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Searching the Darkness for the Light

“I have kissed the darkness hello. And as I move, I search through that darkness for the most brilliant light.”

Dr. Arthenia Jackson Bates Millican

We asked writers to answer those words honestly. What came back to us was extraordinary. Entries arrived from Sumter County and beyond, from middle schoolers and high schoolers and adults, each one carrying something the writer had to be brave enough to look at directly.

Below are the winners of the “Searching the Darkness for the Light” Contest. Read their work. Then, if you’re able, read it again. These are stories worth sitting with. Because every story matters.

Adult – 1st Prize

"From Hiding to Seeking" by Anna Jubilee ...
/ Contest Winner - Adult

Adult – 2nd Prize

"Light vs Dark" by Gabrielle Simone Beyah ...
/ Contest Winner - Adult

Adult – 3rd Prize

"When I Think of My Dad..." by Anaya Michelle Wilson ...
/ Contest Winner - Adult

1st Prize – High School

"Happiness and Hardships" by Ahmed Ahmed ...

HONORABLE MENTIONS 

ADULT POETRY 
  • “Nyctophobia” – JORDYN WILLIAMS

  • “Behind the Darkness” – NANDIMILAN WADLEY

HIGH SCHOOL POETRY 
  • “Hands That Drag and Claw and Lift” – BRIANNA WESSEL
  • “The Darkness that Consumes” – CEANNA RELLE