Someone Special Essay Winners Announced

The  Grant County Child Protection team celebrated the winners of the Someone Special Essay on April 28. Students in third through eighth grade composed essays highlighting someone special in their lives. The contest focuses on how a person can influence a child’s education and character.

Someone Special  Essay Winners:

Someone Special
I feel so lucky to have a loving mom. My mom’s warm smile lights up every room. My mom helps me, she is kind, and plays with me.

My mom helps me when I need it. First, she helped me with multiplication when I just started it in third grade. I was super nervous and she told me how to do it and I wasn’t scared anymore. She also helps my baby brother who wakes up at 3am to change his diaper and gets him to sleep. My mom also helps me with the laundry and other chores. For example, when the washing machine was acting up and my mom showed me how to fix it.

My mom is so kind she helps other kids that are hurt or lost and she is kind to me and my siblings. My mom works at the hospital and treats sick people and people who have broken bones and more. For example, when I had to get a shot at the doctor’s, she gave me my shot because I trusted her more than other people. My mom is also kind to her patients and treats them with respect.

My mom also plays football with me when I want to because my older brother never wants to. My mom wants to get me started and warmed up for a game. It is so cool to have a mom that plays football and soccer with me.

My life without my mom would be different and I promise I will love her forever no matter what!
Third Grade:  Jackson Newstrand

Someone Special
My favorite gym teacher is Mr. Conrad. He does fun stuff with me in gym class. I like to play Battleship when he sets it up. He is a fun gym teacher. Gym is my favorite class. Mr. Conrad is really good at kickball and football. He teaches us different activities to play.

Mr. Conrad’s favorite food is chicken wings. His favorite drink is Diet Coke. His favorite activity is golf.

I get to see him twice a week in class. He comes and visits me in the learning center. Mr. Conrad tells funny jokes about me. He is very nice. He is smart.

Mr. Conrad is special to me. I am so glad he is a gym teacher. I hope he is my gym teacher forever.
Fourth Grade:  Hunter Hanson

Someone Special
For my someone special, I chose Lauren Diede. Shei is the best. Not only because she takes care of me, but also because she is a hard-working person. She makes a difference.

I love Mrs. Diede because she is so hardworking and brave. She has more than three jobs. The first one is being the best school nurse, the second one is working in the national guard and the third one is being a labor and delivery nurse, and the last one is being a very good mom. I could never handle all of those jobs. I don’t know how she does all of those.

She is always wearing super cute outfits. She is my role model. She inspires me so much not because she is my nurse but because when I grow up I want to either be a NICU nurse or a labor and delivery nurse. She could definitely help me out with that because she is a labor and delivery nurse.

She has a baby girl named Maya. She is so cute. Maya also has the cutest outfits. When she was on maternity leave, I missed her a lot but I powered through.

She is always teaching me more stuff about my diabetes. She even married a diabetic. She is very caring for the diabetics. This summer she came to camp Gilbert with him for a day. Camp Gilbert is a camp for diabetics only. I missed my parents, but she comforted me. She was very kind, making time to come and see Clete and me.

She is the best, always running around the school to treat all of the diabetic kids. She also takes care of all the other elementary students. She takes time to care for us all. She deserves a break to cuddle with baby Maya.

Mrs. Diede definitely makes a difference not only in our school but in my heart. She is beautiful, hardworking, brave, friendly, and kind. This is why I think that she deserves to be recognized. This is why I chose Mrs. Diede for the 2026 Someone Special essay.
Fifth Grade:  Morgan Dunnihoo

Someone Special
My school nurse, Mrs. Lauren is my special person. Mrs. Lauren is special to me because she takes care of me every day and a lot of other kids. She makes sure that I am safe in whatever activities I am doing.

One of the reasons she is special to me is because she takes care of me every day and watches my numbers all day, every day. Even on hard days, she is super nice to me and happy to see me. I have diabetes and need help taking care of my blood sugar. When I am low, she runs to find me wherever I am to give me a snack. When I am high, she gives me insulin. Over the past 3 years, she has helped me to learn to become independent with my diabetes. Each year, she helps my teachers learn about diabetes and what to do if I am high or low. That really helped me this year when she had her baby, Maya. I really missed her when she went on maternity leave.

Another reason she is special to me is that she makes sure I am safe in whatever activities I am doing. When I went ice skating this year, she made sure to send me with low snacks. Even though she is in charge of 400 kids, she still thinks about me and what I am doing.

She is always helping people. Another way she does this is as a nurse in the National Guard. Mrs. Lauren also used to be a nurse who delivered babies in Sioux Falls. When I went to diabetes camp this summer, I was sad and she came to see me and that made me feel so much better.

Mrs. Lauren is a very special person in my life because of all she does for me. Have you ever had someone in your life who is not your parent but takes care of you every day? That is Mrs. Lauren to me!
Fifth Grade: Clete Wellnitz

Someone Special
My Awesome Funny Teacher

There are many people to choose from but I chose Mrs. Stengel is the nicest and funniest teacher that I have had since the first day I met her. She was really funny and started to make jokes. Which made me feel safe with her when I used to feel sad after all of my classes and she would always cheer me up with her jokes. I remember this one time when I was very sleepy she gave me a piece of candy which made me have energy. When we had class with her she would always be in a happy mood. She was never cranky, she was always smiling. My teacher is very special to me because she would always laugh about jokes and she is very funny.

I have never had a teacher like Mrs. Stengel and in life you should have a Mrs. Stengel not just mine but yours too. She has always been that teacher who will always protect you in everything and be funny. Once I went to her class then she told a joke and then I did and we both started laughing then she started teaching and said something funny and then I laughed so hard after that. Then the next day we had a Valentine’s Day party and a lot were there and then we watched a movie which was really good. At one point of the year I stopped going there because I didn’t need help anymore.

My teacher is very special to me because she would always laugh about jokes and she’s very funny. Mrs. Stengel is the funniest, sweetest teacher ever. I love her so much. I once saw her in the hall and then I gave her the biggest hug ever. Then I went to her because I am in her after school program and I always do my homework there, but when I leave I get the biggest hug ever. Next, we had a party and someone brought cupcakes and there was one left so I saved it for Mrs. Stengel and we both had a good laugh. In your life you should always have someone like Mrs. Stengel not just mine but yours too.
Sixth Grade:  Hillary Aburto

My Someone Special
My someone special is my cousin, Zora. I picked my cousin because she is there for me when I need her, she always helps me, and she understands things about me that some people don’t. I admire how brave, understanding, kind, and strong she is. She is like an older sister to me. She is a great person to be around; she always listens to me and stands up for me.

She is there for me when I need help with something or I just need someone to talk to. Whenever I’m with all of my cousins, which are all boys, she always backs me up when they won’t listen to me. She will hang out with me when I want to do something fun, if she’s not busy. She inspires me to be there for others and be braver to stand up for my friends and family.

She always helps me with school problems or when I get in arguments with my friends or family. She helps me do better and think of better ways to handle the situation or different methods of how to do things. I feel more confident when I talk to her. She always helps me feel better if I make a mistake or don’t know something.

She understands things about me like the things I like or the reason I make some choices. When I need someone to talk to she always understands how I’m feeling and will give me advice and feedback on the situation. It’s easy to relate and talk to her about things because we are only a few years apart and she understands certain things better than other people. I feel more comfortable when I talk to her.

In conclusion, my cousin is my someone special because she is there for me when I need her, she always helps me, and she understands things about me that some people don’t. She is always listening to me and never judges me if I do something wrong. It’s easier to do things around her because I know she won’t judge me and she will help me get better. She inspires me to be as awesome as her.
Seventh Grade:  Stella Pulling

Someone Special
My someone special is Mr. Cantine. Mr. Cantine is more than just a teacher; he is one of my biggest role models. He has a positive, welcoming personality towards everyone and always takes the time to care. Students take teachers for granted, especially the ones that are so dedicated to teaching. Every day when I come to school I look forward to going to his class because he makes everyone feel welcome. Mr. Cantine is dedicated to each student and wants to see them succeed. You can truly see how much he cares by the way he teaches. He is so passionate about English and is always wanting us to learn as much as we can.

One thing that is special about Mr. Cantine is he makes special nicknames for everyone; he calls me Light. He calls me this because every day he reminds me to keep shining my light, he is always pushing to be stronger in my faith, and I greatly appreciate that. A key quality of Mr. Cantine’s is how humble he is, he doesn’t ever brag or raise himself above anyone else. Something he says quite often is, “I am no better than you, and you are no better than me.” I really like that statement because it reminds me to respect all those around me and listen to what they have to say. Mr. Cantine is always finding the positive in everything and I am blessed to have such a dedicated teacher.
Eighth Grade:  Brielle Bumgardner

Submitted Top Photo- Back Row: Sam Newstand, Lauren Diede, Nicci Stengel, Zora Henrich (Not pictured Ryan Conrad).
Front Row: Jackson Newstrand, Morgan Dunnihoo, Clete Wellnitz, Hunter Hanson, Hillary Aburto, Stella Pulling.
Bottom Photo- Brielle Bumgardner & Greg Cantine