Growing stronger

September/October 2022 California Bountiful magazine

Writing contest winners tell stories 
of farming, resilience and altruism

Story by Linda DuBois

Gardening, ketchup making, bugs, wildfires, kindness, diversity: The topics young students explored in the 2022 “Imagine this…” Story Writing Contest reflected on California agriculture—and much more.

Hosted annually by the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom, the contest promotes knowledge about agriculture and literacy skills. Students in third through eighth grades are tasked with selecting a topic relating to agriculture, conducting research and composing a fiction or nonfiction story. This year’s contest drew more than 1,000 entries from 16 counties.

The contest selects regional winners and then one story from each grade as the year’s statewide winners. The winning stories are bound in a book illustrated by high school art, graphic design and photography students. (See the book review.) 

This year’s winners, along with their families and teachers, also received a trip to Sacramento for a book signing, followed by an awards ceremony during California Agriculture Day at the state Capitol. There, they were honored with certificates from legislators and received high praise from Karen Ross, California Department of Food and Agriculture secretary, who said the book should be in every California household. After pivoting during the pandemic, the “Imagine this…” festivities were the first to be held in person since 2019.

Following challenges such as remote learning, isolation from family and friends, devastating wildfires, social unrest and ideological division, winning students went above and beyond the basic assignment of writing stories about agriculture. They incorporated broader themes of surviving tough times, benevolence and harmony.

Seventh grader Cooper Overholtzer included a message about being selfless and thoughtful of others in his story about cilantro. “The world isn’t always the nicest place with the nicest people, so I thought, why not incorporate human kindness into it?”

Fifth grader Sofia Magni’s story about tomatoes included a message of perseverance and accepting help. “I hope people learn to follow their dreams and work hard and that you can talk to someone about your goals. You don’t have to do it on your own.”

Eighth grader Nicholas Cortez used salad ingredients to convey a message of unity. “Very different kinds of people—vegetables in this case—end up being better when they come together,” he said.

'Imagine this...' Story Writing
Contest 2022 state winners

Gardening Through Tragedy

By James Nelson

Third Grade, Plaza School,
Glenn County
Teacher: Jennifer Crane

Illustrators: Abigail Thao and Jennifer Duran
Florin High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Alexandra Pease

In this nonfiction account, James’ home and beloved garden are destroyed in a major wildfire, but through planting and tending a new garden, his new house soon feels like home.

“It helped a little bit to write about the tragedy. It made me feel happy that people can learn that gardening’s fun."

Diary of a Nectarine Tree

By Rebecca Gonzalez

Fourth Grade, Our Lady of Fatima School,
Stanislaus County
Teacher: Amanda Harvey

Illustrator: Gemmel Coloma
Valley High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Santos Morales

In a diary-entry style narrative, a nectarine tree tells of its changes through the seasons and how the orchard survives a locust attack and other challenges.

“I hope people learn that a lot of things can happen to fruit trees and it’s never too late to recover from disaster.”

The Ketchup Dream

By Sofia Magni

Fifth Grade, Sacred Heart School,
Stanislaus County
Teacher: Serra Trovao

Illustrators: Ayman Aljahwari and Liona Rimando
Inderkum High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Rachel Rodriguez

A young tomato’s grandfather teaches her about the world history of tomatoes and assists her with her dream of becoming ketchup on a juicy hamburger.

“My grandpa always likes to teach us about things. I like ketchup and my brother loves hamburgers. So, I wanted to write a story everybody in the family would like.”

Saved

By Blake Chrisman

Sixth Grade, Excel Academy Charter School,
Riverside County
Teacher: Annie Mun

Illustrators: Chloe Yang and Abrar Abdulhadi
Florin High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Alexandra Pease

A bug enthusiast who breeds praying mantises, Blake wrote a tale about another natural pesticide: a wasp that feeds on pests that can destroy citrus trees.

“I hope people learn that not all bugs are bad. Some are beneficial to agriculture.”

Charlie’s Cilantro Crop

By Cooper Overholtzer

Seventh Grade, Gratton School,
Stanislaus County
Teacher: Rexann Casteel

Illustrator: Yver Lois A. Sanico
Sheldon High School, Sacramento
Art instructors: Theresa Nguyen and Deborah George

A boy takes charge of a cilantro crop, but the well runs dry and he has to dig deeper for water. Following a wildfire, he donates his crop to help feed firefighters and displaced residents.

“I hope readers learn that California farms a lot more than just almonds and walnuts, especially people in the valley because that’s all we see.”

Caesar’s Salad

By Nicholas Cortez

Eighth Grade, Sacred Heart School,
Stanislaus County
Teacher: Elaine Magni

Illustrators: Selena Rodriguez and Emma Heinkel
Inderkum High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Rachel Rodriguez

Vegetables with different personalities and prejudices about other vegetables discover when they come together in a salad, they complement one another.

“I just wanted to write something that was relevant to the state that the world is in.”

Become California’s next author

The annual “Imagine this...” Story Writing Contest allows California students in grades three through eight to research and write informative and entertaining agriculture-themed stories, with help from their teachers.

The contest awards 48 regional winners. Of those, a statewide winner from each grade is selected and their stories are illustrated by high school art students for a published anthology. Statewide winners also receive prizes for themselves and their classrooms, along with a trip to Sacramento to be honored during an awards ceremony at the state Capitol.

The deadline for entries in the 2023 “Imagine this…” Story Writing Contest is Nov. 1. For more information, visit LearnAboutAg.org. New this year is the option to submit stories online. For more information on submitting electronically, email Imaginethis@LearnAboutAg.org.