Melissa Benedek won a Gold Key and Judges’ Award for her portfolio of poems, “Inside the Chrysanthemum Heart of a Brown Eyed Girl.”  After her poems advanced to national competition, Melissa also earned the National Scholastic Writing Awards Silver Key. She was invited to read her work at the Regional Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, April 5, 2017, 7:00 p.m., at The Fair.  Her work, along with the work of others who received recognition, will be exhibited at the Fair from March 23-April 6.

Veronica Ortiz, Violeta de la Guardia, and Isabella Pedraza won Silver Keys and Blue Ribbons for their poetry. Veronica won for her portfolio “Things I’ve told you in my sleep,” Violeta for her portfolio “Haven’t We Always Known” and poem “Shelter,” and Isabella for her poem “Graciliano.”

Natalia de la Guardia, Sasha Jenkins-St. Prix, Karen Rosenbloom, Maria Luiza Vasques, and Ian Zigel also won Honorable Mentions for their work. Natalia won for her poems “Alchemy,” “Hialeah,” “Hurricanes,” and “Pillon.” Sasha won for her “If I Would Have Known and other poems.” Karen won for “Duxbury: A Sestina” and Malu for “São Paulo,” both poems. Ian won for his prose work “Human Faces” and “Me and My Acid, a Captain’s Log.” Isabella Pedraza won an additional Honorable Mention for her essay “El Parque de Paz,” and Violeta de la Guardia won an additional six Honorable Mentions for individual poem submissions.

Arian Djahed and Laureen Jean-Jacques were recognized with 3rd place ribbons for their poems “Justice For Animals, Hymn of Life” and “Confiding,” respectively.