The judges have spoken! Lafayette Public Library is proud to announce the winners of the 2025 Writes of Spring Writing Contest.
With 412 students submitting writings, this year’s contest had more participants than last year’s competition. These talented writers submitted original fiction, poetry, and personal narratives. Submissions could be in English, French, or Spanish.
The contest is open to all students in grades K–12 who live in Lafayette Parish or the surrounding parishes of Acadia, Iberia, St. Landry, St. Martin, and Vermilion.
Writes of Spring is an annual writing competition that was started twenty-three years ago as a way to give local students a chance to show off their creative writing talents. Librarians, teachers, and other educators volunteer their time to judge in each category.
And now for the drum roll! Here are the Winners of the Writes of Spring Writing Contest:
Elementary School
Fiction [Kindergarten, First, and Second Grades]
* First place: Luke Richardson, “The Detectives” (First Baptist Christian School)
* Second place: Avie Marie Allain, “The Gorgeous Princess” (Cathedral Carmel)
* Third place: Vennela Burugu, “Five Monkeys Meet” (Woodvale Elementary)
Personal Narrative [Kindergarten, First, and Second Grades]
* First place: Amelie Huval, “Amelie’s Snow Day” (Woodvale Elementary)
* Second place: Kate Wood, “My Favorite Holiday” (Cathedral Carmel)
* Third place: Emerson Thom, “Thanksgiving” (Woodvale Elementary)
Fiction [Third and Fourth Grades]
* First place: Jordan Rainey, “The Chari” (Episcopal School of Acadiana)
* Second place: Leo Latch, “Something About a Rollercoaster” (Cathedral Carmel)
* Third place: Mabel Kellner, “Middle Child” (Woodvale Elementary)
Personal Narrative [Third and Fourth Grades]
* First place: Lauren Wood, “The Crack I’ve Never Forget” (Cathedral Carmel)
* Second place: Caroline Lowry, “The Great Fishing Adventure” (Cathedral Carmel)
* Third place: Taylor Wang, “Swim Meet Sunday” (Episcopal School of Acadiana)
Poetry [Third and Fourth Grades]
* First place: Rozi Olivier, “Secrets” (Episcopal School of Acadiana)
* Second place: Charlie Smith, “Red Fox” (Episcopal School of Acadiana)
* Third place: Luke Mitzmorris, “The Lounging Dog” (Episcopal School of Acadiana)
French Poetry [Third and Fourth Grades]
* First place: Avery Rose, “Zoo au chateau” (Prairie Elementary)
…………
Middle School
Fiction [Fifth and Sixth Grades]
* First place: Jean-Luc Soileau, “Let the Moonshine” (Ascension Episcopal School)
* Second place: Vivian Zeringue, “Tim, Jim, & Gary: A Twisted Three Little Pigs” (First Baptist Christian School)
* Third place: Ted Taylor, “What’s in Front of Us” (Cecilia Jr. High)
Personal Narrative [Fifth and Sixth Grades]
* First place: Josian Pritchard, “Bad Donkey” (First Baptist Christian School)
* Second place: Adeline Bourque, “Streetz Dance” (Cathedral Carmel)
Poetry [Fifth and Sixth Grades]
* First place: Leon Fisher, “Ode to Chicken Wings” (Scott Middle)
* Second place: Emily Moores, “The Owl’s Warning” (Milton Elementary)
* Third Place: Aaliyah Joseph, “Ode to Nutella” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy)
French Poetry [Fifth and Sixth Grades]
* First Place: Magalie Chang-Fong, “Zoo des Animaux” (Prairie Elementary)
Fiction [Seventh and Eighth Grades]
* First place: Audrey Meche, “Melodies of Hope” (Meche Christian Homeschool)
* Second place: Nola Buteaux, “The Incident” (Acadiana Renaissance Charter Academy)
* Third place: Railey Robinson, “Driver’s License” (Ascension Episcopal School)
Personal Narrative [Seventh and Eighth Grades]
* First place: Sylvia Armentor, “’Til You Can”” (Opelousas Catholic School)
* Second place: Connor Baer, “Finally” (St. Pius Elementary)
* Third place: Stella Walker, “Never Give Up On a Dream” (Cathedral Carmel)
Poetry [Seventh and Eighth Grades]
* First place: Shya Hebert, “Heart Patters” (L.J. Alleman Fine Arts Magnet Academy)
* Second place: Morgan Tauzin, “The Color Brown” (St. Genevieve Catholic School)
* Third place: Murphy Taylor, “I Miss You, Mawmaw” (St. Pius Elementary)
French Poetry [Seventh and Eighth Grades]
* First Place: Anna McCoy, “Commence de Printemps” (Cathedral Carmel)
…………
High School
Fiction [Ninth and Tenth Grades]
* First place: Galina Vinson, “Covenant” (Early College Academy)
* Second place: Graycen Daly, “Echoes of the Unseen” (Ascension Episcopal School)
* Third place: Kylie Noel, “The Flowers Died On Monday” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy)
Personal Narrative [Ninth and Tenth Grades]
* First place: Annie Hebert, “Imperishable” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Second place: Mariya Marcus, “Aha Moment” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Third place: Meredith Sere, “A Ha Moment” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
Poetry [Ninth and Tenth Grades]
* First place: Brylee Angelle, “Echoes of a Love Faded” (Acadiana High School)
* Second place: Natalie Hagan, “Winged Thing” (Academy of the Sacred Heart)
* Third place: Samantha Baker, “If Words Could Fly” (homeschool)
French Fiction [Ninth and Tenth Grades]
* First place: Cecile Comeaux, “Cache-cache” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Second place: Jules Jardell, “Orang-outan” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Third place: Amelia Ducatel, “Le bébé chien” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
French Personal Narrative [Ninth and Tenth Grades]
* First place: Serafina Centanni, “Winter Wonderland” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Second place: Carline Lane, “Comment suis,je avec ces parents” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Third place: Mary Houghton, “Le concert a londres” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
French Poetry [Ninth and Tenth Grades]
* First place: Stella Elmore, “Si j'étais un oiseau” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Second place: Stella Furby, “Mon souvenir de Suisse” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Third place: Juliette Badeaux, “Mes cornichons verts” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
Fiction [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades]
* First place: Marth Odom, “Between the Lines” (Ascension Episcopal School)
* Second place: Marc Canter, “David Comes Home” (David Thibodaux STEM Magnet Academy)
* Third place: Ahna Prather, “The Stranger in the Backseat” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
Personal Narrative [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades]
* First place: Sam Clark, “Memories in Music” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Second place: Jane Thomson, “Cancer Strikes” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
Poetry [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades]
* First place: Alexandra Alfred, “Yet Beautiful” (Carencro High School)
* Second place: Ji Smith, “Have You Ever Seen a Star?” (First Baptist Christian School)
* Third place: Ryleigh Morvant, “Dad’s Deteriorating Disease” (First Baptist Christian School)
French Poetry [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades]
* First place: Bailey Puhekker, “Le Match de Tennis” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
* Second place: Thomas Chang-Fong, “Briser” (Lafayette High School)
* Third place: Addison Tran, “L’art de danse” (Saint Thomas More Catholic High School)
Spanish Personal Narrative [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades]
* First place: Alexandra Olvera-Vazquez, “Las raices profundas del bordado (Opelousas High School)
Spanish Poetry [Eleventh and Twelfth Grades]
* First place: Mya Lafanette, “Yahve” (Opelousas High School)
* Second place: Faith Dejean, “La hermosa primavera” (Opelousas High School)
Congratulations to this year’s winners and a big thanks to all who participated in the 23rd Writes of Spring Writing Contest!
The library would also like to thank the teachers, librarians and other educators for volunteering their time to judge, and for their instruction and encouragement of students in their scholarly pursuits.
Each winner will be given a copy of the anthology featuring the works of all 2025 winners, as well as their official certificate. To learn more about the Writes of Spring Writing Contest, visit LafayettePublicLibrary.org.
Macaroni Kid can make it super easy for you to find your family fun all year long. Receive a local calendar of family-friendly events each Thursday evening when you SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE!
You'll be glad you did ... and so will your kids!
For even more fun, find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
