Library Foundation awards $1,000 scholarships

Two Warwick Valley High School seniors win essay competition Warwick — The topic was timely and the essays were both thoughtful and thought-provoking. The Albert Wisner Public Library Foundation presented $1,000 scholarships to two soon-to-be Warwick High School graduates last week who won an essay contest whose theme of was the importance of compassionate behavior in the exercise of free speech. This was the first time the foundation awarded scholarships, according to Lisa Laico, reference and young adult librarian, who was also one of the competition’s five judges. The foundation intends to award this scholarship on a yearly basis. Timothy Sattler and Amelia Lupinetti, both graduating seniors from Warwick Valley High School, wrote the award-winning essays. “The First Amendment limits government limitations on our freedom of speech,” wrote Lupinetti in her essay. “It is here that we encounter the tension between our obligation to speak out on important issues, even to people who disagree strongly, and our desire not to alienate the people who hear us. Yet this tension can be resolved, if we remember to speak our minds while being compassionate to the feelings of others.” Sattler, who plans to attend Hartwick College in the fall, wrote in his essay: “Unfortunately, celebrities and leaders in positions of greater power than ourselves exercise unruly ‘free speech’ way too often. In addition to directly harming the people the comments are directed at, their speech affects the rest of America as well. In cases involving Don Imus, Donald Trump, and Rosie O’Donald (sic), viewers and listeners alike are influenced by demeaning, prejudiced, and unsympathetic free speech that is all too common.” Both writers talked of Imus’s insensitive comments about the Rutgers’ women’s basketball team in April which ultimately ended with his firing from WNBC radio and MSNBC television. Lupinetti also took on the difficult topic of the war in Iraq. “The country finds itself fighting an unpopular war in Iraq,” wrote Lupinetti, who will attend Wesleyan University this September. “It is as crucial for individuals to voice their opposition to government policies that lead to war as it is for them to speak out in support. Our belief in the First Amendment is founded on the idea that we need to hear all arguments on critical questions affecting our nation. However, those who do comment on the war in Iraq must keep in mind the feelings of families who have a son or daughter in the military.” All seniors in the Warwick Valley Central School District, including those who attend high schools other than Warwick, are eligible to submit their essay. The foundation will announce the contest each year in March, with essays due in May. Submissions are judged on the responsiveness to the topic, overall literacy, grammatical accuracy and relevance to current community concerns. In addition to Laico, Library Director Rosemary Cooper, Village of Warwick Trustee Eileen Patterson, Director of the Warwick Valley Community Center Karen Thomas and Glenn Dickes, a member of the Albert Wisner Public Library Foundation, judged the essays. “This program,” said Cooper, “affords the library yet another opportunity to engage with our young adults.” “I think the essays were written with such wisdom,” said Patterson. “Each one would be an excellent primer for anyone writing a letter to the editor or adding a comment to an Internet blog.” The mission of the Albert Wisner Public Library Foundation is to provide private financial support to supplement public support for the Albert Wisner Public Library, enhancing opportunities for the library’s continued growth and service to the entire community. Private funds were donated and earmarked specifically to create this scholarship.