Whiz Kids: Jenny Neuman and Ellie Sawyer

Each week, the Larchmont-Mamaroneck Patch will seek suggestions from readers for individual kids, youth groups, teens, and even sports teams that wow us with their accomplishments. We want to hear about these amazing children and teens and select one each week as the Patch Whiz Kid.  Submit your nomination in our comment box below or e-mail the information to Stefani.Kim@patch.com.

Here's our story on this week's Whiz Kids:

Jenny Neuman, 14

8th Grader at Hommocks Middle School

Ellie Sawyer, 13

8th Grader at Hommocks Middle School

Whiz Kid’s Accomplishment: The Alliance for Young Artists and Writers chose Jenny and Ellie, out of 12,000 entries, as winners in the Gold Key Scholastic Writing Winners for their poetry submissions.  The fashion designer Zac Posen is a 1998 Art and Writing Award winner.

Keys to Awesomeness: Jennie and Ellie initially submitted their poems to their English teacher, Loraine McCurdy-Little as an extra-credit assignment.  This is the first time, in over a decade, that McCurdy-Little has had a student place in the contest.

Jenny, whose “Poetry Collection” touches on themes of war, death, and unfounded accusations, was inspired by an incident that occurred at school and derives inspiration from Lord Byron and Florence Welch’s darkly emotive lyrics.

“The Falcon Calls,” Ellie’s winning entry, is about mortality and the life-death cycle inherent in the natural world.  Ellie endeavors to be a journalist as a future career.