Well-versed winners reign in Poetry Out Loud

VERNON — Sophomore Blake Harrsch won the 7th Annual Poetry Out Loud contest at Vernon Township High School and will represent the school at the regional contest at the Morristown Performing Arts Center next month.
Ethan Metz and Ryan Webber won second and third place, respectively.
The event was judged by local chiropractor and VTHS graduate, Dr. Colleen Drache, Mary Ann Kaicher, former VTHS English teacher, and former VTHS chemistry teacher, Dee Franklin.
Fifty students memorized poems, from Frost’s The Road Not Taken to Byron’s She Walks in Beauty and performed them on stage in the school’s auditorium before an audience of their peers.
Teachers from all disciplines brought their classes in an extraordinary show of support.
“We continue to hold this competition each year because it really presents an opportunity for so many students to show their excellence,” said Principal Drew Krause. “Not only the performers, but the students in the audience. It’s a great day where we all get to celebrate poetry.”
Students who were awarded Honorable Mentions were: Sydney Sparta, David Iarkowski, Matthew Losco, Shannon Rogers, Juliana Schlichting, Erin Kelly, Maya Rakoczy, Jamie Vitale, and Celeste Levy.