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Two talented young writers have won essay contests sponsored by the Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park.
Sofia Fitzgerald, of Oak Park, a rising senior at Oak Park and River Forest High School, won the 2025 Hemingway Foundation Student Scholarship Essay Contest, which is for juniors in high school.
Luke Voegtle of Westchester, who graduated this spring from Proviso Mathematics & Science Academy in Forest Park, won the 2025 Allan O. Baldwin Memorial Student Scholarship, which is for seniors in high school.
“The foundation has been around since ’83,” said Executive Director Keith Strom. “From the get-go, the foundation’s mission was around preserving, educating, and storing the creative life and writing of Ernest Hemingway. It was an easy segway to try to support younger writers as well. There’s been an essay contest the majority of the years.”
Competitors have to submit a 300-600-word essay, which is reviewed by a panel.
Each of the two winners receive a $1,500 scholarship. The Hemingway Foundation Student Scholarship Essay Contest winner is also given a mentorship with the Hemingway’s writer-in-residence, who from 2024-26 is Kate Sjostrom.
In addition, both winners will have their essays published in the tenth annual edition of ”Hemingway Shorts.”
Sofia Fitzgerald’s essay is called, “My Journey Through the Biblioglass.”
“I wrote about the libraries in Oak Park and how much they mean to me, and my journey with them, and how it’s evolved since I was a baby going there,” Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald said she has been writing “since I was a little kid, but this is the first time that I’ve published anything that I’ve written.”
She decided to enter the Hemingway competition because, “It seemed like a good opportunity to share my talent and love of writing.”
She also entered the competition because she appreciated the writing prompt, which was to write about what your hometown means to you.
When Fitzgerald learned that she had won the competition, “I was genuinely so shocked. It was nice to see my work recognized.”
Fitzgerald has already worked with mentor Sjostrom. “Being able to have such an amazing mentor has definitely made me more willing and more excited to try and publish more of my work in my senior year,” she said.
In terms of her career goal, although she loves writing, Fitzgerald said, “I’m hoping to pursue something in international relations with the government.”
Luke Voegtle’s essay is called “A Life of Adventure and Ikigai.”
“My essay was about discovering a Japanese concept called ikigai,” Voegtle said. “It’s focused around enjoying the smallest moments of life, like a small coffee chat with grandma or a nice conversation, rather than focusing on grand purpose. I went on a backpacking hike to Washington to explore this and search within myself and even though the journey was extremely tough, we met a woman there who helped us get through it and it was a life changing experience.”
Voegtle is continuing that exploration, most recently backpacking through Europe with his brothers.
He reported that writing has always been a passion of his. When he learned he had won the contest, Voegtle said, “I was really excited. I was really honored because I’ve always enjoyed writing.”
Voegtle will be attending the University of Michigan in the fall to study statistics.
Hemingway Executive Director Strom reported that the two winners will also be recognized at an event in July.
“That’s probably one of the most rewarding things of the various programming that we do,” Strom said. “I get a kick out of seeing people being acknowledged for the talents that they have.”
Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
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