With Martin Luther King, Jr. Day coming up on Monday, students all across Effingham County participated in the MLK 2017 Poster and Essay Contest, where they either designed a poster or wrote an essay about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr..

The following are the winners of the Grades 1-2 poster contest along with their grade and school that they attend: Savannah Terry in first place (1st grade, South Effingham Elementary School), Karter Wilson in second place (1st grade, South Effingham Elementary School), Bridger Gale in third place (1st grade, South Effingham Elementary School), Addison Stevens - Honorable Mention (1st grade, Blandford Elementary School) and Kylie Stokes - Honorable Mention (2nd grade at Blandford Elementary School).

The following are the winners of the Grades 3-5 poster contest along with their grade and school that they attend: Gavin Arledge in first place (4th grade at Blandford Elementary School), Meg Peterson in second place (4th grade at South Effingham Elementary School), Megan Mooney in third place (3rd grade at Blandford Elementary School), Destiny White - Honorable Mention (4th grade at Blandford Elementary School) and Jacob Garvin - Honorable Mention (3rd grade at Ebenezer Elementary School).

The following are the winners of the Grades 4-5 essay contest along with their grade and school that they attend: Telah Margaret Edwards in first place (4th grade at Springfield Elementary School), Hilary Smith in second place (5th grade at Blandford Elementary School), Kayla Lipovsky in third place (5th grade at Blandford Elementary School) and Lillian Bragg - Honorable Mention (5th grade at Blandford Elementary School).

The following are the winners of the Grades 6-8 essay contest along with their grade and school that they attend: Andria Hunter in first place (6th grade at Effingham County Middle School), Jozelyn Brinson in second place (8th grade at South Effingham Middle School), Terrien Nicole Edwards in third place (7th grade at Effingham County Middle School) and Darrell Jordan, Jr. - Honorable Mention (7th grade at Ebenezer Middle School).

The following are the winners of the Grades 9-12 essay contest along with their grade and school that they attend: Sarah Harden in first place (11th grade at Effingham County High School), Denzel Walls in second place (12th grade at South Effingham High School), Chanses Bowers in third place (11th grade at Effingham County High School) and Micah Nix - Honorable Mention (10th grade at South Effingham High School).

The Theme Contest Winners were Jacobi Griffin (7th grade, Effingham County Middle School) in first place with the theme, “The Dream that Kept Hope Alive”, Kristhea Smith (9th grade, Effingham County High School) in second place with the theme, “Living the Dream in Love, Peace and Unity”, Dawson Stone (9th grade, Effingham County High School) in third place with the theme, “Remember the Past So You Can Change the Future” and Calvin White (9th grade, Effingham County High School) as an Honorable Mention selection with the theme, “Live for Change, Hope for Dreams”.