Three local students recently took first place in the District 5 American Legion Auxiliary Americanism essay contest. And two of those students went on to place first in the statewide competition, according to information from the Unit No. 54 American Legion Auxiliary in Moab.

Grand County students Drake Hackney, Mary Rice, and Oceanna Irish won the Moab competition for fifth- eighth- and 12th-grade divisions, respectively, earlier this year. The three competed in the District 5 competition against the winners from other regional American Legion Auxiliary competitions in nine communities ranging from Price to Moab.

Hackney, Rice and Irish received a plaque for their District 5 first-place wins.

Grand County eighth-grader Rice and 12th-grader Irish also took first place in their categories at the State of Utah level, and received a check and a certificate.

Their essays will be sent on to the Western Division level, which includes several of the western states.

This year’s title for the essay competition was “Soldiers, Past and Present... America Honor Your Veterans.” The Moab auxiliary received a total of 140 entries, from students in fourth, fifth, sixth, eighth and 12th grades, and the winners among those entries competed in the District 5 competition.

The American Legion Auxiliary is a women’s service organization that includes nearly 1 million members. The auxiliary was founded in 1919 to support the work of the American Legion. The organization sponsors volunteer programs on the national and local levels focusing on three major areas: veterans, young people and the community.