Orangeville student wins top prize in Habitat for Humanity Canada’s writing contest

A Grade 6 student at Orangeville’s Montgomery Village Public School is making a difference through her writing. Kara entered the national Habitat for Humanity’s Meaning of Home annual writing contest and was chosen as the 2021 grand prize winner for Grade 6. Her poem, “What home means to me,” has earned Habitat for Humanity Halton-Mississauga-Dufferin a $30,000 grant to help build homes.

This year’s contest drew more than 12,000 entries from students in Grades 4, 5 and 6, raising a record $300,000 for local Habitat for Humanity organizations across Canada. One grand prize winner from each grade wins a $30,000 grant for their local Habitat for Humanity build, as well as nine runners-up who win a $10,000 grant. The Grade 4 winner is from Manitoba and the Grade 5 winner is from Quebec.

“Kara, and so many students like her, are an inspiration to us all,” said Mayor Sandy Brown. “Their conviction that everyone deserves a safe haven to return to each night is the founding principle of Habitat for Humanity and the crucial work that they do. Many people may not have been aware until now that Orangeville is connected to the Mississauga/Halton/Dufferin Habitat for Humanity. We are looking forward to supporting Habitat for Humanity as it assesses our area and determines what type of build project would be good for Dufferin County, and more specifically, for Orangeville.”

Founded in 1985, Habitat for Humanity Canada is a national charitable organization working toward a world where everyone has a decent and affordable place to call home. Habitat for Humanity Canada’s model of affordable housing helps families in need of housing buy their own home. Habitat homeowners volunteer up to 500 hours and pay an affordable mortgage geared to their income, helping them build a strong foundation and the financial stability to help plan for their children’s futures.

In Kara’s words from her award-winning poem, “Let’s use compassion to create more action with the one thing that will always stays the same, no matter how near, no matter how far, we will always live under the same shining stars.”

View Kara’s award-winning poem at https://meaningofhome.ca/winners/what-home-means-to-me-3/.