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A moving piece about her grandparents' "majestic" home has won a 13-year-old student the award for the best local entry to a prestigious national essay competition for the second time in two years.
Juliette Bale has received the Royal Commonwealth Society Jersey Award Cup for her essay, which was judged to be the best out of the 150 students that took part in the 2019 competition.
Entitled 'The Place I Feel Connected To', Juliette’s essay starts by describing her “haven”, “a hidden treasure smothered with magic”, her grandparents’ house in St. Clement.
It then moves on to describe one of many “less fortunate places … engulfed with heinous actions of terrorists”, Kabul.
Pictured: Children in Kabul.
It concludes: “This incredible city of Kabul is where many inhabitants feel connected. It bears history that is seared into hearts. Just like the place I connect to. Rocqueberg will forever be a connection to peace, which is why I love it. I grew up admiring it, and as I continue to grow, my admiration will too.
"I will forever feel a connection. Maybe not as powerful as wartime survivors in Kabul, but it will forever bear one succulent mango among the apples on my tree of life.”
This is the second time the young islander has won the cup. She won it in 2018 with an essay detailing a Syrian child’s dream world filled with chocolate, green meadows and even Umpa Lumpas to escape the harsh reality of war.
Juliette’s essay was one of 54 local essays to score an award in the competition which is open to the RCS’s European region – i.e. the UK, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, Cyprus, Gibraltar and Malta.
The competition - the oldest and largest youth writing contest in the world - attracted over 11,000 entries from across the Commonwealth in 2019 and approximately a third of the entrants won an award.
Pictured: Jersey students won 54 of the awards.
The judging panels said they had been impressed by the skill and talent shown by of many of the young writers in their entries, which were based on the theme ‘A Connected Commonwealth’.
17.5% of the 308 award-winning entries were written by young islanders who scored nine Gold – including Juliette – 12 Silver and 33 Bronze awards.
Pupils from St. Michael’s Preparatory School and JCPrep were especially successful: St Michael’s students won 26 awards (eight gold, seven silver and 11 bronze), whilst those at JCPrep gained 18 awards (one gold, tzo silver and 15 bronze).
At least 7 students who were at JCG in June 2019 gained awards (two silver and five bronze) while two pupils from Les Quennevais School won bronze awards.
The successful young Jersey writers received gift cards from the hands of the Lieutenant-Governor in front of their families and representatives of their schools during a ceremony organised by the local Royal Commonwealth Society branch last Friday.
Juiliette Bale (junior gold award and Jersey Award cup); Lucy Cilvers, Ella Davidson, Thomas Doyle, Holly Griffin, Peter Huggler, Emily Inman, Henry Roberts
Athena Allbut, Oliver Cranmer, Isabelle Gale, Ava Griffiths, Zara Holt, Poppy Hughes, Freddie Laing, Maeve Lambert, Evie MacDonald, James Mackereth, Jo Peel, Sophia Poignand, Jaimie Simpson
Eleanor Amy, Niamh Doyle, Jago Driver, Ciara Evans, Chloe Fletcher, Clara Ginnis, Monty Gleeson, Cassandra Graham, Ruby Gray, Dylan Green, Joe Griffiths, Eilidh Hunt, Charlie Hunter, Lincoln Jenkinson, Tiegan Kett, Maeve Lambert, Evaline Le Chevalier, Anna Lynch, Roisin McGranahan, Madelief Nicholls, Jessica Olliver, Hannah Perris, Ella Pirouet, Eve Roper, Leila Simpson, Nadia Vernaglione, Mary Wankling, Monty Weaver, Sofiya White, Oni Whittingham, Annabelle Williams, Lauren Winchester, Thomas Wood
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