Electricity powers our lives. We rely on it 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to support the life we enjoy. Conway Corp is proud to provide dependable and reliable services to our friends and neighbors since 1929. Once a year, we encourage local students to show their energy smarts and participate in a poster, essay and video contest. Students in grades PreK-4 were asked to create a poster on the theme “My Life, Powered by Conway Corp” while students in 5-7 grade and 8-12 grade were asked to write an essay or create a video on the same theme. The winners of the 2023 Energy Smart Contest – in each age category – are listed below.
- Poster Contest First Place: Fareedah Oyeniyi – 3rd grade at Julia Lee Moore Elementary
- 5-7 Essay Contest First Place: Luke Sides – 7th grade at Ruth Doyle Middle School
- 8-12 Essay Contest First Place: Lily Douglas – 12th grade at Conway High School
Below is the winning essay by Lily Douglas:
The Light of Conway: I’ve always been one to reminisce. I’ve spent the past two hundred and fifty-three days recording a second of my day just for the future pleasure of looking back. Nostalgia is powerful. This powerful force has, in my memory, become intertwined with the use of Conway Corp. I’ve lived in Conway all my life. It feels like the city, each bend and twist in the road, every shop that has helped pass the time, and all the schools where I’ve befriended so many and have learned so much, have become permanently ingrained in my memory. As I’m rushed into this transitional period of life, a chapter where I’m graduating, leaving my hometown, and having new expectations put on me; I find myself looking back at my younger years, realizing how simple that period of my life was.
Conway Corp has consistently been an integral part of my life. From when I was a child who would attempt to imitate the gymnasts I saw on the television, to the adolescent who would pass the time on the phone, and now to the girl who enjoys every afternoon practicing swimming at the University of Central Arkansas. As a kid, during the summer days, Conway Corp would power the water that would run through my oscillating sprinkler. The sprinkler would bring entertainment, laughter, and relief from the blistering sun to my friends and me, and bring nutrients and hydration to the grass and myriad of plants my mom planted that spring in our garden beds.
Conway Corp powers the electricity in the many houses in our town. From the homes in East Conway that have brought sanctuary to generations of families to the new growth houses being built in the west. The electricity that allows the lights, electronic devices, refrigerators, and more, the items that improve our daily lives, consistently stay functional. Conway Corp powered the lights I would constantly turn on as a kid when I would wander around the house in the dead of night because I was terrified of the unknown terrors that could be waiting in the dark. They have powered the television in my house, the one I would wake up to on the weekends for an early morning showing of my favorite cartoon or run home to after school from the bus stop to not miss a long-awaited special showing of a new show. Conway Corp has helped bring delicious meals to my table since childhood by powering the refrigerator. The refrigerator that held the countless strawberries I would eat during the summer, the milk I would add to my cereal before heading to school, and the ice cream I would eat while watching a movie with my family.
Without Conway Corp, the connection between my friends, family, and past would not be as powerful as it is today. Every day, friends that sit in the same seat, in the same classroom, are able to stay in touch after the school day through the use of our phones. Similarly, the friends that I will meet after I graduate and the friends that live out of state are able to get to know me and stay in touch with me through the phone that is supported by Conway Corp. Without the use of my phone, I wouldn’t be able to look back on the innumerable events that I’ve experienced and learned from, the different people and places I’ve encountered while traveling around a new environment, and the countless photos of notes I’ve taken during my time at school.
Conway Corp has powered my childhood, powers my present, and will continue to power my future. While Conway Corp provides advantages in many areas of life, such as light, heat and air, water, electricity, and the internet, it’s an even more relevant staple in my life as it had such an influence on my childhood and continues to influence my nostalgia. Without Conway Corp, I wouldn’t be able to watch a childhood show when I’m feeling down, listen to music my parents would play through the speakers in the house while I was a kid to keep me motivated while doing homework or look back on photos and videos when I’m feeling reminiscent. Conway Corp not only powers my everyday objects, but the way I think about my past and how I will perceive my future.
Congratulations to the winners of the 2023 Energy Smart Poster and Essay Contest, and thank you to all students who submitted an entry. Conway Corp is proud of these students who continue to remind us how integral Conway Corp is to our daily lives. We’ve been helping power area education since our creation in 1929, and we’re looking forward to the start of another great school year in a few months.
