The B.E.S.T. program

On Thursday, I visited Gardner-Webb for the conclusion of the B.E.S.T. (Bringing Executives and Students Together) program.

There I got to meet some fine folks and honor some deserving students. More than 130 student participated in this program that pairs business owners and leaders with local high school students.

My boss, Publisher Skip Foster, talked to the group on Monday and challenged them to design a Star front page in a contest. I judged the entries on Thursday and presented the winners with certificates and prizes. In addition to a year's subscription, the first-place winner will shadow newsroom personnel at The Star for a day.

The students absolutely rocked the auditorium when the first-place winner Davis Phanthalack was announced. The second-place winner was Travis Strong and the third-place winner was Victoria Easter. But there were so many worthy entries I gave three strong honorable mentions: Eli Hamrick, Sunset Appleton and (I'm having trouble reading the handwriting) Chimetta or Chinnetta McDowel. They all did a great job. Most of the entries could have won in any given year.

We'll publish these mock front pages online in some fashion.

The Star also supplied the group with a blog on our Web site, which was filled daily with photos and stories. They did a great job with this as well: http://bestgardnerwebb.blogspot.com/2007_08_03_archive.html

This program showcased a lot of dedicated people and the Gardner-Webb folks should be proud of what they pulled off here.