Spotlighting Excellent Writing

Ginamarie ’25 was a little unsure when she saw the theme for this year’s Voice of Democracy essay contest. It turns out, she needn’t have worried.

For the second straight year, Ginamarie has been recognized by Pittsfield V.F.W. Post 448 as the essay-writing competition’s top finisher at MHS and the city of Pittsfield. This year, she also placed first in Berkshire County District 9, advancing to the state competition, where she finished second overall.

“I was definitely surprised to win a second year in a row, and I didn’t think I would go on to the state level, but that was a nice surprise, too,” says Ginamarie, who estimates it took about two weeks to pen her essay.

The annual Voice of Democracy competition asks students to write and record a three- to five-minute essay on a patriotic theme. Students compete on school, local, state, and national levels, and this year’s theme was, “Is America Today Our Forefathers’ Vision?”

“At first, I thought it was a pretty hard question, especially with everything going on in the country and a lot of division,” explains Ginamarie, who ultimately put forth an argument that the forefathers’ vision wasn’t necessarily a concrete vision, but rather one for a system that would enable others’ visions.

“The forefathers didn’t have a concrete vision for what America should look like,” she notes. “First, they couldn’t agree on a vision. Second, they wanted to create a system where you could have differing visions but collaborate to reach a shared vision.”

In her essay, Ginamarie connected the theme to her family’s story. Her great-grandfather emigrated from Italy with little more than a few dollars and a vision that his grandchildren and great-grandchildren would have access to education and good jobs.

“That vision is happening now in his family’s story, and there were systems in place that allowed that to happen,” notes Ginamarie, who adds that her great-grandmother came from Ireland with a hope that their family would have access to resources for a better life, “and that vision is also present in my lived experiences now.”

Members of Post 448 will visit campus later this spring to recognize Ginamarie, who is an active member of the MHS community and beyond. An accomplished cellist, she frequently performs at Miss Hall’s and is a 10-year member of Kids 4 Harmony, an intensive classical music program for Berkshire County youth. She is also a Big — MHS students who mentor younger students — plays JV basketball, is an avid member of the MHS Crochet Club, and interns at the Dalton Town Offices through her participation in Horizons, the School’s one-of-a-kind service-learning and internship program.

Proficient in Spanish, Ginamarie traveled last summer to Spain, where she lived and studied with a host family through CIEE, an intercultural exchange organization. While there, she earned a seal of biliteracy for translating Spanish, successfully completing the Standards-based Measurement of Proficiency (STAMP) test, which measures one’s ability to read, write, speak, and listen in a target language.

Last year, Ginamarie was named a finalist in the United States Senate-sponsored William Randolph Hearst Youth Senate Program, an intensive week-long educational experience and scholarship geared toward outstanding high school students who are interested in pursuing careers in public service.

Additionally, she has been named a QuestBridge Scholar. QuestBridge is a nationwide program that connects high-achieving high school seniors with full, four-year scholarships to some of the nation’s top colleges. Ginamarie plans to attend Boston University in the fall.

Congratulations, Ginamarie!