North Myrtle Beach Times Serving our Community and the Grand Strand for over 50 years
By William LaMonte
Each year the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Headquarters promotes a couple of scholarship programs that are open to every student in the country. Each year the VFW provides a theme that the students respond to by way of an essay. The 2025-2026 theme asks America’s students “How are you showing patriotism and support for our country?”
Established in 1947, the VFW’s Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen essay competitions were created to encourage a better understanding and appreciation for America and to foster patriotism among the nation’s youth. The programs also offer friendly competition as well as reward success in the form of individual scholarships award monies.
The Voice of Democracy is an audio-essay competition and is open to high school students in ninth through 12th grades and comes with a national first place prize scholarship totaling $35,000.
The VFW’s Patriot’s Pen essay contest is a written essay open to eligible sixth, seventh and eighth grade students. The national first place winner receives a $5,000 award.
The Teacher of the Year program looks for those teachers who inspire patriotism in their classroom and within their community. There is a $1,000 prize for the teacher who wins at the state level.
The competition starts at the Post level where a post will visit the local schools and promote the scholarship programs to the principal’s and guidance counselors. Students and teachers can advance to the VFW District and then VFW State levels. Students winning the state level will compete at national for the top scholarship awards. Teachers only compete through the state level.
The VFW also takes great pride in promoting its posts recognizing local community EMS personnel (police, firefighters and ambulance crews). VFW Post 10804 annually recognizes those outstanding EMS personnel who go above and beyond their daily commitments to the public they serve, like the student/teacher awards. This year VFW Post 10804 went to the various EMS facilities to talk to local leadership to promote their recognition program and get local leadership to nominate a deserving EMS employee or volunteer.
On Saturday, February 7, VFW Post 10804 presented its awards program with family and friends of the awardees looking on. Every person in attendance received a free dinner courtesy of VFW Post 10804 and Auxiliary.
Each awardee was given a Certificate of Recognition and a check for $200.
The VFW Post 10804 2026 awardees are:
Teacher of the Year: Jennifer Cormack, Horry County Schools.
Voice of Democracy Winner: Jaden Ockert, Horry County Schools Scholars Program.
Patriots Pen Winner: Elizabeth Jasso, North Myrtle Beach Middle School.
Firefighter of the Year: Cammeron Hubbard, Horry County Fire and Rescue Station 18.
Police Officer of the Year: Sergeant Christopher Bellamy, North Myrtle Beach Police Department.
Public Service Award: Steven and Vickie Kenyon.
