We are proud to present the top 19 National winners of the 2025–2026 VFW Auxiliary’s Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest. The annual contest began in 1979 and recognizes up-and-coming artists and encourages patriotism in youth. More than 2,500 students submitted entries and a total of $37,000 in national scholarships was awarded to students in 2025. Learn more about the contest and view all the previous first-place national winners.
First Place
$15,000 Scholarship
Department of Nevada
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 12093
We, Too, Are ‘We The People’
R’mani-Dajoure Harris, 11th Grade
Second Place
$7,500 Scholarship
Department of Arizona
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 3513
Beyond The Canyon
Christiana Zheng, 11th Grade
Third Place
$3,500 Scholarship
Department of Pennsylvania
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 15
Patriotic Polaroid
Allijah Nichol Carmichael , 10th Grade
Fourth Place
$1,500 Scholarship
Department of Michigan
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 3900
Through Their Eyes
Nynna Jarvi, 11th Grade
Fifth Place
$1,500 Scholarship
Department of Georgia
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 5255
The Beautiful World Created Through Their Sacrifices and Hard Work
Philip Jeong, 11th Grade
Sixth Place
$1,000 Scholarship
Department of Indiana
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 1954
Breath of Life
Danielle Cummings, 12th Grade
Seventh Place
$1,000 Scholarship
Department of Virginia
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 1503
Granddad
Morgan Taylor, 12th Grade
Eighth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Florida
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 8093
Beyond The Broken Barbed Wire
Jordan Hill, 10th Grade
Ninth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of New Jersey
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 2290
Legacy of Sacrifice
Aaliyah Sharma, 11th Grade
Tenth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of New York
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 1143
Still in Battle
Karli Bignesss, 10th Grade
Eleventh Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Tennessee
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 9851
Times Square Kiss
Grace Stone, 12th Grade
Twelfth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Louisiana
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 4752
Untamed Freedom
Makayla Rhodes, 12th Grade
Thirteenth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Illinois
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 5222
Flight of Freedom
Jianna Westerfield, 9th Grade
Fourteenth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Ohio
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 8736
Echoes of a Young Soldier
Ophelia Hill, 11th Grade
Fifteenth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Massachusetts
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 1385
A Family Tradition
Georgia LaPierre, 12th Grade
Sixteenth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Arkansas
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 1385
Ageless Hero
Camille Alford, 12th Grade
Seventeenth Place
$500 Scholarship
Department of Maryland
Sponsored by VFW Auxiliary 6027
Horrors of War
Anna Pool, 10th Grade
