A pupil at English Martyrs’ Catholic Voluntary Academy has been named as a runner-up in a national poster competition which attracted over 500 entries.
A picture drawn by nine-year-old Onadi was one of three runners-up in the inaugural Catholic Young Artist Award, which asked entrants to draw a picture based on the theme of forgiveness.
Onadi’s picture portrays two people hugging.
She said: “When I thought about forgiveness, I thought about two people hugging. I found out I had been chosen as a runner-up in front of everyone at school. I feel happy and proud of myself. I was surprised when I heard the news that I was a runner-up.”
Lisa Oldershaw, class teacher at English Martyrs’, in Long Eaton, congratulated Onadi.
She said: “We are extremely proud of Onadi. We thought the picture was beautiful, especially as one of the people in the picture has the rosary beads in their hand, that was a nice touch.”
Margaret Mizen MBE, Founder of the Mizen Foundation, and competition judge, was overwhelmed by the pictures drawn by primary school aged children on the theme of Forgiveness.
She said: “There were so many unique and wonderful pictures, all drawn with care and attention. I was incredibly impressed by all the artwork submitted, with each piece reflecting the theme of forgiveness in a beautiful way, so selecting a winner was no easy task. Art is a great way to express our emotions and communicate such vitally important messages including those of forgiveness.”
Professor Peter Hindmarsh, Chair of the Catholic Union Charitable Trust, said: “I am delighted that so many children took part in the award. Margaret had an impossible task to select the winner and we are very proud of all the children.”
