As part of the celebration of the life and mission of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the San Francisco 49ers participated in the awards presentation for a the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Writing, Art and Multimedia Contest organized by Silicon Valley FACES. Silicon Valley FACES builds inclusive and caring communities, free of bias and bigotry, by bringing people together through educational programs and serving victims of crime.
It hosted the 22nd year of the contest Friday afternoon at Evergreen Valley High School.
The 49ers Foundation was a major sponsor of the event, and 49ers alumnus Guy McIntyre was a keynote speaker for the audience consisting of students from the East Side Union High School District, their teachers, parents and local elected officials. Fellow alum Dennis Brown also spoke on behalf of the 49ers at the ceremony, which recognized the creative writing, art and multimedia talents of the contestants.
"The support of the 49ers Foundation and the presence of 49ers alumni Guy McIntyre and Dennis Brown brought a new dimension to this year's awards celebration," said Pat Mitchell, Executive Director of Silicon Valley FACES. "We value this relationship and look forward to a continued partnership."
The event held a special significance for McIntyre and Brown as well, who both grew up celebrating Dr. King's work.
"It's humbling to be part of an event that celebrates an iconic figure in world history, and keeps his legacy going through this contest," McIntyre said. "These young people are taking the words of somebody who had the power to change the world and bringing it to a whole new audience with their writing, art and multimedia entries. This contest gives them a deeper understanding of his message and that's why it's so important."
The inspiration for the contest was a quote from Dr. King that reads, "I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits."
Daniel Stahlnecker of Santa Theresa High School captured the spirit of the event with his grand-prize winning poem, 'The Man in the Radio,' which talked about his understanding of King's message as he interpreted it into his own experience. Stahlnecker, along with Gabrielle Argonza of Silver Creek High School and Tam Duong of W.C. Overfelt High School, each accepted $500 grand prize awards in their respective categories from Silicon Valley FACES.
The 49ers Foundation and Silicon Valley FACES collaborated on this event through the connection of the 49ers Perry/Yonamine Unity Award, which recognizes outstanding community contributions from Bay Area non-profits. Silicon Valley FACES was selected as the winner of the 2010 Perry/Yonamine Unity Award in the community based organization category and, as part of the award, the 49ers Foundation contributed $10,000 to Silicon Valley FACES to support their mission.
"Silicon Valley FACES has done a wonderful job of connecting Dr. King's message to their own, and helping Bay Area youth break down racial barriers," said Joanne Pasternack, Director of Community Relations/49ers Foundation. "This contest allowed the students, who may not have truly understood Dr. King's significance, the chance to gain a deeper understanding of Dr. King's amazing contributions and how his message continues to be relevant in their lives today."
The 49ers would like to salute the three grand prize winners, as well as the first, second and third place winners from each school, listed below:
Grand Prize Winners:Writing – Daniel Stahlnecker (Santa Theresa)
Art – Gabrielle Argonza (Silver Creek)
Multimedia – Tam Duong (W.C. Overfelt)
First Place Winners:Writing –
Kevin Nguyen (Andrew Hill)
Briana Pong (Evergreen Valley)
Julius Caesar Melanio (Foothill)
Khuyen Do (Independence)
Jacqueline Taloyo (James Lick)
Andrea Benson (Mt. Pleasant)
Tremaine Eto (Oak Grove)
Theresa Huynh (Piedmont Hills)
Daniel Stahlnecker (Santa Theresa)
Brian Ly (Silver Creek)
Karina Andrade (W.C. Overfelt)
Andy Tran (Yerba Buena)
Art –
Thao Nguyen-Pham (Andrew Hill)
Kelly Shi (Evergreen Valley)
Aries Terrazas (Foothill)
Julius Lucas (Independence)
Kathrine Mina (James Lick)
Jaimie Gamboa (Mt. Pleasant)
Kiet Hoang (Oak Grove)
Indy Dang (Piedmont Hills)
Natalee Chavez (Santa Theresa)
Gabrielle Argonza (Silver Creek)
Chelsi Silva (W.C. Overfelt)
Dalena Tran (Yerba Buena)
Multimedia –
Truc Nguyen-Pham (Andrew Hill)
Aries Terrazas (Foothill)
Tiffany Thao-Mi Pham and Stacy Israde Torres (Independence)
Mafe Castigador (James Lick)
Julian Zamora (Mt. Pleasant)
Jasmine Saelee and Dayquan Fox (Oak Grove)
Naushaba Khan (Silver Creek)
Tam Duong (W.C. Overfelt)
Dalena Tran (Yerba Buena)
Second Place Winners:Writing –
Jennifer Gano (Andrew Hill)
Chris Tran (Evergreen Valley)
Cecilia Vasquez (Foothill)
Nicole Calande (Independence)
Sani Ramirez (James Lick)
Hector Gonzalez (Mt. Pleasant)
Bill Nguyen (Oak Grove)
Jocelyn Ng (Piedmont Hills)
Gun Kim (Santa Theresa)
Sally Chau (Silver Creek)
Nissa Tellez (W.C. Overfelt)
Vanessa Perez (Yerba Buena)
Art –
Lyndsey Paramo (Evergreen Valley)
Dominic Fernandez (Foothill)
David Vu (Independence)
Alondra Paco (James Lick)
Leila Salinas (Mt. Pleasant)
Alex Hang (Oak Grove)
Christina Bui (Piedmont Hills)
Yoonji Joung (Santa Theresa)
Rhea Dadoo (Silver Creek)
Nicole Avina (W.C. Overfelt)
Diana Nguyen (Yerba Buena)
Multimedia –
Miguel Soto (Andrew Hill)
AB Coleman (Foothill)
Donnie Juan and Lombardo Peralta (Independence)
Ana Marie Jordan (James Lick)
Aljon Velasquez (Mt. Pleasant)
Breanna Varney (Oak Grove)
Timothy Steele (Silver Creek)
Third Place Winners:Writing –
Thao Nguyen-Pham (Andrew Hill)
Hien Chu (Evergreen Valley)
Johnny Gomez, Jr. (Foothill)
Stacey Nguyen (Independence)
Juan Caudillo (James Lick)
Stephania Rubi (Mt. Pleasant)
Emily To (Oak Grove)
Winston Lee (Piedmont Hills)
Tina Bui (Santa Theresa)
Mariah Bravo (Silver Creek)
Dejon Smith (W.C. Overfelt)
Tina Lu (Yerba Buena)
Art –
Rafi Rahman (Evergreen Valley)
Cecilia Vasquez (Foothill)
Jessica Tang (Independence)
Mafe Castigador (James Lick)
Adrian Paradise (Mt. Pleasant)
Dominique Smith (Oak Grove)
Erucar Berido (Piedmont Hills)
Cassandra Lozano (Santa Theresa)
Ashley Argumedo (Silver Creek)
Karolina Bucio (W.C. Overfelt)
Saha Lai (Yerba Buena)
Multimedia –
Alexander Maldonado (Andrew Hill)
Francisco Correia (James Lick)
Kevin Church and Adam Diaz(Oak Grove)
Rebecca Lee (Silver Creek)
