These kids are on the mark

Winner of the Waldinger Library’s annual summer bookmark contest were honored on June 27. Bottom row, from left, are Jonathan Kadukara, Madeleine DiGaetano, Sophia Varona and Roshna Ansari. Top row, from left, are Shari Burke, Amari Paul, Mayor Ed Fare and Justine Woracek.

Julie Mansmann/Herald

Although there were 633 entries to chose from, staff members at the Henry Waldinger Memorial Library could select only a few, and last week they honored the eight winners of this year’s Children’s Bookmark Contest.

The winners representing grades K-6, whose creations reflected the theme “One World, Many Stories,” were awarded for their designs on June 27. Children, parents, library staff and local officials came together for the ceremony to honor the bookmark contest winners and kick-off the season for the summer reading club.

Children’s Librarian Jaclyn Kunz, who has worked at the library for four summers, said information about the contest was distributed to schools throughout Valley Stream toward the end of the school year. She said she thinks that nearly 400 more children entered the contest this year because more school administrators learned they could earn points for the summer reading club trophy, the Waldinger Cup.

“It’s starting to catch on,” she said. “The schools are becoming more aware of it and see the competition as a way to build school spirit. It gets them involved in the summer reading club, which is so important academically. Otherwise, teachers have to play catch-up in the fall.”

Kunz said she likes this year’s state-wide summer book club theme because it is multicultural and fits the Valley Stream community. She also said that the winners showed it could be interpreted in different ways.

Madeleine DiGaetano, a student at Clear Stream Avenue School, said she was happy to be the first-grade winner for her bookmark that features depictions of a library and the globe. She said she likes going to the library to become a better reader. “We get to look at the words and the pictures,” she said.

Other winning designs also featured a globe, sitting atop a stack of books and personified, reading a novel. Kunz said the diversity of these creations and the size of the entry pool made it difficult for library staff members to select just one winner for each grade. The fifth grade choice was tough enough for them to call it a tie, adding an eighth winner to this year’s group.