Bladen Soil and Water Conservation District recently announced the winners in the 2016 Poster, Essay, Public Speaking, Computer Generated Slide Show & Computer Generated Poster contests for Bladen County Academy, Primary, Elementary, Middle school and High School students.

This year’s theme was “We All Live in a Watershed.”

First- and second- place District winning entries were awarded cash prizes, and firs-place entries advance to the Area VI I competition, which consists of nine conservation districts throughout Southeastern North Carolina. Area winners advance to state level competition.

The Soil and Water Conservation District believes that teaching children the importance of conserving our natural resources at an early age will benefit everyone in the future.

The local winners were:

Computer Designed Poster

— First place: McKoy Tyner, Paul R. Brown Leadership Academy

Slide Show-sixth Grade

— Second place: Devin Avant, Clarkton School of Discovery

— First Place: Kayla Todd, East Arcadia School

Public Speaking-eighth grade

— Second place: Madison Cooke, Elizabethtown Christian Academy

— First place: Samaria Grant, Tar Heel Middle School

Public Speaking-seventh grade

— Second place: Tamera Bethea, Paul R. Brown Leadership Academy

— First place: Cheyanne Jacobs, East Arcadia

Poster-sixth grade

— Second place: Nigee Lacewell, Paul R. Brown Leadership Academy

— First place: Sydney Gardner, Clarkton School of Discovery

Poster-fifth grade

— Second place: Daniella Maldonado, Tar Heel Middle School

— First place: Alyssa Strickland, Elizabethtown Christian Academy

Poster-fourth grade

— Second place: Daniel Rygiel, Bladen Lakes Primary School

— First place: Addie Bowen, Elizabethtown Christian Academy

Poster-third grade

Second place: Holland Davis, Bladenboro Primary School

First place: Chandler Bordeaux, Elizabethtown Christian Academy