Ready Georgia announces winners of annual art, essay, video contest

(ATLANTA) – Just in time for Halloween, a number of Georgia youth have creatively illustrated they are “prepared, not scared” for the unexpected.

For the fifth year, Ready Georgia – the emergency preparedness campaign from the Georgia Emergency Management Agency/Homeland Security (GEMA) – asked students statewide to commemorate National Preparedness Month by entering its annual art, essay and video contest. Over the course of six weeks in September and October, third, fourth and fifth-graders tackled the theme – “Don’t Be Scared, Be Prepared” – and revealed how they have overcome their fears by preparing for emergencies. In addition, they provided insight on teaching others how to get ready at home and school.

“Natural disasters and emergencies can seem scary, especially for children. But the more they prepare, the less frightening it is,” said Charley English, director of GEMA/Homeland Security. “This contest was designed to help youth creatively apply the information they’ve learned about emergency preparedness and illustrate ways to avoid what could be a life-threatening situation. We were impressed with every entry, making it a challenge to select winners.”

Entries ranged from personal and fiction stories, to collages, figurative art and videos produced by Georgia classrooms. A team of judges – including Lisa Janak Newman and Danielle Graham, both of GEMA, and Pam Duncan of Imagine It! The Children’s Museum of Atlanta – reviewed all of the materials and selected the top finishers in each category. This year’s winners include:

Art
First Place: Jakari Miles, Gideons Elementary School, Atlanta
Second Place: Samuel Garcia, Macon County Elementary School, Oglethorpe
Third Place: Ella Cramer, Bremen Academy, Bremen

Essay
First Place: Jaleria Johnson, West Town Elementary School, Albany
Second Place: Nadia Beavers, Gideons Elementary School, Atlanta
Third Place: Harrison Lucas, West Manor Elementary School, Atlanta

Video
First Place: “Don’t be scared, be prepared” by Shannon Hustick’s class at Hannan Academy, Columbus
Honorable mention: “Storm Preppers” by Cherie Hathcock’s class at Flowery Branch Elementary School, Flowery Branch

First, second and third place winners will receive prizes including admission passes to AMC Theatres, Atlanta Botanical Gardens, World of Coca-Cola and CNN Studio Tours, gift shop items from Imagine It! The Children’s Museum of Atlanta and emergency supply kits from Ready Georgia corporate sponsor, The Home Depot. All winning entries will be featured on the Ready Georgia website, Flickr, Facebook and YouTube pages.

The kids contest is one of many annual initiatives organized by Ready Georgia to promote National Preparedness Month in September and motivate people to prepare their homes, workplaces and communities for emergencies of all kinds. Families can visit ready.ga.gov for more information about emergency preparedness in Georgia or tips on creative ways to involve kids in readiness efforts. For preparedness on the go, families can also download Ready Georgia’s free mobile app.

About Ready Georgia
Ready Georgia is a statewide campaign designed to educate and empower Georgians to prepare for and respond to natural disasters, pandemic outbreaks, potential terrorist attacks and other large-scale emergencies. The campaign is a project of GEMA and provides a local dimension to Ready America, a broader national campaign. Ready Georgia aims to prepare citizens for maintaining self-sufficiency for at least 72 hours following an emergency, and uses an interactive website, free mobile app, broadcast and print advertising and public awareness media messaging to reach its audiences. Ready Georgia is also on Facebook and YouTube.