During the 2021 holiday season, VFW Post 2152, Waltham, awarded $450 to this year’s Patriot’s Pen contest winners and participants. Post members expressed sympathy for the students, having been kept from attending school in-person the previous year. They generously voted, with a renewed concern for COVID in mind, to award $200, $100 & $50 to the first, second and third place contest winners, respectively. In addition, Post members decided to award $25 to the other participants as runners up. Post 2152 has never had so many entrants in recent memory.

I have to give credit and a special thank you to Elizabeth Sturges, English teacher, Kennedy Middle School, Waltham, MA. Elizabeth contacted school employees and spread the word to students, teachers, librarians and administrators alike. She also obtained buy-in and support from parents. In all my years administering the Patriot’s Pen contest for Post 2152, I have never seen a better student response nor have I seen such community support. Every Post and veteran should have an ally such as Elizabeth!

The City of Waltham is incredibly supportive of its veterans! Dozens of our city squares are named after those who were killed in action; we are a Purple Heart City; middle school students annually host Veteran’s Day events, including interviewing veterans to hear their stories. The list goes on. We are also a diverse and ever-changing city. There are over 1,400 English language learners in the Waltham Public School system representing 35 languages. Patriot’s Pen allowed our city to bridge the gap between young and old, veteran and non-veteran and introduced patriotism to young students. We are very lucky to have supporters such as Ms. Sturges and those working in the Waltham Public School system.

Post 2152 members look forward to reading even more essays from Waltham students in 2022!