MCB Quantico -- Winners of the first Marine Corps Base Quantico Earth Day photo contest have been announced.
The contest began on Earth Day, April 22, 2013, and ran for about a month before winners were selected in five categories, as voted upon by the public on Facebook. Entries came from base personnel and the public at large.
The contest’s most popular photo was Marine spouse Carrie Yacono’s shot of the base’s family fishing day, which had 69 likes as of June 5 and took first place in the “recreation” category. Yanoco’s was followed by Marine spouse Shelly Estrella’s photo of the sunset over Chopawamsic Creek, which took first place in the “scenic landscapes” category with 56 likes, also as of June 5.
Estrella also took first place in the “insects” category, with her shot of a bee on a flowering wisteria vine in Landing Zone Falcon.
First place in the “natural gardens” category went to Nancy Duncan, wife of a civilian Marine, for her shot of Chopawamsic Creek from the wildlife viewing area. Tim Stamps, head of the Natural Resources Section, took both first and second places in the “critters” category, for his picture of an oriole and a shot of two eastern painted turtles, respectively.
Other second-place winners were Marine spouse Icela Castillo in “scenic landscapes,” Marine reservist Capt. Eve Barker in “natural gardens” and Daniel Pierson, deputy of Program Executive Officer Land Systems at Marine Corps Systems Command in “recreation.” Jennifer Lynn Holland, a Marine’s sister, and base wildlife biologist Brad Watkin tied for second place in the “insects” category.
Maj. Peter Baker, deputy of Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs, which organized the contest, said organizers decided to let the competition be decided on Facebook for the same reason they opened it to members of the public — to engage the community.
“The main point of the contest was to raise awareness of the natural beauty and the natural resources that are here on the base,” Baker said. “People don’t know that we have 65,000 acres of pretty much wild nature here that’s available.”
The first-place winners will have their shots returned to them mounted on 18-by-24-inch foam board and will also receive vouchers from Marine Corps Community Services for base recreational activities. Second-place winners will have to be content with glory, and all the winning photos were on display at the culmination of the base’s snakehead fishing contest June 8.
— Writer: mdicicco@quanticosentryonline.com