Boys and Girls Club youth take part in black history art contest
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on March 16, 2016 1:46 PM
Youths at Boys and Girls Club of Wayne County recently participated in an art contest for Black History Month. When it came time to present winners with VISA gift cards, though, the students decided to donate the $600 prize to the club to purchase recreational items for the Royall Avenue site.
Members of the local Boys and Girls Club had been invited to choose an influential African-American and create a portrait of the person using any art medium.
The club received 14 entries, with the field narrowed down to the top 10 finalists. The artwork was then displayed at area U.S. Cellular stores in Wayne County and put to a public vote during the month of February.
The top winners were recognized at a ceremony Thursday afternoon at the club.
Mya Rodrigo, a ninth-grader at Southern Nash High School, earned first place for her drawing of Rosa Parks.
Second place went to Jaylen Caldwell, a seventh-grader at Eastern Wayne Middle School.
Jennifer Carroll, a sophomore at Goldsboro High School, and Keith Jones, an eighth-grader at Dillard Middle School, tied for third place.
Melissa McIntyre, public relations counsel for U.S. Cellular, praised the generosity of the youth for converting their prize winnings to the local club, "just to buy some things that aren't in the budget," she said.
But the giving spirit did not end there.
Jo Heidenreich, development director, said the celebration continued later in the week as the Royall Avenue club had a cookout to celebrate Boys and Girls Club Week, courtesy of U.S. Cellular.
"They (U.S. Cellular officials) were touched that the winning teens gave their gift cards back to the Teen Center to share as a group so they (the company) provided an additional gift card to cover the cost of the food for the cookout," she said. "Pretty awesome, huh?!"
Jeremy Taylor, director of sales for U.S. Cellular in eastern North Carolina, said, "Our store associates in Goldsboro loved sharing the artwork with our customers and other community members that came in to vote. This contest is a wonderful way to praise the rich history of culture and diversity here in eastern North Carolina and across our country."
Mary Ann Dudley, executive director of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Wayne County, expressed her appreciation for U.S. Cellular and its partnership with the club, supporting both the youth and the community.
"Programs and partnerships like these from U.S. Cellular promote great opportunities for children to learn about history and become engaged in the learning process at the same time," she said.