By Katie Mossburg

 

“My Vision for America,” addressing the present state of our nation and what must be done to maintain its future, won Bridgeport High School freshman Vincent Pinti first place at the post, district, and state level of the VFW Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest.

 

On January 30, Pinti attended the state winners’ ceremony, where he was awarded first place and a $1,000 dollar scholarship to the instate school of his choice and will soon travel to Washington D.C. to compete nationally against fifty-four other contestants. He will get to present his speech to a panel of professional judges for the chance to win a $30,000 dollar scholarship to any United States college.

 

“I spoke about my beliefs about the refusal to compromise based on ideology and the importance of the Constitution,” said Pinti of his prized audio essay.

 

Bridgeport High School teacher, Mrs. Trina Runner, introduced Pinti to the competition and recommended he place an entry. Pinti was excited about the opportunity and immediately got to work on the speech. Although he wasn’t able to choose the topic, he knew the direction he would take with it.

 

For the contest, limited to 9^th through 12^th grade students, his speech had to be three to five minutes long and read by him while another student recorded it. He had to turn in both an audio recording and a written copy of the speech to the local VFW post by October 31, 2015.

 

Pinti nervously waited to see the results of the post level competition and was informed that he won in early December. Then by January, he was told he had won the district level competition and had to go to the Clarksburg, West Virginia VFW on January 30^th because he and his family had been invited to the state winners’ ceremony.

 

“It was there that they announced ‘Vincent Pinti, winner of the state VFW competition’ and that I would represent the state of West Virginia nationally,” Pinti said.

 

From February 27 to March 2, Pinti will travel to Washington, D.C. for the final competition. While his speech will be presented on March 1, he and the other contestants will spend the other days touring Mount Vernon, the Capitol building, and many of the monuments.

 

Pinti suffers from spinal muscular atrophy. “I’m proud that my disability had not played a factor in this competition. None of the judges had the chance to see me before the state ceremony. They only heard what I had to say. They only got to see me for me. I’m also honored that people believe in my political message of making a better future for everyone no matter their beliefs.”