Local student wins King essay contest

Brooks Blue, an eighth-grade student at Woodlawn Middle School in Mebane, N.C., has been selected as the winner of the Martin Luther King, Jr., Humanitarian Essay Contest, sponsored by the Elon University Office of Minority Affairs. Blue will be recognized during Elon’s Martin Luther King, Jr.
Commemorative Address program at noon, Thursday, Jan. 17 in Whitley Auditorium.

The contest, open to middle school students in Alamance County, asks students to write a 250-500 word essay describing their personal efforts to keep King’s dream of equality alive. Blue’s community service includes tutoring fellow students at school and assisting with a neighborhood cleanup project. He also participates in rest home visits and the Angel Food project through the Christian Faith Center Church in Creedmoor, N.C. Blue is the son of Oliver and Yaulanda Blue.

Blue will receive a $100 cash prize and a certificate of recognition, and Woodlawn principal Lynn Briggs will receive a plaque to commemorate Blue’s selection.