J.P. McHale Sponsors Local Bug Contest

BUCHANAN, N.Y. — Westchester County students demonstrated their knowledge about the ways insects are important to our world in the first-ever Get Buggy With It! Bee Creative Contest. Most people don’t think about the positive ways insects influence our society and the reasons they are so important to people and other living things. There are about one million different species of insects, which make up three-quarters of animals in our world. Although humans view insects as annoying and dangerous, the vast majority play a big role on earth, and many are of great importance to humans.

Aspiring student photographers, artists and writers throughout Westchester recently submitted entries that demonstrated their talent and knowledge about how bugs help our environment in the first-ever Get Buggy With It! Bee Creative! Contest. The contest, which calls for entries that best “tell the story about how bugs can be our partners in saving the earth” is sponsored by J.P. McHale Pest Management.

Charles Howard Grant,10, a fourth grade student at Columbus Elementary School in Pleasantville, was named the Grand Prize winner for his two submissions: a colorful mobile featuring insect photos and a “We’re Bugged; Insects Rule” poster featuring valuable information about which insects are most helpful to us. Hailey Kieltyka, 13, a seventh grade student at John Jay Middle School won First Place for her creative writing submission, entitled “The Bug.” This piece is a poem about an insect living in someone’s backyard. Mimi Sillings, 10, a fifth grade student at Todd Elementary School in Briarcliff Manor will also be honored as a First Place Winner for her compelling short story, entitled “Bee Open To Learning.” Dylan Tait, 5, who will be just starting kindergarten in New Rochelle this September, is the winner of the K-2 category for his drawing of fireflies depicting how fireflies help the earth by using their light to find air and water pollution.

“We hope that this contest gave students throughout Westchester County the opportunity to expand their knowledge about the delicate balance of nature and that they now have a greater sense of how beneficial insects are to our environment,” said Jim McHale Jr, president of JP McHale Pest Management Inc. “ Looking at the ecosystem as a whole, pestiferous creatures make up only about five percent of the insect population. More importantly, most of them have beneficial characteristics and only become problematic when encountered by human beings. At JP McHale Pest Management Inc., our daily function is to meet the needs of our most discriminating clients while preserving this unvitiated scientific balance.”

The contest was open to all students in grades K- 8 attending schools in Westchester County. Entries were submitted in one or more of three categories: Creative Writing (short stories, essays, poems, etc.); Art (any original drawing, painting, cartoon, etc.); and Photography (black & white or color; digital or 5x7 print). An important element of the contest was demonstrating a knowledge about bugs with research. Entrants were encouraged to refer to the new www.nopests.com website to conduct their research and to gain a comprehensive knowledge about insects. There is a Pest Library on the site with extensive information about the types of insects that live in our region.

The Grand Prize winner will receive an iPod. Other prizes will include Gameboys, Webkinz, and Mastercard gift certificates. Winning entries will be posted on www.nopests.com.

Says McHale: “We want to emphasize that insects can often be helpful to us and are not always ‘pests.’ We are committed to the communities we serve here in Westchester, and want to help educate children and their parents about insects and our environment.” J.P. McHale, serving all of Westchester County and the Tri-State Area, focuses on the most progressive environmentally-responsible methods for preventing and controlling pest infestations.