May 09, 2008 09:52 am
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The Globe honored 10 area mothers last week with gifts after selecting the top essays describing why those moms were so deserving.
The contest, conducted by our advertising department, attracted about 50 essays, and judges said making a selection was a tough task.
Young moms nominated older moms. A daughter-in-law paid a special tribute to her mother-in-law and lots of young elementary children wrote letters telling us just how special their mothers are.
Winning essays were submitted by Brooke Rentfro, Joplin, nominating her mother-in-law, Jerry Sue Rentfro; Wanda Cooper, Joplin, nominating her mom, Karen Barger; Joshua West, nominating his mother, Christi McCoy; Alberta Anders, nominating her mother, Orpha Spears Smythe; Jerry Thurston, Carthage, nominating his mother, Judy Head; Rebecca Polok, Galena, Kan., nominating her mother, Mary Mooney; Joseph Klink, Joplin, nominating his mother, Tracy Klink; Chandler Pattyson, Joplin, nominating his mother Amanda Pattyson; Deona Cole, nominating her mother, Tiffany Shockley; and Doug, Lacy, Bradley and Savanna Carey, who each wrote essays about their mother, LaDonna Carey.
I asked if I could look through some of the winning essays, hoping I would find a few words to share with readers on Mothers Day.
I liked what Savanna Carey, 9, had to say about her mother: “My mom always puts us first. If we need something and she needs something, she gets the thing we want first.” She also added: “Our mom raises me, my sister, my brothers all by herself. And she does real good.”
LaDonna Carey’s oldest son, Doug, 18, even helped his younger brother and sisters with the entries and added his own thoughts.
“There would never be enough ink and paper to tell it all. She also has told us she has never won anything in her whole entire life. This is why you need to read all four of our letters and chose our mom as the No. 1 mom.”
Wow, LaDonna. Sounds like your children are real prize-winners themselves.
Deonna Cole, a fifth-grader at Jefferson Elementary in Joplin, writes that “I love my mom with all my heart, she means the whole world to me.” By reading Deonna’s letter, I learned that her mother had been in a car accident and is now disabled. Deonna wrote us because she believed “A surprise would help her.”
I’m sure, Deonna, that you also mean the “whole world” to your mom.
Chandler Pattyson, a fourth-grader at Jefferson Elementary, says his mother is so great that “she bought me dogs even though she is allergic to them.” But, Chandler probably won the judges over when he wrote: “My mom is the only mom I know that can hook up my Playstation 2.”
Good going, Amanda Pattyson.
Joplin fourth-grader Joseph Klink believes his mom, Tracy, deserves a special gift because “when I am feeling cold her heart warms me up.”
Mary Mooney’s grown daughter, Rebecca Polok paid tribute to her mother, who Rebecca said loved her even on her worst days.
“When I felt I’d been a disappointment, she’d hug me and say: ‘No matter what you do, I’ll always love you and stand beside you.’ Through my roughest times she was my strongest support and still is. Thinking about her brings joy, and I’m often told I’ve raised two wonderful children of my own. However, I just smile, knowing the secret was my mother’s forgiving love that I passed on.”
One of my favorites came from Alberta Anders, of Pineville. Alberta is 71-years-old and says she has known many people, but she has never met anyone who compares with her 93-year-old mother, Orpha Spears Smythe.
“Born in 1914, having suffered through the Depression, the Dust Bowl and many adversities including the loss of two children and widowed twice, her love of life never diminishes. Raised without electricity or indoor plumbing, she, nevertheless, has mastered the cable remote, the modern conveniences such as a dishwasher, a microwave and a cell telephones. At the mature age of 93 years, she is still maintaining our home and her flowers and is an important part of her church, attending every Sunday. ... Her telephone rings frequently as her family inquires of her expertise in the planting of their gardens, recipes and common-sense formulas to life’s daily problems. My mother is a very special person, not only to me, but to all who know her.”
These are just a sampling of the winning essays, but I think you get the picture. Mothers hold a unique place in their children’s hearts — no matter the age of the child.
Carol Stark is editor of The Joplin Globe. Address correspondence to her, c/o The Joplin Globe, P.O. Box 7, Joplin, Mo. 64802 or e-mail cstark@joplinglobe.com.
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