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01/08/2020 11:01 PMCecelia “CeCe” Gash, an 8th grade student at North Haven Middle School, was the 2019 winner of the local phase of the 32nd annual Lions International Peace Poster Contest; the local competition is sponsored by the North Haven Lions Club. Gash’s poster was selected from 25 entries at an Oct. 31 judging at the middle school for its originality, artistic merit, and portrayal of the contest theme—Journey of Peace; it is among more than 600,000 entries submitted worldwide. Lions Clubs International sponsors the program to emphasize the importance of world peace to young people everywhere.
“I showed in my drawing that everything will be okay in the end,” Gash said. “As the van drives along the road, everything got better and everything felt at peace. This shows that the journey to peace may be hard, but in the end it will be worth it.”
North Haven Lions Club President Al Papsun said he was impressed by the expression and creativity of the students at North Haven Middle School.
“It is obvious that these young people have strong ideas about what peace means to them,” Papsun said. “I am so proud that we were able to provide them with the opportunity to share their visions.”
Gash’s poster advanced to the district judging on Dec. 7 but did not garner the district prize, which would have advanced her to the multiple district judging against the winners in the other two districts in Connecticut.
“We congratulate CeCe on her efforts and wish her the best in all her future endeavors,” said North Haven Lions Peace Poster Contest Coordinator Alan Sturtz. “We also want to express our sincere appreciation to Betsy Titus, art teacher at the middle school, for working with our club in this contest over the last three years.”
Lions Clubs International is the world’s largest service club organization with more than 1.4 million members in more than 47,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographic areas. Since 1917, Lions clubs have aided the blind and visually impaired and made a strong commitment to community service and serving youth throughout the world.