Local kids' artwork helps Glennon kids

Kara Boschert

Kara Boschert and Claire Mueller have entered art contests before but, for Eugene Morgenthaler, this was a first. But, all were winners in the 2004 Cards for Kids competition.

The competition is sponsored by Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital. The contest finds holiday card designs that can be used to help raise money for kids' care at the hospital.

Fourteen kids' art designs were picked from among over 900 entries.

The winning designs will be reproduced on the hospital's holiday cards. Supporters of Cardinal Glennon buy the cards to send as holiday greetings. Proceeds from the sales go into the hospital's Children's Fund to provide care for infants and young kids.

(If you or your family would like to order boxes of cards, you can call (314) 577-5605 or 1-800-269-0552. Also, you can order online at www.glennon.org.)

(For a list of all the kid winners and their design names, see sidebar below.)

Twelve-year-old Kara of Ballwin said she entered her first art contest at age 6. It was a newspaper coloring competition. She won tickets to a Sesame Street Live show. She also was a runner up in a Missouri Arbor Day poster competition.

But, her best prize came when she was a finalist in a St. Louis Rams football media guide contest. "We got Rams tickets and $200 worth of art supplies," she said.

Claire Mueller

Thirteen-year-old Claire of University City said she's entered the Cardinal Glennon card competition since she was in 5th grade. But, this was her first win. She'll be in 8th grade this fall at Cathedral Catholic School in the city of St. Louis.

Kara's card design was of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Claire's design was of a Jewish menorah to commemorate Hanukkah.

Although she's not Jewish, Kara decided on a Hanukkuh design because everyone else was doing Christmas or Kwansaa designs. Kwansaa is an African-American end-of-year holiday. "I wanted to do something different," she said.

Both of the girls do lots of drawing and artwork outside of school.

But, for 14-year-old Eugene of Sunset Hills, the Glennon competition was his first. However, he said he's liked drawing ever since he started art classes in lst grade.

His design was somewhat unusual for a holiday greeting card. He used a gingerbread character, but it was wearing a Santa's hat. "And there was a bite out of one arm," Eugene said.

Kara said, when she's drawing for her own pleasure, "I love to draw girls."

Eugene Morgenthaler

"Sometimes, I like to do a whole book, no words, just illustrations," she added. "I like to do animation rather than realistic drawings," she said.

Most of her art work involves pencil sketches. "With oil painting, I can't say I'm excellent," she said.

Besides art, Kara is active in the Kirkwood Children's Chorale, a community choir. She's also in her middle school choir and has sung solos in school plays.

One of Claire's best art projects was done when she was in 4th grade. It was an impressionistic drawing of a "space party." It showed three aliens and a balloon.

Her parents had the painting framed and it hangs in their home. Her dad said, "The artwork matches our family's interest in Star Trek."

When she sketches, she likes to do landscapes. One of her toughest pieces came when she decided to sketch the family home. "I'd draw a little of it every day. It took about a month," she said.

The hardest part of the drawing to get right was the front door and porch. "When I first drew the door, it looked like a juke box," Claire said.

Besides art, Claire said she is very active in dance at the Dimensions Dance Studio. She takes lessons four days a week and likes ballet the best.

For Eugene, most of his drawing outside of school involves doodling. "If I see a movie, I'll doodle about the theme of the movie," he said.

He likes to play a variety of sports and is very active in Boy Scouts. Last month, he returned from a 10-day Scout trip to the Smokey Mountains in Tennessee and North and South Carolina.

They hiked on the Appalachian Trail. Another highlight of the trip was staying on the U.S.S. Yorktown, an aircraft carrier anchored in Charleston, S.C.

 

Here's a listing of all the kids whose artwork was selected for Glennon's 2004 Cards for Kids holiday cards:

• Molly Lees, 13, St. Louis, subject "Snowman"
• Mary Sahrmann, 12, St. Louis, "Present"
• Eugene Morgenthaler, 13, Sunset Hills, "Gingerbread Man"
• Kathleen Fossell, 13, St. Louis, "House"
• Kelly Suntrup, 10, St. Louis, "Madonna"
• Lawson Franklin, 7, Perryville, Mo., "Candles"
• Kara Boschert, 12, Ballwin, "Holy Family"
• Anna Karpinski, 12, St. Louis, "Church"
• Kevin Schramm, 11, O'Fallon, Mo., "Reindeer"
• Anna Coch, 13, St. Louis, "Penguin"
• Claire Mueller, 12, University City, "Hanukkah"
• Kaitlyn Aholt, 12, August, Mo., "Christmas Tree"
• Alyssa Cadice, 8, St. Louis, "Angel"
• Bobbie Piatcheck, 13, St. Louis, "Santa"