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Volume 20, Number 3
Friday, January 20, 2023
Eighth grader wins Dream Big! Record-Journal staff
PLAINVILLE — Sofia Valentina Ruiz, an eighth grader at Middle School of Plainville, was a grand prize winner in the Connecticut Higher Education Trust (CHET) Dream Big! Competition. Ruiz, 13, earned the top award for grades five through eight. She said her $25,000 winnings would go toward her college education. Saul Olivas, a mariachi instructor from the Spanish Community of Wallingford’s School of Music, plays the Mariachi harp during Sunday, Jan. 15’s Martin Luther King Jr. rememberance event at First Baptist Church of Southington. Nicole Zappone, The Citizen
The CHET Dream Big! Competition started in 2013 and has awarded over $4.5 million to Connecticut students, helping them pay for future educational expenses. Students in kindergarten through twelfth grade could submit drawings, short essays or videos an-
Celebrating MLK Jr. By Nicole Zappone The Citizen
SOUTHINGTON — The sanctuary of First Baptist Church of Southington was filled with church members and guests Sunday, Jan. 15 for a day of celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. This year marked the 25th inperson Martin Luther King Jr. celebration for the
church. Organizers say the event is the only large ceremony in town recognizing King, his mission, and his accomplishments. This year’s church event adopted the theme “Equality in the Future/Quality of Education,” which was part of the morning worship and followed by a special reception.
The celebration opened with a performance of “Pescador De Hombres” (Lord, You Have Come to the Seashore) played by Saul Olivas on the traditional Mariachi or Jalisco-style harp. Olivas is the Mariachi instructor of The Spanish Community of Wallingford’s School of Music.
swering a question posed to their grade level group. Ruiz wrote about improving her community by getting Hispanic voices heard through having an assembly or speech on racism and equality. While Ruiz said her mother encouraged her to enter this contest, she said she thought “this is also a good way to get my voice heard, to get people that look like me, that share my language and culture out there and to realize that anything can happen at any moment without any witnesses.” “I am extremely lucky to have this opportunity and that people like me from different backgrounds can do the same,” Ruiz added. See Dream, A7
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