Relay contest winners announced

Seymour Middle School sixth grader Bailey Webb first learned she had won the American Cancer Society 2004 Relay For Life’s T-shirt contest when she heard the news on the radio Friday morning. Her teacher had been informed of the results almost a week earlier but was told not to make Webb aware that she had won.“I was surprised because I only won second place here (at Seymour Middle School),” the sixth grader said Monday morning. Seymour Middle School art teacher Pam Cosner helped guide Webb to create a design for the contest. Cosner said there were between 25 and 30 contestants from SMS, making the decision of which design to submit to represent the school at the county contest that much more difficult. “We had a really hard time choosing the winners here,” Cosner commented. “We narrowed it down and sent four designs to Relay For Life.” Besides Webb’s contest winner, Cosner also sent designs by eighth grader Caroline Andreson, sixth grader Joey Gray and eighth grader Kayla Zeits. Relay co-chairs Misty Brown and Wes Farragut were two of several area judges tabbed to select the contest winner. Webb had some added inspiration in creating her heart-shaped design surrounded by the words “Each Stride with Pride to change lives.” Her mother, Bonnie Webb, is herself a cancer survivor. Printed on the back of Webb’s T-shirt is the statement “This is for my mom and Mr. Hamilton.” Phil Hamilton, an SMS teacher, is fighting the disease that is America’s second most deadly behind only heart disease. Students from across the country took part in the contest with a given theme of “Survivorship—what does it mean to be a survivor?” Participants in this year’s Relay For Life, to be held on June 4th and 5th at Sevier County High School beginning at 6 p.m., will wear Webb’s T-shirt design. Wearwood Elementary School students Rachel Clabo and Katie Myers were behind Webb with second and third place finishes respectively.