On April 1, during the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) first-ever virtual Parade of Winners, the organization proudly presented more than $208,000 in scholarships and awards as it named the national winners of its 2021 Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen youth scholarship competitions.
Due to the pandemic and the cancellation of the VFW’s annual legislative conference, the VFW instead chose to virtually host its awards show, sponsored by Twisted X and Dell, live on Facebook. Together with VFW Auxiliary President Sandi Onstwedder and Twisted X President Prasad Reddy, VFW National Commander Hal Roesch traveled to Rochester, Minnesota, to surprise this year’s national Voice of Democracy winner and present her with the $30,000 first place scholarship.
2020-2021 Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Contest
“Is This the Country the Founders Envisioned?â€
Erin Grace Stoeckig
First Place $30,000 ScholarshipSponsored by VFW Post 1215 and its AuxiliaryRochester, Minnesota
Watch Stoeckig deliver her essay
See a complete list of 2020-2021 Voice of Democracy winners
2020-2021 Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest
“What is Patriotism to Me?”
Wyatt Perkins
First Place $5,000 AwardSponsored by VFW Post 4221Lake Portland, North Dakota
Watch Perkins deliver his essay
See a complete list of 2020-2021 Patriot’s Pen winners
The 2021-2022 themes are listed below.
- 2021-2022 Voice of Democracy Audio Essay Theme: “America: Where do we go from here?â€
- 2021-2022 Patriot’s Pen Essay Theme: “How Can I Be A Good American?â€
2021-2022 Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen entry forms are available on the VFW and VFW Auxiliary websites.