Local Student Wins $10,000 in Habitat Heartland Meaning of Home National Writing Contest

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Wednesday, 10 June 2020 16:59

A grade 6 student from London Emily Phillips has won a $10,000 Habitat Heartland grant in the Meaning of Home national writing contest.

LONDON - A grade 6 student from London has won a $10,000 Habitat Heartland grant in the Meaning of Home national writing contest.

Emily Phillips was one of 9 runners up in the contest. A remarkable 10,200 students entered the contest this year including 65 submissions from Woodstock and Oxford County. Each submission cost $10 with all of the money going back to Habitat for Humanity. This means locally we raised $650 in the contest.

You can read Emily's winning submission below:

What Home Means to Me – Emily Phillips
My house is made of bricks and wood
Have a home? Everyone should
Home is somewhere I can dance
With no one there who will glance
My house protects me from rain and snow
Home is a place everyone should get to go
But a house is just made of bricks and wood
It’s a building not everyone has who should
A home is made of family and friends
Who laugh and laugh until the end
Home to me is a warm place
A place that protects every human and every race
Not everyone has a home but they should
So make a change, give someone a house you could!
So enter this contest they will donate ten dollars
Give someone a house and make them holler
This contest helps build someone a house
A place to go, be happy, and feel well
So be part of this change, come on let’s do it!
Let’s help give someone a house, somewhere to sit, come on we can do it lets
all commit!

You can read all of the 2020 contest winners online here.

Habitat Heartland CEO Brian Elliot wanted to thank all of the local students and teachers that took part in the Meaning of
Home writing contest this year.

“Reading through all their submissions has been truly inspiring, especially during these difficult times. Special congratulations to Emily Phillips on her winning entry! The money Emily and her peers raised through their entries for Habitat Heartland will go a long way to build safe, secure and affordable homes for families in our community.”

There are three grand prize winners, one from each grade, who have won a $30,000 grant towards a local Habitat for Humanity build. Nine runners up have won a $10,000 grant towards their local Habitat. Over 10,200 students entered this year’s Meaning of Home contest, which sets a new record. During a time when many local Habitats are struggling with the financial impact from COVID19 on their operations, this contest helped raise over $280,000. These much needed funds will go towards building homes for families in need of a safe and secure place to call home across the country.

By mobilizing volunteers and community partners, Habitat Heartland provides opportunities for families in Middlesex, Elgin, Oxford and Perth counties to achieve affordable and sustainable home ownership. For more information, please visit www.habitat4home.ca.