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Tennessee Arbor Day Poster
Contest Winners Announced
- Winners will receive plaque, savings bond and
other prizes -
NASHVILLE,
Tenn. – Ben
Apodaca, a fifth-grader at Cedar Bluff Intermediate School in Knoxville was recently
named state winner in the 2008 Tennessee Arbor Day Poster Contest. Second place honors went to Andrew Stout,
Manley Elementary
School in Morristown. Veronika
Vafina, a student at Croft Middle
School in Nashville was named
third place winner in the annual contest open to all Tennessee
fifth-graders.
"The annual Arbor Day Poster Contest is a great way to raise
awareness of the importance of agriculture and natural resources through
education," said state Agriculture Commissioner Ken Givens. “I extend
my congratulations to our winners and to all the fifth-graders who invested
their time and talent in recognizing the value of trees in our
environment."
Apodaca’s poster was selected for its interpretation of the contest
theme “Trees are terrific…inside and out!” His poster has been sent to the
National Arbor Day Foundation in Nebraska to compete
in the national contest. The national winner will be announced at the
National Arbor Day Awards Ceremony later this spring.
All three state winners will receive a plaque, a savings bond, and
other prizes from the National Arbor Day Foundation and the Tennessee
Department of Agriculture, Forestry Division and other corporate sponsors.
Approximately 961 fifth-grade students from across Tennessee participated
in this year’s poster contest, which is conducted annually by the Tennessee
Department of Agriculture’s Division of Forestry. The contest is designed
to help promote the importance of Arbor Day, tree planting and conservation
of our natural resources. The Tennessee Urban Forestry Council also
co-sponsored this year’s state contest.
Arbor Day is a nationally-celebrated observance that encourages tree
planting and care. Founded by J. Sterling Morton in Nebraska in 1872,
National Arbor Day is celebrated each year on the last Friday in April. A
number of state Arbor Days are celebrated at different times of the year to
coincide with the best tree planting weather. Tennessee celebrates
Arbor Day the first Friday of March every year.
Visit http://state.tn.us/agriculture/forestry/arborday/
to view the winning posters and to learn more about Arbor Day in Tennessee.
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This and other news from
the Tennessee Department of Agriculture can be found
online at www.tennessee.gov/agriculture/news or http://picktnproducts.org/media.html
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