6th Grade 3rd Place Winner

Our 3rd place winner is Amanda. She is from a small Middle School in Southern Utah. Her essay titled, "Anyone Need Help Out There?" is a gem. It is touching and heartfelt I hope you take a moment to read it! Congratulations Amanda, I hope one day you make it to Guatemala!

If I could visit anywhere in the world, it would be the miniature country Guatemala, it's located right under Mexico. I know a lot about Guatemala, and I think it would be alright if I visited there. Guatemala sounds like a gorgeous country with many kind people. It would be a magnificent opportunity for me to get to leave the United States and explore a small portion of this immense world. My mom and dad have been to Guatemala, and I hear it is a wonderful place to visit. There is one problem with Guatemala; I will have to be extremely cautious about everything. There are a lot of people who aren't very ethical down there. Most of them are so awful that there are armed guards outside every store, even a store as simple as Subway.

(Kylie here! Amanda, you will find that crime is high in most third world countries, and there are guards outside most stores. It is unfortunate, but it does keep businesses, tourists and residents a little safer! We have a similar thing here in America, have you ever notice how every business...and some street corners....have cameras watching our every move? Our technology is a little more advanced, but the concept is the same....)

I would like to visit Guatemala because there are many amazing sites to see. I also want to learn a new language and in Guatemala the people speak Spanish, so I would have to learn Spanish before I could go. I would like to save up enough money to start my own company to send money down to the not-so-fortunate people. If I couldn't send money, then I would at least send food, clothing, pets, shoes, house supplies and I would send builders to build homes for the less fortunate people.

In Guatemala City, the capital of Guatemala, there are many things to do for fun, such as go to museums, Tikal National Park, visit zoos, theaters, church ruins, the Antigua Bridge and many other sites.

When arriving in Guatemala, the first thing I would do is gaze around at the terrific, warm scenery. I would head straight to get a room at a casino in Guatemala City. After arriving in my room, I would unpack my belongings and rest for an hour or so after spending all day on a stuffy airplane. Joyfully, I would catch a tour bus to go visit all of the beautiful site that are around Guatemala.

I would visit the ancient Mayan ruins on Tikal. Tikal is a beautiful place, and I have always looked forward to going there. Tikal is made up of an old temple and other buildings made from stone. The buildings are extremely tall and massive. My parents were going to go to Tikal, but they were robbed. Then they didn't have enough money to go there anymore.

I would then go and find some of the families that my parents met, and talk to them about their visit. I would help and care for those people first, and then I would go and assist the less fortunate. For dinner that night I would eat a nice meal that included fried bananas and rest my head for a good night's sleep.

At some point in my visit, I would meet the young lady that liked my Uncle Justin. I would have to break the sad news to her that he was killed in a car accident in 2009. He rolled his truck down a steep mountain and was killed. Justin was in his thirties and had three young kids, his oldest was four. He went on an LDS mission to Guatemala. Justin was a good father, uncle, husband, brother, son and grandson. We all love and miss him just as much as she, his friend from Guatemala, will miss him too.

I will be very gloomy when it comes time for me to travel home. Before I leave, I will visit all of the families that Justin taught and see what they have to say about Justin that I don't know.

When I arrive home from my long flight, I will go to Justin's wife, Tacy, and tell her all of the stories I heard about Justin from the people he knew in Guatemala.

I am so obliged that we have all of the many places around the world to explore. I love adventure and I love helping people. If I ever end up with a company to help struggling countries, it will primarily be for Guatemala, in memory of Justin, but I would also love to help others across the world. I would send help to Guatemala, Haiti, Chili, and any other country that needs help.

I look forward to one day visiting Guatemala.