Two students at Sacred Heart Catholic School, 102 Cottonwood St., were recognized Thursday morning in front of their peers for their achievements in an essay contest through the Serra Club of Topeka.
The Topeka Serra Club, a branch of an international club that supports activities in the Catholic church, sponsored an essay contest about Catholic Vocations. There were 12 parishes that participated and 19 essays were submitted. Two students from Sacred Heart were recognized for their essays: Ashten Scheller, fifth grader, won second place and $50. Emely Magana, sixth grader, was awarded honorable mention. Ashten is the daughter of Dan and Amy Scheller and Emely is the daughter of Esther and Jose Magana.
Jim Kirby, of the Topeka Serra Club, presented the students with the awards Thursday morning at an all-school assembly.
Before the assembly, Ashten talked about her essay, which was about priests, sisters and brothers in the church. She wrote about what role they play in the church and what the church would be like without them. One portion of her essay focused on the “little things.”
“Have you ever heard someone say ‘little things make a difference?’” Ashten wrote. “People with a religious vocation do many of these “little things” every day. Without them, Catholics would not be able to continue their way of life in God. ...”
Ashten said she didn’t expect to get second place for her essay. She said when she found out she put her hand on her mouth in surprise.
“I was really surprised,” she said. “I was speechless.”
Ashten said the class had about two and a half weeks to write their essays.
“I thought it was pretty easy because we learned a lot about what (they) do,” she said. “I didn’t have to do a lot of research. I just wrote about what I already knew.”