Patriot's Pen 2023-2024
VFW National Headquarters announces the Patriot's Pen 2023-2024 Theme, "How are you inspired by America?".
Student Entry Deadline: October 31, 2023
Patriotic Written Essay Competition Grand Prize: $5,000 Award
Patriot's Pen 2022-2023
By
Bristol M. Thomas
First Place Winner from Fowlerville Junior High School, Fowlerville, Michigan
My Pledge to our Veterans
I live in a country where
I get to dream big dreams. When I was little, I wanted to be a teacher like my mom. As I got older, I decided that I want to be a cosmetologist. I enjoy talking to people and am interested
in helping others be confident in themselves. I can best accomplish this by
working with my future clients to help them look their
best so they can feel their
best. Now, you may be thinking what
does this have to do with veterans? In my
opinion, my dreams have everything to do with
veterans.
I hope that every veteran knows that I am dreaming big dreams because of their service to our country. I pray that every veteran understands how thankful I am for their service. I will work tirelessly
to achieve my dreams because my dreams would never have been possible without
our veterans. Our veterans have fought tirelessly throughout our country's
history to protect the liberties and freedoms all Americans share. Without these liberties and freedoms, I may never have had the opportunity or choice to become a
cosmetologist. Had our country's history
been different, maybe my career would
have been chosen for me. Had
our country's history been different,
as a girl I maybe wouldn't have been
able to go to school or to have a career at all. However, thankfully we have men and women in each branch of the
armed forces that are willing to fight for the liberties, freedoms and ideals
imagined by our founding fathers. It is
our veterans that have made the ideals
and values expressed in the
Declaration of Independence and the Constitution something that have carried on
throughout America's history.
The veterans that have served our country deserve to be repaid by every single American. One of the best ways we can repay our veterans is to dream big dreams, work to achieve them and to show we are thankful for their service. Every veteran has taken an oath to defend our country against all enemies foreign and domestic and to uphold the Constitution of the United States. It is my oath to our veterans that not only will I work to achieve my dreams, I will do so in their honor so they know that nothing I accomplish in life would have been possible without their service to our great country.
Past Patriots Pen Winners
2018-2019 Josiah J. Schafer Fowlerville Junior High School "Why I Honor the American Flag"
2019-2020 Brennan M Wyrembelski Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic School "What Makes America Great"
2020-2021 Elsa G. Rosenthal Fowlerville Junior High School "What is Patriotism to Me"
2021-2022 Jackson Harlan Williamston Middle School "How Can I Be a Good American"
2021-2022 Bristol M Thomas Fowlerville Junior High School "How Can I Be a Good American"
2022-2023 Bristol M Thomas Fowlerville Junior High School "My Pledge to Our Veterans"
2023-2024 "How are you inspired by America?"
