FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Rebecca Silver, Sierra Club, rebecca.silver@sierraclub.org
Kaveh Sadeghzadeh, Bureau of Land Management, kcsadegh@blm.gov
BLM and Sierra Club Announce
Winners of the
First Annual Veterans
Day Essay and Photo Contest for Military Service Members and Families
(WASHINGTON, DC) – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Sierra Club Mission Outdoors today announced the winners of their first annual Veterans Day Essay and Photo Contest:
- Mt. Shavano Veterans Expedition, Scott Ostrom (Marine Corps);
- How Courage is Bred, Liam Corley (Navy); and
- Beauty of Nature; Kami Fluetsch (Navy).
The
three winning entries, which include a video essay, a photo essay, and a
written essay, will be featured on the BLM and Sierra Club websites and social
media platforms, and receive an outdoor support kit from the Sierra Club.
The
contest, centered on the theme “What My Public Lands Mean to Me,” encouraged
veterans, active-duty military, and their families to submit photos, essays and
video about their experiences and memories of time spent outside on America’s
public lands. The contest is a part of
an ongoing commitment by both organizations to provide the country’s Armed
forces with opportunities to get outside and enjoy the beautiful public lands
that they have sacrificed to defend.
The BLM
and Sierra Club accepted entries from Veterans Day, November 12, thru National
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, December 7, at http://mypubliclands.challenge.gov.
December 7 through December 14 members of the public voted for their favorite
entries through the same website. The entries were then judged by a panel of
BLM and Sierra Club employees, including Carl Rountree, Assistant Director of
the BLM’s National Landscape Conservation System, and Stacy Bare, Sierra Club Mission
Outdoors Director.
As
military veterans, Rountree and Bare recognized their own experiences with the public
lands in each entry. “In reviewing these
submissions, I was inspired and humbled by the powerful and articulate
testimonials. Each of the entries highlighted the importance of public lands as
a place for connection, encouragement, reflection, and renewal for our brave
service members and their families,” Rountree said.
“Selecting
winning entries from an amazing group of applicants was difficult,” said Bare. “The
passion conveyed by each participant is something we need to share with all
America. If I had to pick one theme from these entries, it would be, ‘we fought
for this country, now go enjoy it and let it embody your freedom!’”
The
three winning entries, along other qualifying submissions, are available at http://www.blm.gov/mypubliclands.
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