When senior Jill McNamara saw Campus Life’s posting for the inaugural Parents of the Year contest, she knew she had to try to win.

“My parents are the type of people who will bend over backwards to help others. They’re constantly putting others before themselves no matter how busy they are,” said McNamara.

Her winning essay describes how deserving her parents, Elaine and Brian, are of the award. She explains how, even with a bright pink cast on her broken ankle, her mother would drive her grandmother to doctors’ appointments for breast cancer treatment. Her father is very involved in the community and dedicated to his family business and has always “schedule(d) things around my sister’s sports performances and major events that I had,” wrote McNamara in her essay.

With her grandmother continuing to undergo radiation treatment for her cancer, her parents “go out of their way…to make sure that her needs are met,” said McNamara.

Sara Frees, Director of Student Activities at Aquinas, is hoping that this contest is the first of many more.

“We also want to eventually build the program up to have more events for all the parents nominated to participate in and be honored,” said Frees.

McNamara’s essay was chosen based upon criteria set by a committee consisting of Aquinas faculty, staff and alumni. The contestants’ essays were judged based upon quality and min- imum writing standards.

Of course, the contestants were also to illustrate why their parents were deserving of the award. The parents of the winning essayist receive a “weekend stay at the JW Marriott along with a gift certificate to one of the many downtown GR restaurants,” said Frees.

McNamara was very excited to see her parents win the contest. “My parents deserve a weekend getaway and I’m so happy that they were chosen,” she said.

Time spent on her essay might just pay off for her as well. McNamara jokes that she’ll “probably get a nice dinner out of it, too!”