Windsor Elementary School eighth-grader Caleigh Crocker won third place in the Sarah Mook Memorial Poetry Contest for grades six through eighth. Crocker’s poem titled, “Better to Be Alive as a Fly Than a Dead Lion,” is based on the experiences of Holocaust survivor Michel Zelon, according to a news release from Helen M. Beesley, Windsor School ELA 6-8 teacher.
The purpose of the contest is to encourage and acknowledge the efforts of student poets in grades K-12 nationwide. Crocker’s poem was one of 12 poems to be recognized.
Award winning poet Marie Kane, who served as the judge stated, “The number of poems entered (800) and their quality belies the difficulty of this COVID-19 school year. The variety of topics, styles, clarity, agility with words, specific images, resonant detail, and use of original poetic devices made my job difficult,” according to the release.
Crocker is the daughter of Betsy Brann of Windsor and Marc Crocker of Oakland. She plans to attend Erskine Academy in the fall.
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