Senator Witkos Hosts Essay Contest Ceremony in Torrington

Torrington – State Senator Kevin Witkos (R-8) hosted an essay contest ceremony with sixth grade students from St. Peter/St. Francis School at the Torrington Library on Monday, April 2nd. The event was hosted in partnership with Torrington Savings Bank which presented awards for the winning and runner-up essays.

“I am so proud of the work that these students accomplished during this essay contest,” said State Senator Kevin Witkos. “Stepping into the shoes of elected officials, these students have deepened their understanding of the responsibility that comes with improving our community. I would also like to thank Torrington Savings Bank for their very generous role in this event.”

Two winning essays and two runner-up essays were selected among the essays that were submitted by students from St. Peter/St. Francis School. The topic was “If You Were an Elected Official, How Would You Make Your Community a Better Place to Live?” Below is a list of the winners and runners-up:

Winners
Catherine Rossi
Mason Coudriet

Runners-Up
Brian Considine
Abbie Hanlon

“I am excited that Torrington Savings Bank could participate in this essay contest,” said Jeff Lalonde, President and CEO of the Torrington Savings Bank. “It is always a pleasure to give back to our community. We congratulate the winners and runners-up for all of their hard work and look forward to supporting similar educational initiatives in the future.”

At the event, the winners and runners-up each read their essay and received a citation from the Connecticut General Assembly. Torrington Savings Bank also generously presented “First Time Savers” bank accounts for each of the students, with a beginning balance of $100 for the winners and $50 for the runners-up.

Catherine Rossi wrote about the changes she would make if elected as Mayor. She outlined some ideas to make the community a more attractive and safer place to live and work, including the restoration of abandoned buildings and increasing police presence to discourage criminal activity.

Mason Coudriet wrote about the goals he would set as an elected official and some of the projects and strategies he would implement to promote economic development, attract new businesses and make shopping downtown more convenient for residents.

Brian Considine wrote about a dream he had in which he was Mayor. His focus was to improve road safety for drivers and pedestrians, create jobs and encourage economic growth through restoration of abandoned buildings. Brian hopes to be elected Mayor of Torrington one day.

Abbie Hanlon wrote about a dream in which she was given the opportunity to be Mayor for the week. In her dream, she proposed a plan to the local Board of Safety for improvements on local roads to protect bicyclists, reduce vehicle traffic and air and noise pollution. Abbie also wrote a letter to Mayor Ryan Bingham sharing her ideas to improve the quality of life in town.

The students were joined by their parents, grandparents, school administrators, teachers and members of the public who gathered to recognize their accomplishments.

Torrington Savings Bank has served the banking and investment needs of customers throughout the thirty-three towns in Northwest Connecticut since 1868. For more information, please visit their website at www.torringtonsavings.com.

St. Peter/St. Francis School is a Catholic school serving children from the greater Torrington area from pre-Kindergarten through eighth grade. For more information, please visit their website at www.spsfschool.org.