Shepard senior wins Metra essay contest

Kayla Berry, a senior at Shepard High School in Palos Heights, recently was named the high school division winner of the Safety Essay Contest sponsored by Metra.

Berry won a laptop computer for her essay, which addressed the importance of practicing safe behavior near trains and railroad tracks.

"At Metra, safety is our No. 1 priority," said Philip A. Pagano, executive director of Metra. "We continue to expand on our safety campaign and it is really hitting home with children in a very positive, thoughtful way. We are thrilled that each year the campaign continues to grow and engage even more children in railroad safety."

Aside from the essay contest, Metra also sponsored a poster design competition. At the judging event, first-, second- and third-place winners were chosen from each grade level for the Metra Safety Poster Contest. One winner from each grade group - elementary school, middle school and high school - was chosen for the Safety Essay Contest.

Local elected officials, representatives from safety advocacy groups, Metra officials, journalists, and business and community leaders selected the winners.

"We are honored to have such esteemed individuals make time to ensure railroad safety is a top priority," Pagano said. "We are seeing a dramatic increase in student involvement from across the region and it's great to see that together we are making quite an impact in helping to keep children safe."

Metra recognized the winners of the 2008-09 Metra Safety Campaign including the first-place poster contest winners, essay contest winners, People's Choice Award winner and top participating school at its August board of directors meeting.