Essay Contest

2025 Persuasive Letter Writing Contest

The 23rd McGee March Madness Penny Drive begins March 4, 2025, lasting only nine school days. In the past twenty years, students have raised $143,717.81 for charity.  With the raised funds, students have the opportunity to determine which charitable organizations receive donations. 

Participation in this step of the process is critical.

Students should select a charitable organization that they would like to see benefit from McGee's Penny Drive, and write a persuasive letter explaining why it deserves our donation.

When a student's charity is selected, a copy of his/her letter will go directly to the organization, along with the monetary gift.  With that in mind, be certain that each letter represents a student's best work.

                     Suggested Letter Format

                     Date                                                                                                            

                     Dear March Madness Committee,                                                              

                     Paragraph I             * general information about charitable organization

                                                         * why you want it to benefit from the donation

                     Paragraph II, III, IV * reasons and elaboration

                     Paragraph V            * final appeal

                     Sincerely,

                     Your name

                     Name of the charity

                     Address of charity

                     Contact person and phone number            

Essays are due March 3, 2025!

Selecting a charity:

Connection

There should be a link between you and the charity.

Examples:

You have a relative with cancer and you select the American Cancer Society.

You are in Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts and you select one of those charities.

You love animals and you select a charity that is related to animals.

Location

Many charities have different locations.  For example the American Red Cross have locations all over the United States.  Often they are called “chapters”.  Select a chapter or location closest to Berlin.

Uniqueness

We receive over 600 letters.  We like to see unique charities and unique letters.

Writing a Winning Essay:

Well Written, Good Connection, Stands out, Persuasive