On Wednesday, the three winners of the 48th annual America & Me Eassay contest, sponsored by Farm Bureau Insuarnce were recognized.

Goodrich Middle School students Ella Locey, Miaya Tait and Taylor Thomas were awarded for their achievement. As the school’s first place winner, Locey’s name will be engraved on a plaque displayed in the school office.

The topic for the 2016-17 America & Me Essay contest was “My Personal American Hero.”

Locey’s essay was about her father and is posted on thecitizenonline.com.

Locey’s first place essay now advances to the state level competition from which the top 10 essays in Michigan will be selected.

The top 10 statewide winners, will be announced in April, with a $1,000 cash award.

My Michigan Hero
By Ella Locey
Goodrich Middle School
The definition of the word hero is a person who is admired or idealized for courage and outstanding achievements. In my case, my hero would be my Dad. He has been there for my brothers and I more than anyone could imagine.
My Mom was sick for a long time, in and out of the hospital for years. He was the glue of the family at this time. he was the one to go to work every day, then come home and take care of my brothers, my Mom and I. My Mom recently passed away due to complications.
After my Mom passed, my Dad showed my brothers and I nothing but love and compassion. By doing so, he made sure that we knew that we were loved more than ever, whether he was telling us or just simply showing us.
With him being there for us, it had made me realize that he was not only my hero, but also he was someone I could idolize.
One of the many other reasons I idolize my Dad is because he is very sedulous. He graduated from Ohio State University with an engineering bachelor degree. Now he works up to 60 hours a week in the purchasing/safety department at Chrysler. In and out of meetings all day then having his work travel with him at home, whether it is on his computer even on his phone. My family and I always say he’s working like a dog!
Generosity is another one of the many reasons I idolize my Dad. He has helped many friends and family in so many ways. For an example, during these past few months my father went straight from work to a friend’s shop. He was there for hours after work and spent most of his weekends there helping them. He built shelves, tables, and other things. He did this at no cost. He also coaches basketball in his free time. He coached my oldest brother, Ben, and his team for almost five years. Same goes with my youngest brother, Jack. He has been coaching him and his team for about three years and is still coaching them to this day. It just showed me that you could be generous with not only your belongings, but also your time.
I can’t say that I can call anyone more of a hero than my Dad— from working hard at his job to being a single dad, he has shown me so much love, courage, generosity and compassion.