STURGIS - Jake Soltys, a Grade 12 Sturgis Composite School student, was a little overwhelmed and excited when he found out he had won first place at the national level for his Remembrance Day poem that he had written for the Royal Canadian Legion's annual National Youth Contest.
“It was astonishing and so exciting to have one of our local students to achieve that recognition. We, the Legion, are honoured and excited for Jake,” stated Betty Lou Skogen, Norquay Legion representative.
Soltys received a $1,000 cash prize and a trip to Ottawa in November for the National Remembrance Day Ceremony. His poem will be on display at the National War Museum for one year and a plaque commemorating his achievement will be placed at his school.
“When I first started writing this poem we were given time in class, but I felt after numerous scratches and re-starts that I needed more time so I worked on it on my own time,” said Soltys. “I found inspiration from the poem In Flanders Fields and through the many stories told by both my great-grandmothers who served in the war and passed down many stories. I feel very honoured, excited and a little overwhelmed with this great honour of having something I wrote from my heart to be felt as far as the national level. The possibilities are endless and I hope to inspire other students to reach out, put in the effort and don’t be afraid to put feeling to paper to tell your story. I have already composed and submitted my essay for next year’s contest,” he concluded.
The Sturgis Composite School sent him off in grand style with Mayor Dean Harris bringing greetings from the town and a special hoodie that recognized Soltys’ efforts, Norquay Legion members Laura Dahl (president) accompanied by Betty Lou Skogen, Legion member, also spoke highly of the achievement and were honoured at having Jake being highly acknowledged. The Norquay Legion is responsible for the Remembrance Day contest at the Sturgis Composite School.
“We are so proud of Jake and how he has now inspired other students to participate in the annual contest,” stated Dahl. Soltys was even given a ride around the school grounds in an army jeep as he departed the school’s Remembrance Day service.
Soltys was joined by his family, Levi Soltys (dad), Marina Horner (mom) and Jailen Soltys (sister) when the family flew to Ottawa on Nov. 9.
The next day, on Nov. 10, they met with the other national contest winners in the lobby of their hotel, Chateau Laurier. The group toured the Senate of Canada building where they met Greg Peters, Usher of the Black Rod. They continued on to tour the Speaker’s Office, House of Commons and the Remembrance Room, followed by a rehearsal at the National War Memorial and the day concluded with luncheon with the Silver Cross Mother, Maureen Anderson and a tour of the Canadian War Museum.
On Nov. 11, the group of winners and families were escorted to the War Memorial for the service where Soltys had the opportunity to place a wreath during the ceremony. After the ceremony they attended a luncheon with the Governor General, Her Excellence Mary Simon and Chief of Defense Staff, General Jennie Carignan. At the conclusion of the day they attended Dear Canada (Letters from the Second World War) at the National Arts Centre.
“The entire experience was a little nerve-racking as I was afraid of messing up during the ceremony, but it went great and I am humbly honoured by the experience that I will never probably get to experience again. The entire experience has been amazing with meeting so many important people,” said Soltys.
He stated that he credits his teacher, Kristen Peterson and his family for the support and the Sturgis Station House Museum for employing him to do grounds maintenance for the last year that enabled him to explore the museum and spark his interest in creating his award-winning poem.
“Through the annual National Youth Remembrance Contests, the Legion National Foundation, with the assistance of The Royal Canadian Legion and schools across the country, invite Canadian youth and children to honour Canada’s Veterans and foster the tradition of Remembrance through visual art, writing, and video,” stated the National Youth Remembrance Contests, the Legion National Foundation. .
The contests include multiple levels of competition. Poster and literary works compete first at the Legion Branch local level, with winning entries moving forward until they reach the provincial level. Video entries compete first at the Legion Command provincial level. Provincial finalists of all contests then move forward for final judging by the Legion National Foundation to determine the national winners.
