Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest
Each year more than 138,000 students in grades 6 through 8 enter the VFW’s Patriot’s Pen youth essay contest for a chance to win their share of more than $900,000 in state and national awards. Each first-place state winner receives a minimum of $500 at the national level, and the national first-place winner wins $5,000 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, DC.
The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) has again approved this contest for its National Advisory List of Contests and Activities.
The theme for Patriot’s Pen for 2024-2025 is "My Voice in America's Democray?" To qualify, all entries must be submitted to a sponsoring VFW Post by October 31, 2024.
The entry form which also shows the complete contest rules and how essays are judged can be downloaded from this website.
Students in the Lombard, Illinois, area should download the form 2024-2025 Patriot's Pen Eligibility, Rules and Entry Form, read and follow the rules on the form, and send the completed form and their essay to the VFW Lilac Post 5815, Patriot’s Pen Chairperson, PO Box 1912, Lombard, IL 60148-8912, by midnight, October 31, 2024.
Students elsewhere can download this form and use the website at
https://www.vfw.org/find-a-post to find a sponsoring VFW Post in their area.
The essays are evaluated by members of the Post and Auxiliary. The winners at the VFW Lilac Post 5815 level each receive a small cash award, the opportunity to advance to the District (regional) level, and an invitation to a party in January 2025 for the winners, along with their parents and teachers.
THE RULES
Who can enter? - Patriot’s Pen is open to all students who are in grades 6, 7, and 8 in fall 2024 and are enrolled in public, private, or parochial schools in the U.S., its territories, or its possessions. Home-schooled students also are eligible. Dependents of U.S. military or civilian personnel in overseas schools can participate too. (Foreign exchange students and former winners that placed in the National finals are excluded from the contest.)
What do I need to enter? - Each student should complete and sign the student entry form portion on Page 1 of the form, staple the form to the essay, and sent it to their local VFW Post. Be sure to read and follow the rules on this website and on the entry form. All essays should be typewritten in English with no color or graphics and cannot be less than 300 words or greater than 400 words in length. (Essays under or over these word amounts will be eliminated.) Every word is counted regardless of length. The essay title (theme) or added footnotes do not contribute to the word count.
In no way may contestants identify themselves in their essay. Do not put your name on your essay. The entry form is your essay’s cover sheet. Secure the Official Student Entry Form with a staple or other fastener on top of your essay. Essays must be written exclusively for this competition. Use of the same essay for other competitions will result in disqualification. Contestants are allowed to enter only once (one Post competition) each year. Contestants found in violation of this rule will face elimination from the competition and will be required to return any and all prize money awarded or received. The essay must be a contestant’s original work and a product of the contestant’s own thinking. The approach to the Patriot’s Pen theme should be positive and clearly focused. Poetry is not acceptable. Quotations may be used sparingly if plainly identified wherever used. A contestant’s teacher, counselor, or parent may check the essay for punctuation, grammar, and/or spelling; but the content must remain the contestant’s. Contestants will be judged on the basis of their essay alone and are not required to present the essay orally. All essays become the property of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The VFW retains non-exclusive rights to use your essay and likeness in the promotion and execution of the organization’s programs and activities.
All student entries must be received by the sponsoring VFW Post by midnight, October 31, 2024.
This page was last updated August 5, 2024.
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