Local students win history essay contest 

Michael Lofton, Templeton High School senior reading his winning essay, “Columbus and Lindberg: A Journey Across the Atlantic.”

All three students will advance to state level competition

–Three students from North County schools have won the history essay contests for the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) California District 7. The students, Michael Lofton, Juan Farias and John Nicholson were honored with certificates of recognition and $50 checks at the DAR George Washington Tea on Saturday. The tea is an annual event for the local El Paso de Robles chapter of the DAR.

Michael Lofton, a Templeton High School senior, read his winning essay “Columbus and Lindberg: A Journey Across the Atlantic.” Juan Farias, an eight grader from Cappy Culver School read his essay, “A Colonial Family’s Reaction to the Stamp Act.” John Nicholson, sixth grade from Templeton MIddle School, was unable to attend the tea. His sister, Karen, read his essay in his place, also titled, “A Colonial Family’s Reaction to the Stamp Act.” Nicholson also won the district competition last year as a fifth grader.

Juan Farias, Cappy Culver School eighth grader, reading “A Colonial Family’s Reaction to the Stamp Act.”

The DAR District 7 covers California from Simi Valley to Paso Robles and includes eight chapters. All three of the winning essays have been entered in the state competition. State winners go on to the national competition.

Members of Templeton Boy Scout Troop 434 Honor Guard also received certificates of appreciation for their work in the community. Certificates were presented by El Paso de Robles Regent Donna Cohen to Cameron Clark, David Magie, Carson Nauta, Jacob Shapero, Matthew Magie and Scoutmaster David Shapero.

Templeton Boy Scout Troop 434 Honor Guard receiving certificates of appreciation from Regent Donna Cohen.

The George Washington Tea is an annual event recognizing community youth and DAR members for their service. This year Melanie Coppen of Templeton was presented with a certificate of recognition for her 20 years of membership. New members, Marilyn Hamilton from Paso Robles, Antonia Stelloh from Paso Robles, and Lorna Whiteaker from Grover Beach were inducted into the DAR.

The DAR is a service organization founded in 1890 for historical preservation, promotion of education, and encouragement of patriotic endeavor. The organization sponsors history school essay contests throughout the school year as part of the educational outreach projects. Cohen said that the local DAR chapter represents a very large area. “Our chapter covers from the Cuesta Grade to Southern Monterey County, including Bradley, Lockwood and surrounding areas in the north; from the Cambria and Pacific coast on the West to Parkfield, Shandon, Pozo and Santa Margarita on the East.”

About the author: News Staff

News staff of the A-Town Daily News wrote and edited this article from local contributors and press releases. Scott Brennan is the publisher of this newspaper and founder of Access Publishing. Connect with him on Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn, or follow his blog. He can be reached at [email protected].