This report is based on an article that first appeared in The Fox Valley Labor News, Jennifer Rice, Managing Editor
Tenth Dems has a motto: Politics should be about more than just elections. It wants its community to be a better place to live and strives to do things for good, as exemplified by its 5th Annual Poetry and Prose Competition. This year, students who entered the competition were asked to write about hope.
The awards ceremony, at which contest participants are invited to read aloud, was held in Waukegan on April 14. That evening, Northeastern Illinois Federation of Labor Financial Secretary-Treasurer Brian DuPuis heard second place prose winner Tomani Raimondi read her story about a children’s strike and the efforts of Samuel Gompers, the first and longest-serving president of the American Federation of Labor, to help the children and give them hope.
The 17-year-old Zion-Benton Township High School student said of her piece, “We were learning about the children’s strike in English class, and I was really interested in the topic. I thought it would be an interesting topic to write about, and a challenge.” Her creative writing teacher encouraged her to enter the contest, she added.
DuPuis was so impressed with Raimondi’s story that he invited her to present it to Northeastern Illinois Federation of Labor delegates at their monthly meeting on April 22.
The high school junior, who would like to pursue a career as a librarian, was excited for the opportunity to share her prose piece again. “I expected Brian to say I did a good job, but it was better to be invited to the meeting and read my story,” Raimondi said.
At the April 14 Community Connection Poetry/Prose Awards Night, Raimondi received a check for $75 from Tenth Dems for her prize-winning story. The Northeastern Illinois Federation of Labor matched that award and presented her with another check for $75 on April 22.