Zöe Tober wins school centennial essay contest

The winners of the Frenchtown School centennial essay contest are Zöe Tober, first prize; Joshua Sanchez-Quackenbush, second prize; and Rosalie Strasser, third prize. Zöe and Rosie are eighth graders and Josh is a seventh grader.

They were among nine students who wrote on the theme “The Next 100 Years,” under the helpful supervision of Frenchtown School’s Language Arts duo—teacher Beth McCann and aide Ken Nohe. Donated by an anonymous benefactor, $100 will go to Zöe, $50 to Josh, and $25 to Rosie.

The contestants made predictions and recommendations for the future of Frenchtown and of planet Earth. Personal ambitions were also shared. Some efforts were serious and others were touched with whimsy.

The students’ names were redacted so the essays could be judged “blind.” The judges were Morgan Taylor, owner of Country Chic and president of the Frenchtown Business & Professional Association; Scott Sheldon, co-owner of the Frenchtown Bookshop; and Rick Epstein, local history enthusiast.

“The quality of the essays was heartening,” said Rick, “and we’re going to include some of them in a book that will be a souvenir of the Frenchtown School’s centennial.”

Zöe wrote, “Frenchtown is a beautiful place to live, a town so full of love and joy. Why isn’t the rest of the world? Why do people hate? Why do we fight? I don’t know, but I do know that out of all the hatred in the world, it is usually caused by sadness. And once you start using this angry façade when you’re hurting, it can be hard to stop. That’s because it feels easier than talking through the feelings you’re experiencing.”

Her hope is that “one day the love in Frenchtown will spread to other communities, and keep growing from there until we have real world peace. As we move into high school, I challenge everyone here to be brave enough to choose talking over fighting.”

She urges, “Next time you see someone being mean, don’t just do it back. You need to help them correct their own behavior or it will never change. And I can’t stress this enough, but hate is rooted in sadness. You need to be an ally to the ones who are hurting, not an enemy. Peace starts now, it starts with you.”