Benjamin Kopjanski Wins Prize in VFW Patriot's Pen Contest

2016 Feb 2

Ben Kopjanski of Boston has won first place in the local level of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Patriot's Pen Essay Contest for the 2015-16 school year. Ben is an eighth grade student at Randolph-Macon Academy in Front Royal, and the son of Melanie Kopjanski of Boston, VA.

Randolph-Macon Academy Middle School students won the top three prizes in the post-level competition, which was sponsored by Front Royal VFW Post 1860. Ben's first-place award included a certificate and a $75 prize. The theme for this year's essay was "What Freedom Means to Me."

The Patriot's Pen contest is open to all students in grades 6-8 enrolled in a public, private, or parochial school or homeschooling program in the U.S. and its territories. Winners at the post level go on to compete at the district level. Those winners go on to compete at the state level, and state winners go on to compete at the national level, vying for the grand prize of $5,000 or one of the other 45 prizes awarded. Over 100,000 students compete in the contest each year.