"Dear Mr. Scott..." A Letter Legacy

ST. LOUIS, MO – An award ceremony and reception honored students whose essays placed in an essay contest entitled, Dear Mr. Scott, at 12:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 3, 2007, at the Historic Old Courthouse. The contest was sponsored by Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, Jefferson National Parks Association and the Gateway Arch Riverfront.

From more than one hundred and thirty entries, judges selected the finalists for three age categories. First-place winners read their essays as part of a special program that began at 10:00 a.m. Those who won first, second and third place received a Series EE US Savings Bond in the amount of $200, $100 and $50, respectively.

For ages 9-12, the first-place winner was Adisa Nasufovic of St. Louis, MO; the second-place winner was Noah Engel of St. Louis, MO; the third-place winner was Christina Gardner (page 1, page 2) of Florissant, MO; and honorable mentions went to Peter Schmidt (page 1, page 2) of St. Louis, MO and to a group of students, Terrance Kemey, Arlando Johnson, Kimbria Criner, Matthew Jones and Donna Green, all of St. Louis, MO (page 1, page 2). For ages 13-15, the first-place winner was Elmina Tasic; second-place winner was Enis Brdarevic; and third-place winner was Anquenette Jackson, all of St. Louis, MO; and honorable mentions went to Matthew Baer of Hillsboro, MO and Blessing Kubee of St. Louis, MO. For ages 16-18, the first-place winner was Kenitria Reed (page 1, page 2); second-place winner was Nakia Billups (page 1, page 2); third-place winner was Elizabeth Cantrell (page 1, page 2); and honorable mentions went to Teresa Thevary (page 1, page 2) and Nate Wallace, both of St. Louis, MO.

Dear Mr. Scott was open to children who live or go to school in either Missouri or Illinois. Essayists wrote about the legacy of the Dred Scott Decision in the form of letters addressed to Mr. or Mrs. Scott. The award ceremony and reception were part of a five-day series of special events and programs commemorating the 150^th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dred Scott Decision. The Scotts filed their first suit for freedom in the Historic Old Courthouse.