Hundreds of people responded to Mitt Romney's Free and Strong America PAC essay contest, flooding our mailbox with many excellent answers to the question, "What does a free and strong America mean to you?" The winner: 15-year-old Jacob Walters from Peosta, Iowa. He has received an all-expense-paid trip for two people to a Boston Red Sox game versus the Oakland A's at Fenway Park on July 8. Jacob said he will be taking his father as his guest.
Jacob's winning essay is reprinted below, as are the essays of five runner-ups and one poem deserving of honorable mention.
Grand-Prize winner Jacob Walters from Peosta, Iowa:
What does a free and strong America mean to me?
It means I have the right to follow my dreams, to strive for success, to be innovative, to do as I, the individual sees fit. A free America is a place where you are free to think as you please. A country that thrives, not because of the government, but because of the people. A place where everyone can aspire to succeed, any goal can be accomplished; all you must do is try.
It’s a place where no one is treated different because of religion, race or gender. The promise of freedom is what called our ancestors to endure many hardships and make a new life together. They all came together, and by embracing their differences, they grew stronger. That’s what a free America means
to me; a place where we all have an equal chance of success.
What does a strong America mean to me?
It’s a place that is unified, that stands ready to defend its freedom, and to help those without it, get it. An America that doesn’t tolerate oppression. A nation that has self discipline, responsibility and appreciation for those who died to defend it. Strength that we use to defend our belief in individual freedom.
To me, a free and strong America is a land of opportunity were you can chase your dreams, and where we have a chance to make them come true.
Runner-up Thomas Ginster of Greenville, Michigan:
A free and strong America must have its fiscal house in order. We must confront the very real prospect of national insolvency, fueled by perennial promises from politicians, Republican and Democratic alike, to hurl billions at every conceivable social problem, failed industry and special interest. Our $8.5 trillion national budget deficit (we can call it the real "green monster") threatens America’s future economic prosperity and our national security. We must stiffen our national resolve to extricate ourselves from this rapidly growing public debt.
We must re-embrace the founders’ constitutional restraints of the role of the federal government in favor of recognizing the rights and responsibilities of the States and their citizens. Decisions concerning a child’s education for example, should not be made at the Cabinet table -- but at a kitchen table.
A free and strong America embraces policies that encourage entrepreneurial spirit, technological innovation and capital formation, free from the burdens of high taxation, heedless regulation and frivolous litigation. A strong America also means a nimble, ready, well-trained and outfitted military armed with smart technology and intelligence.
The ultimate and real strength of America lies not in her military might or economic prosperity -- but in her families and faith in God. American families face unprecedented attacks from higher tax burdens, welfare policies that reward illegitimacy and activist judges who want to re-define marriage.
If American is to be free and strong, we must elect leaders who will have the courage to restore our integrity among nations while refocusing our purpose here at home.
Runner-up Lt. Eric Russell – Currently Serving in Al Asad, Iraq:
As a U. S. Marine currently serving in Iraq, I was traveling between bases last week when we made an unexpected detour. Flying in a C-130 in the heat of the summer isn’t fun, so we were somewhat frustrated by the delay, until we discovered the cause: we had stopped to load a casket draped in an American flag. Upon arriving in Kuwait, we all got out and saluted the casket and colors as it was transported off the plane and onto a truck that would take it to its next destination on its way home.
In politics, we often speak of the policies and programs that strengthen America, but when I think of what really makes America free and strong, I think of its people – people who are willing to stand up and do what is right, no matter the consequences; people who approach the world with a sense of both compassion and responsibility; people who are willing to make sacrifices in order to produce a better world for the rest of us. The strength of America comes from a people who work hard to accomplish their goals, to succeed in industry, and to improve one another’s lives.
I don’t know who was in that casket that day or how he died, but his sacrifice reminded me of enduring strength of the American people, ever struggling for our freedom and the freedom of others. Whatever challenges may confront us, I sense that we will triumph even still.
Runner-up Yolanda Bryant of Centennial, Colorado:
My father entered this country on July 3rd, 1949. He was a penniless, yet energetic, eighteen year old with a big dream. He learned to speak English; he entered the military; and he eventually became a fighter pilot. He continued to live his dream as he married, had a family, and became a pilot for United Airlines. He believed that America could make his dreams come true, so with that faith in his new country, he set out in his ”pursuit of happiness.”
Immigrants for the past two hundred years have worked, dreamed, saved, and sacrificed to build a life and a future for their families here in America. Some would have us believe what the Founding Fathers had to say is old news. However, the inspired words of the Declaration of Independence which include our rights to “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” are just as applicable today, as in 1776.
A free and strong America means that we value life, we protect liberty, and we provide opportunities to each American to pursue their dreams. Like my father before me, I am proud to call the United States my home.
Runner-up Nanci Wudel of Mesa, Arizona.
My dad was in the Third Wave at Normandy; set up supply chains in the Korean War; went on to serve in the U.S. Army for 30 more years, and was buried with military honors last July, a week after Independence Day. I grew up all over the world, living under dictatorships, socialism, and oppression. There wasn’t a minute that we didn’t daily bless America and acknowledge what prices freedom exacts - prices our family felt honored and proud to pay.
At the end of my dad’s last tour of duty abroad, our family and many others crowded our way onto the ship’s deck to catch the first glimpse of the Statue of Liberty. I was a teenager, but not a rebellious one, because my dad had taught me gratitude for many things, especially for being an American.
We openly cried to be back home where we knew what freedom meant - the right to live as responsible citizens who cared as much about others’ freedoms as our own … and where noble actions and God-given standards were meant to be the norm, not the exception.Today, more than ever, our family stands together to acknowledge that “America” is not a noun, but rather a verb.
Freedom is not an end, but an on-going commitment to action … to safeguard all that is precious to us – family, fundamental principles of truth, and a divinely-appointed duty to fight for the right. Individuals, not government, indeed make freedom truly free.
Runner-up Riley Ebert Juliar of Austin, Texas:
An unknown Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps once said, “Courage is endurance for one moment more.” To me, America’s freedom and strength means paying the ultimate sacrifice. When I leave the University of Texas next semester I will be commissioning as an infantry officer in the Marines. Whenever I feel like my mind is becoming weak, my body is fatigued and my morale is dented, I always remind myself to be courageous—to have endurance for one moment more. This attitude is why we never give up. We liberate others by the expense of ourselves. We know the sacrifice of serving a cause greater than our own self-interest.
We are a sovereign nation, a free and strong Republic because of our brave. Whether it’s on the battlefield, in the boardroom, or in the oval office, Americans have that unique type of discipline: the type of discipline to take Iwo Jima and hold Guadalcanal; the kind that creates the highest quality of life; the type to send someone to the moon, rescue POWs, and be the leader of industry; the type which bleeds red, white, and blue.
We fight and we win so that nobody will tell us how to live our lives. But what is hiding beneath those concrete American traits is the spirit that sets us apart from the rest of mankind—having endurance for one moment more. It’s that one moment more that makes us free; it’s that one moment more that makes us strong.
Honorable mention for creativity Francis James Duffy of Kennebunk, Maine:
A Free & Strong America,
Expected at our birth,
Learning some have died for it,
Knowing what its worth.
A Free & Strong America,
We know it’s worth the fight,
A beacon lit for all to see,
As everyman’s true right.
A Free & Strong America,
It must be kept alive
Without it we are lost it seems,
No purpose in our lives.
A Free & Strong America,
Don’t let it slip away,
For some misguided souls around,
Attack it every day.
A Free & Strong America,
Commit now to the fray,
So a stronger, freer, safer world,
Can be our world someday.
"Former United States attorney Chris Christie captured the New Jersey Republican gubernatorial nomination Tuesday night, setting the stage for what will be a closely-watched general election battle with the state’s vulnerable Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine."
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