Contest winner encourages pupils to dive into reading
For 14-year-old Shari Bodofsky, an eighth-grade student at Rosa International Middle School, reading is a part of everyday life.
When she heard of an opportunity to encourage others to get into the habit of reading, Shari immediately got to work. The Cherry Hill resident participated in the Camden Riversharks bookmark contest, and her efforts won her the grand prize.
"I was surprised to find out that I won," Shari said. "Reading gives you a new outlook, and it's a safe way to explore new things."
Shari designed a bookmark that incorporated the themes of reading and the Riversharks. Her design, which she described as a cartoon-style image, was selected out of several thousand entries from across the South Jersey and Philadelphia region.
"When I saw they were having a contest, I immediately got to work and started drawing during some of my free periods at school," said Shari, who is a cartoonist for the school's newspaper. "I spent a few days on it before I submitted my design."
The Riversharks public relations assistant Gina DiDomenicis said the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball team has conducted the contest for seven years.
As part of Shari's prize pack, she and her peers were treated to a visit by Finley, the team's mascot, on March 25. Finley presented Shari with a giant bookmark featuring her design, which will be distributed to about 30,000 students in the region, DiDomenicis said.
"It's not every day that a principal gets to see a shark running through his school," said Ed Canzanese, the school's principal, as Finley greeted the students.
During a short award reception in the school's library, students had a chance to win prizes by playing a reading trivia game. DiDomenicis quizzed the students on everything from Edgar Allan Poe's works to the Twilight Saga.
The students can also look forward to seeing their classmate Shari throw out the first pitch during the Riversharks' Reading Night game on May 7.
DiDomenicis said students are encouraged to read at least five books outside of the regular curriculum, and when they do their teachers will sign off on a special bookmark.
Students are invited to bring that bookmark to the May 7 game in exchange for a free ticket to see the Riversharks play.
"The goal is to emphasize the importance of reading to students," DiDomenicis said.
Reach Rachel Misenko at (856) 317-7871 or rmisenko@gannett.com.