Sophia Valladares of the 5th period art class and Gaurangi Rastogi of the 3rd period art class at Lake Oswego Middle School (LOJ), have taken the first step to become an internationally recognized artist by winning a local competition sponsored by the Lake Oswego Lions Club and VisionEnvoy Club Branch.
Valladares’ and Rastogi’s posters were among more than 600,000 entries submitted worldwide in the annual Lions International Peace Poster Contest. Lions Clubs International is sponsoring the program to emphasize the importance of world peace to young people everywhere.
“Peace isn’t here to take every second on a clock when every minute is waiting on you.” said 13-year-old Sophia
“Peace is something worth fighting for.” said Gaurangi, age 12.
For their originality, artistic merit and portrayal of the contest theme, “Dare to Dream” these girls’ posters were selected by the club members from among the 47 wonderful posters that were created and submitted by their classmates. The Contest Supervisor and Facilitator was Wendy Hinderhofer, Teacher of Creative Arts and Technology and Architecture Team Advisor. Coordinated by the club’s Peace Poster Contest Chair, Lion Bonnie Roeder, the judging was held on November 7th at the in-person meeting of the Lake Oswego Lions Club at the community room at Lakewood Center for the Arts.
“At the same location, these two young artists will become “award winning young artists” as they are honored and awarded a certificate of recognition and a cash prize at a celebration on the evening of December 5th.”, said Roeder.
Lake Oswego Lions Club President, Eric Weberg said he was impressed by the expression and creativity of the students at Lake Oswego Middle School (LOJ). “It is obvious that these young people have strong ideas about what peace means to them. I’m so proud that we were able to provide them with the opportunity to share their visions.”
“Posters will advance through the district, multiple district and international levels of competition if one of them is to be declared the international grand prize winner,” Weberg said.
One international grand prize winner and 23 merit award winners will be selected. The grand prize includes a cash award of $5,000 and will be recognized at a special awards ceremony at Lions Day with the United Nations. The 23 merit award winners will each receive a certificate and a cash award of $500.
“Our club is cheering for our Lake Oswego girls as the posters advance in the competition, and we hope that their vision will ultimately be shared with others around the world,” Weberg said.
For additional information about Lions Clubs International Peace Poster Contest and media resources, visit www.lionsclubs.org/peaceposter.
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