The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is pleased to announce 12-year-old Joshua Lee from Pikeville, Tennessee won Best of Show in the 2020 Tennessee Federal Junior Duck Stamp Design Contest with a portrayal of a sunset lit hooded merganser. “This is the youngest student we have had take top honors since the Tennessee contest began 25 years ago” said Joan Howe, the Tennessee coordinator for the program. He created his winning entry using acrylic paint medium.
Joshua’s art teacher, Karis Feezell of Ashes 2 Beauty Art studio in Pikeville, has been a former student in the program and now teaches art to engage new students to learn about waterfowl and wetlands and create entries for the contest.
The Tennessee Jr. Duck Stamp program is a wetland and waterfowl conservation curriculum and art contest managed by the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service. Its Tennessee partners include the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Foundation, Friends of Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge and Ducks Unlimited.
The contest judging was held at the Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge, which is currently celebrating their 75th Anniversary of the refuge. The Tennessee Jr. Duck Stamp program is also celebrating an anniversary of 25 years of promoting excellence in student waterfowl conservation through the arts.
Also entered in Tennessee’s Junior Duck Stamp Contest were 341 individuals in four different age group categories. The other eleven finalists and first place winners in their category included Angela Huo from Brentwood; Carlie Anderson, Tinley Hammac and Hayley Tetro from Jacksboro; Caleb Lee and Noah Lee from Pikeville; Jessie Hindman from Chattanooga; Michael Wang from Memphis; Logan Mariutto from Nashville; Elijah Agee from Dyer; and Lillian Hyde from Clarksville.
Thirty five Henry County students placed in the Tennessee state contest under art teacher Valerie Godina of Henry Elementary School. Brook Stewart and Reed Chase won 3rd place. Winning Honorable Mention in the contest were Callie Halstead, Sophie Reed, Bryce Philpot, Jonathan Hawbaker, Kase-Lynn Dunn, Draco Clark, Izzi Hancock, Jackson Blackwell, Eli Crosser, Brady Blount, Nathaniel Maturo, La’arie Jones, Katelyn Richardson, Sierra Davis, Katlynn Webb, Aubrey Thomasson, Zayden Wilson, Elizabeth Lucas, Renesmee Clark, Andie Yoemans, Kingston Mockabee, Lakyn Park White, Aiden Mobley, Donna Williams, Lsayla Bowerson, Ellie Grgic, Jaceigh Floyd, Bentley Gunnville, Kyzer Capps, Kaydence Wise, Americus Clark, Eduardo Zarate, and Kyleigh Vogl.
An awards ceremony, normally hosted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and its partners in Brentwood, TN has been cancelled due to the concerns about the coronavirus. Awards and prizes that include plaques, ribbons and certificates will be mailed to all 100 winners in the contest.
The Best of Show winner Joshua Lee will receive the $1000.00 Jeanette Rudy scholarship provided by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Foundation along with other prizes including a framed Federal Duck Stamp Print provided by Ducks Unlimited. His artwork will also be made into a Tennessee state waterfowl collector stamp made available from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
Each year the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency take the Tennessee Best of Show winning entries and make them into a collector stamps for the state of Tennessee. All of these stamps can be purchased at a cost of $11 per stamp by calling (615) 781-6585 or visiting https://www.tn.gov/twra/
The winner of the Conservation Message Award was Millie Coats from Chattanooga, Tennessee who wrote: “Wetland conservation is the silent whisper of wildlife in a world of noise.” The Service will present her with a conservation print provided by the Friends of Tennessee NWR.
Joshua’s artwork was sent to the national level, where his entry will compete with other state best of show winners on April 17th. The winner of this national competition will become the 2020-2021 Federal Junior Duck Stamp, which is sold for $5 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the national sponsors of the contest.
The Federal Junior Duck Stamp Design Contest is not only an art contest. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service consider this a major outreach program to teach youth about the importance of waterfowl and wetlands conservation. As each student chooses a waterfowl subject for their entry, they are encouraged to learn about that bird and its requirements for survival. A Junior Duck Stamp curriculum guide available to educators and home school students that focuses on conservation messages can be found at http://www.fws.gov/refuge/
For more information about this program or to obtain a copy of the free curriculum call the Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge office at 731-642-2091.