January 25, 2016
Third annual recycling art contest winners named
MURPHY (January 25, 2016) Mayor Eric Barna and the Murphy City Council honored the winners of the third annual Keep Murphy Beautiful (KMB) recycling mascot contest at their Jan. 19 meeting, says Candy McQuiston, Customer Service Manager and Chair of the Murphy Green Team.
“This contest continues to attract some of Murphy’s finest young artists,” she said. “The creativity, innovation and just plain great ideas that emerge from the students are enough to impress anyone. We appreciate the time, effort and attention the participants give their entries.”
Murphy students in Kindergarten through second grade; third through sixth grades; and seventh through tenth grades competed in the contest that challenged them to create a recycle mascot with the theme, “How can I make a difference with Murphy recycling.” A first place and a second place winner were chosen from each of the three grade categories.
“For the third year in a row, our partners at Progressive Waste Solutions have converted the winning entries into wraps and placed them on the sides of the recycling truck that serves Murphy,” she said. Progressive, the City’s trash and recycling contractor, also underwrote the cost of the prizes.
Judges included City Council members Betty Spraggins and Sarah Fincanon as well as community volunteers Mary Pat Elledge and Kenneth Oltmann. Progressive Community Relations Manager Elizabeth Combs rounded out the panel.
Winning second place in the Kindergarten through second grade category was Ifra Anam Kalam, 6, a student at Boggess Elementary School. Second place winner in the third through sixth grade category was Joshua Roy, Jr, 10, from Hunt Elementary. Coming in second in the seventh to tenth grade category was Thomas Dang, 14, of McMillen High School. Each of the second place winners was presented with a certificate signed by the Mayor and a $50 gift card.
The first place winner in the Kinder through second grade category was Ava Arvizu, 8, who attends Martha Hunt Elementary School. Ava was awarded an iPad Mini along with a certificate. First place in the third through sixth grade category was Megan Trieu, 12, a student at Murphy Middle School. She won a $300 gift card and a certificate. Winning in the seventh to tenth grade category was Cedric Zhou, 13, from Murphy Middle School. Cedric was awarded a $300 gift card as well as a certificate. Each of the over 100 entrants was awarded a T-shirt for their participation.
“As always, our sincerest thanks go to Progressive and to the teachers, principals and parents who made the contest fun for everyone,” said McQuiston.
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