On February 9, senior Michael Mastromichalis will participate in a TV interview with CNN for winning an essay contest sponsored by the History Channel's Take A Veteran To School national program.

"Entries for the contest were accepted from all over the area," said Mrs. Jividen, the Civics teacher who entered Mastromichalis's essay. "They came from Weir, Brooke, Morgantown, Wheeling Park, Parkersburg, and a few other schools around the area." The contest was sponsored by Comcast, and they chose the winner.

People who entered the contest had to write about a war veteran in their family. "My essay was about my grandfather and how he immigrated from Greece and was almost immediately drafted into the U.S. Army. It included his experiences before, during, and after [WWII]," said Mastromichalis.

Why did Mastromichalis decide to write about his grandfather? "I was always very close with him, and I knew it would make him proud to write about him and his journey," he said. "I learned about my grandfather's journey and how to appreciate not only him but all the veterans for their services."
 
Mastromichalis won many prizes, the biggest obviously being his TV interview with CNN. He will travel to Wheeling and answer questions about his essay and his grandfather. He said that the thing he's most excited about is "just the idea of being on TV! And also, I can share my grandfather's story with many others."