Caroline Kokan was excited to win first place in the essay contest sponsored by Madison Station Historical Preservation Society. Caroline is a third-grader at Horizon Elementary School. RECORD PHOTOS/GREGG L. PARKER

MADISON – Youngsters across Madison expressed their thoughts in writing about their hometown in an essay contest, sponsored by Madison Station Historical Preservation society.

The historical society asked third-graders who live in Madison to explain “Why I Love Madison, Alabama” in their essays. Forty students from Horizon, Rainbow and West Madison elementary schools submitted essays for the contest, Beth Bero said.

Bero, who works as Horizon’s gifted specialist and historical society member, recruited students to participate in the contest’s first year.

Standout writers were Caroline Kokan in first place from Horizon. Also Horizon students, Abbygail Watts and Adeline Miller earned second-place honors.

In third place were Julia Schwartz from West Madison, Mille Grace Hoksbergen from Rainbow and Finnley Koehler from Horizon.

Essay winners were recognized at Madison City Council’s meeting on Jan. 25. “The mayor’s office plans to post the winning essays online,” Bero said. Winners received a ribbon, certificate and check.

In her essay, Kokan wrote that Madison has great schools, teachers and neighborhoods “with a lot of people you can make friends with. There are so many sports you can sign up to play here.”

Madison’s “great protectors make sure we’re all safe, such as firefighters, police and nurses,” Kokan wrote. “There are lots of places to get what we need to live — the farmers’ market, malls and grocery stores. There are good doctors and nurses here. There are hiking trails, caves to cave in and a roller-skating, golfing and games arcade.”

“There are tons of trees and the same for animals. There are flat places and very hilly places. I find that interesting because it works for different things — like if you want to run on flat ground, you can, and if you want to hike on hilly ground, you can,” Kokan wrote.

“I love Madison and hope everyone does, too. I hope Madison is always this good or even better, but for now it is perfect for me,” she wrote.

For more information about Madison Station Historical Preservation Society, visit historicmadisonstation.com.