DEARBORN HEIGHTS — Zeina Condon, a 17-year-old Lebanese American senior at Dearborn High School, won first place in the Voice of Democracy essay contest. The annual contest is hosted by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, a national organization for war veterans. This year’s topic focused on why veterans are important to the nation’s history and future. She entered the contest this past summer. 

After submitting her essay, Condon went on to compete at the district level. 

The competition was on January 3 and hosted at a Veterans of Foreign Wars Post. She competed against 21 other students that night and won first place. 

Condon received a total of $1,500 for coming in first place. After winning at the district level, she went to Lansing on Jan. 23-24 to compete at the state level. 

“Before the competition, we were given a tour of the Capitol in Lansing,” she said. “In there, I got to meet Senator Steve Bieda one on one and received a special tribute award from him. We also got a chance to go onto the Senate floor, where legislators actually vote on bills for our state.” 

The competition was held at a banquet hall at the Causeway Bay Hotel in Lansing. Condon competed against 11 other state finalists. These were selected from 2,500 students who’d competed across the state. She received $4,000 towards the college of her choice.