By Lisa Magers/CISD Community Services
Mayra Dominguez had no idea her thoughts on going green would lead to some green of her own.
The Irving Elementary fifth-grader has been named the recipient of a $1,000 U.S. savings bond as the district winner in the 2009 Luminant Scholar essay contest.
Her essay on ways she can help the environment was selected as the top entry of those submitted by fellow fifth-graders at Irving, Coleman and Adams Elementary schools.
“I can use the power within myself to make a difference in the environment,” wrote the 11-year-old, who recounted what she could do in her personal mission to reuse, recycle and reduce.
“I can ride my bike or walk to where I need to go,” Dominguez wrote. “Of course I can’t ride my bike to Dallas, but I will carpool with another friend who would be going. I can also recycle paper, plastic and glass. By recycling paper, I can save trees from being cut down. Plastic and glass both take years to disintegrate so therefore if I recycle, I cause landfills to get smaller in size, making our planet nice and neat for us to live on.”
The Luminant Scholar essay contest, now in its second year, was created to raise awareness about the environment, said Program Director Robert Gentry.
“This contest is designed to get your ideas,” Gentry told Irving students during the assembly honoring Dominguez. “Your essays are about great things we can do to impact the environment when we are working together.”
The fifth-grader said she couldn’t believe it when she heard her essay was selected as the top district entry.
“It took me a while,” she said. “I didn’t know what to write. But once I got two sentences down, it began to flow.
“It bothers me that people don’t seem to care about the environment. I get worried when they talk on the news about people cutting down all these trees and leaving animals without any homes. I keep telling my mom about the paper recycling we do here at school and that we need to participate. I’m also working on things I can do. The hardest thing is to remember to turn the light off when you are leaving a room.”
Dominguez’ prize-winning essay also resulted in a win for her classmates, with every fifth-grader receiving a Luminant “Making Texas Shine” T-shirt.
“I’m so proud of Mayra and all our students,” said Irving Assistant Principal Rebecca Helm. “I often see our kids picking up trash on the playground, and they are very interested in recycling. I think a lot of what they learn about the environment and recycling here at school, they share with their families at home.”
Dominguez’ essay will advance to the winner’s bracket, in which three entries will be selected to receive a $5,000 grant for their school.
The awards will be announced in December.
Last year, Coleman Elementary fifth-grader Gillian Epperson won a Luminant grant for her campus as a grand prize winner.
Named commended participants in the essay contest were Cleburne fifth-graders Jorge Hernandez and Sean Reitzes from Irving; Gracie DeVaney, Cindy Villasana and Amy Stark from Adams Elementary and Annesley Young, Will Whitworth and Lucas Pengelly from Coleman Elementary.
More than 40 Texas school districts are participating in this year’s Luminant Scholar program.
Luminant, a subsidiary of Energy Future Holdings Corporation, is the largest purchaser of wind-generated electricity in Texas and is also involved in nuclear-powered and coal-fueled generation.
