reflected in the students’ creative efforts throughout the Diocese’s four counties. The theme was based on that of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ respect life packet for 2017.
Entries were grouped by the following grade levels: kindergarten through second grade, third through fifth grade, and sixth through eighth grade. After judging at the parish or school level, top entries were posted online for judging by the diocesan Department of Pastoral Care’s Respect Life Ministry.
This year, six diocesan winners were chosen overall, with first and second place runners-up in each grade group by county. The winners were:
Diocesan Winners:
Grades K-2 Poster Ella Rani Paoni, St. Veronica School, Howell, first grade
Grades 3-5 Poster Jessica Wojnar, St. Charles Borromeo School, Cinnaminson, fifth grade
Grades 6-8 Poster Joshua Arriola, Trenton Catholic Academy, seventh grade
Grades 6-8 Videos Group entry, Trenton Catholic Academy, sixth grade
Grades 3-5 Essays Kaitlyn Hanlon, St. Leo the Great School, Lincroft, fifth grade
Grades 6-8 Essays Faith Wittstruck, St. Veronica School, Howell, seventh grade
Runners-up:
Burlington County
Category 1: Grades K-2 Poster
There were no entries from Burlington County
Category 2: Grades 3-5 Poster
First runner-up: Group Entry, St. Charles Borromeo Religious Education, Cinnaminson, fifth grade
Second runner-up: Layla Joseph, St. Charles Borromeo School, Cinnaminson, fourth grade
Category 3: Grades 6-8 Poster
First Runner-up: Leah Rottler-Gurley, St. Joan of Arc School, Marlton, seventh grade
Second runner-up: Catherine Garvey, St. Joan of Arc School, Marlton, eighth grade
Category 4: Grades 3-5 Essays
There were no entries from Burlington County
Category 5: Grades 6 -8 essays
First Runner-up: Justin Seo, St. Joan of Arc School, Marlton, eighth grade
Second runner-up: Brianna Wojnar, St. Charles Borromeo School, Cinnaminson, eighth grade
Category 6: Grades 6 -8 Videos
First runner-up: Group Entry, St. Charles Borromeo Religious Education, Cinnaminson, seventh grade
There were no other Burlington entries.
Mercer County
Category 1: Grades K-2 Poster
First runner-up: Jailyn Kruk, Trenton Catholic Academy, first Grade
Second runner-up: Danielle Self, Trenton Catholic Academy, kindergarten
Category 2: Grades 3-5 Poster
First runner-up: Fernando A Luna-Torres, Trenton Catholic Academy, fourth grade
Second runner-up: Jeffrey Merendino, St. Paul School, Princeton, fourth grade
Category 3: Grades 6-8 Poster
First runner-up: Isabella Sagarese, St. Paul School, Princeton, sixth grade
Second runner-up: Nicole Morilla, St. Ann School, Lawrenceville, sixth grade
Category 4: Grades 3-5 essays
First runner-up: Alijah Christian Rivera, Trenton Catholic Academy, fourth grade
Second runner-up: Anthony Arriola, Trenton Catholic Academy, fourth grade
Category 5: Grades 6-8 Essays
First runner-up: Anthony Arrirguzoh, Trenton Catholic Academy, seventh grade
Second runner-up: Erin Stout, Trenton Catholic Academy, eighth grade
Category 6: Grades 6-8 Videos
There were no other Mercer entries.
Monmouth County
Category 1: Grades K-2 Poster
There were no other Monmouth entries.
Category 2: Grades 3-5 Poster
First runner-up: Karina Minall, St. Rose Religious Education, Belmar, third grade
Second runner-up: Alexa Koopman, St. Leo the Great School, Lincroft, fifth grade
Category 3: Grades 6-8 Poster
First runner-up: Diego Palayo, St. Veronica School, Howell, sixth grade
Second runner-up: Maura Lennon, St Mary, Middletown, seventh grade
Category 4: Grades 3-5 Essays
First runner-up: Lily Loftus, St. Veronica School, Howell, fourth grade
There were no other Monmouth entries.
Category 5: Grades 6-8 Essays
There were no other Monmouth entries.
Category 6: Grades 6-8 Videos
First runner-up: Christopher Medeira, St. Veronica School, Howell, seventh grade
There were no other Monmouth entries.
Ocean County
Category 1: Grades K-2 Poster
First runner-up: Mary Clare Kennedy, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, first grade
Second runner-up: Raeli Kolber, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, first grade
Category 2: Grades 3-5 Poster
First runner-up: Brady Ballou, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, fourth grade
Second runner-up: Elysee (Ella) Jacinto, St. Luke Religious Education, Toms River, third grade
Category 3: Grades 6-8 Poster
First runner-up: Ava Carabetta, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, eighth grade
Second runner-up: Jeffrey Frankenburg, St. Dominic School, Brick, seventh grade
Category 4: Grades 3-5 Essays
First runner-up: Zoe Petrella, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, fifth grade
Second runner-up: Summer Bruce, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, fourth grade
Category 5: Grades 6-8 Essays
First runner-up: Nicole Jimenez, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, eighth grade
Second Runner-up: Claudia Magahis, St. Dominic School, Brick, eighth grade
Category 6: Grades 6-8 Videos
First runner-up: Kenny Malloy & Jake Mullins, St. Peter School, Point Pleasant Beach, sixth grade
There were no other Ocean County entries.