Jamie Fernandez only arrived at Vernon’s Maple Street School in the fall, but in that short time she has made a big impression on teachers, fellow students and her principal.
She’s a hard-working student, a good friend to her classmates and, it turns out, an incredible artist too. Jamie created a poster for the statewide fire prevent poster contest and won first place for Tolland County and all of Connecticut. Jamie is proud of her accomplishment, and her parents and principal are thrilled.
Jamie and Maple Street School Principal Josh Egan hold Jamie's poster.
“Since I love drawing, I decided to try,” Jamie said. It took about two weeks to create her poster, which features a firefighter dousing a fire and the message “Fire Prevention, Everyone/Everyday.”
“Jamie is an amazing kid,” Maple Street School Principal Josh Egan said. “She is a great friend and an outstanding student. Everybody wants a Jamie in their class.”
Jamie’s poster was first selected Tolland County winner before advancing to the state competition, where three art teachers evaluated all the entries. She learned last Friday she won the top award.
“Her artistic ability blows me away,” Egan said. “I saw her poster when she finished it and I was thrilled with what I saw.”
Jamie’s win “was a really proud moment for her, for her family and for Maple Street School,” Egan said.
Vernon Fire Marshal Dan Wasilewski each year urges Vernon fourth and fifth graders to enter the contest and Vernon has developed a tradition of success.
“In the last five years we’ve had one other state winner and a Tolland County winner,” he said.
When Wasilewski saw Jamie’s entry, he was impressed. When he learned Jamie’s poster was selected from hundreds of other entries as the best in the state, he was happy for Jamie and Maple Street School.
Jamie's fire prevention poster.
“What an accomplishment,” Wasilewski said. “Of all the entries from kids all over Connecticut, Jamie’s was judged to be the best. How great is that?”
Jamie said she practiced elements of her poster in her sketch book and also experimented with color blending. She said made several drafts of her poster until she was satisfied it was good enough to submit.
Jamie’s family moved to Vernon from the Philippines and this was her first school year in America. She’s made lots of friends and got to see snow for the first time,
“My classmates keep saying it’s my fault there was so much snow,” she said, while adding she has learned to like snow and snow days.
Jamie said she loves Maple Street School and is involved in student council and book buddies, a group of students who mentor younger students. She also served on the school’s safety patrol, which is a huge deal at Maple Street. School leaders are chosen to serve. But Jamie gave up her spot so that another student in her class would have the opportunity to be a safety.
Egan said the competition for statewide winner was tough as all of the entries were really good. That makes Jamie’s win all the more remarkable, he said.
Jamie said the firefighter in her poster is a girl because she wanted to show that “girls can do anything.”
The poster will be featured on a calendar, but Jamie’s original work will stay at Maple Street School.
“We have this beautiful piece of art and we have a perfect spot for it in the main hallway,” Egan said. “Everybody can see it for years to come.”
Jamie’s win also included a cash prize for her, for her school and for the Vernon fire marshal’s office.
The contest is sponsored by the state fire marshal, the state fire marshal association, the state fire chief association, the Connecticut FAIR Plan, which represents the insurance industry, and others.