Anderson County students win Sons of the Revolution essay contest

  • Gene Patton gives an award to Isabella Smith during the Anderson County High School awards ceremony May 7.

  • Jerry Cox presents an award to Arianna Herrell during the Clinton High School awards ceremony May 14.

Arianna Herrell from Clinton High School and Isabella Smith from Anderson County High School were honored with awards in May from the Anderson County Chapter of the Sons of the Revolution.

Each year, the group hosts an essay contest, inviting students from local high schools to participate.

This year, Clinton High School students wrote on “What does the word Patriot mean to you?” while Anderson County High School students tackled “What were two of the most important battles in the Revolutionary War and why?”

Members of the chapter reviewed the submissions and selected the best essays from each school.

The two winners each received a $500 check and a plaque.

The awards ceremony for Clinton High School was held May 14.

Chapter President Jerry Cox presented to Herrell the Jerry Mustin/Jim Green Scholarship, renamed this year in memory of longtime member Jerry Mustin, who died in 2023.

Anderson County High School’s ceremony took place on May 7, in which Gene Patton presented to Smith the Harry Patton Scholarship in honor of his late father, who was a member of the chapter.

The essay contest, which began during the 2019-20 school year, originally featured only Anderson County High School and was named the Harry Patton Scholarship Award.

Clinton High School joined the contest in 2022, with the scholarship named in memory of Jim Green, a chapter member who died in 2019.

The scholarships are funded by donations from club members and their families.