JEFFERSON CITY – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it is pleased to invite all to celebrate this year’s Best of Show winner for the annual Missouri Junior Duck Stamp Contest. In cooperation with the Missouri Department of Conservation Springfield Conservation Nature Center, we are marking the occasion and celebrating the accomplishments of Aliyah Ridenour from Nixa, Missouri, this year’s Best of Show winner.
There will be a ceremony at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, July 1, 2023, at the Springfield Conservation Nature Center. The event is free and open to the public. Ridenour will receive her First Place and Best of Show ribbons, as well as a certificate of appreciation and a $500 gift card.
All 72 winners in the Missouri Junior Duck Stamp Contest will be on display at the Springfield Conservation Nature Center during the event and throughout the month of July.
Ridenour’s artwork of a flying cinnamon teal over a wetland with storm clouds approaching won out over all other Missouri entries to be selected Best of Show and went on to compete against all other Best of Show entries from across the country in the National Junior Duck Stamp Contest held on April 21, 2023, at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
A hooded merganser by 15-year-old Mila Linyue Tong was selected to grace the 2023-2024 Junior Duck Stamp, which goes on sale June 23, 2023, and raises funds to educate and engage our nation’s youth in wildlife and wetlands conservation and outdoor recreation.
The Federal Junior Duck Stamp Program engages children in environmental education through art. The program guides students, using scientific and wildlife observation principles to communicate visually what they have learned through an entry in their state’s Junior Duck Stamp Contest. This conservation education program is open to any child in kindergarten through high school.
During the contest, students are judged in four groups according to grade level: Kindergarten through third grade, fourth through sixth grade, seventh through ninth grade and tenth through twelfth grade. Three first, second and third place entries, along with 16 honorable mentions, are selected from each group. Contest judges select a Best of Show from the 12 first place winners, which are submitted to the Federal Duck Stamp Office and entered into the National Junior Duck Stamp Contest.
The Junior Duck Stamp is available for $5 from the U.S. Postal Service and from many national wildlife refuges. All proceeds from the sale of the stamps support conservation education and provide awards and scholarships for participating students, teachers and schools.
The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. We are both a leader and trusted partner in fish and wildlife conservation, known for our scientific excellence, stewardship of lands and natural resources, dedicated professionals and commitment to public service. For more information on our work and the people who make it happen, visit http://www.fws/gov.