Lincoln – Each year, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office invites fifth-graders from across the state to participate in the Nebraska Missing Children’s Day poster contest. The posters are intended to raise awareness of missing children and remind parents, guardians, and caregivers to make the safety of children a priority.

Mackenna Wollenburg from Seward, Nebraska, is the 2021 first-place contest winner.  The winning poster portrays a network of people and children. “The web of children in the center shows how children and everyone is connected by this heartbreaking issue,” Makenna states in her essay.  On the side, Mackenna created paintings that feature “people who protect and search for children: teachers, lawyers, parents, single parents, police officers, and social workers.” She concludes her essay with, “We are all united and connected by helping to bring our missing children home.”

As the winner of the statewide contest, Mackenna’s poster will be submitted to a national competition with the U.S. Department of Justice. The national winner will be awarded at the annual ceremony in May recognizing National Missing Children’s Day.

To decide the poster contest winner, voters cast ballots for their top three favorite posters. In addition to the Attorney General and his staff, this year the poster contest included voting from legislative staff, a public school ambassador, as well as supporting social media from Nebraska Association of School Boards and the Nebraska Council of School Administrators.

To learn more about this year’s poster contest winner, visit https://ago.nebraska.gov/2021-winner-missing-childrens-day-nebraska-poster-contest.