EAST LANSING, Mich. — The East Lansing Downtown Development Authority (DDA) is excited to announce the winners of this past January’s “Why I Wear A Mask” Photo Contest.
The photo contest was hosted by the DDA as a part of the “Daytime. Nighttime. Anytime. Place Project” and, to participate in the contest, community members were invited to submit a photo of themselves wearing a mask in downtown East Lansing along with a short narrative about why they wear a mask.
The winners and their narratives are listed below. Their photos can be viewed on the City of East Lansing’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/cityofeastlansing/posts/3827193250674560.
- 1st Place – Alex Arnold
“I wear a mask to protect the small businesses that I love. When I walk the alleys, I cherish the lights glowing above. I think of good times in East Lansing and know that, one day, I will get to relive the memories that seem so far away.”
- 2nd Place – Miguel Pedraza
“I wear a mask to protect myself and those I love.”
- 3rd Place – Lynn Schupbach
“We are wearing our masks so this pandemic can end soon and then we can eat inside at our favorite restaurants with others and enjoy Spartan sports again, especially football tailgating and games!”
The contest winners will be receiving downtown East Lansing gift cards and vouchers to shop at the East Lansing Downtown Underground Market.
In addition to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Place winners, an additional 10 submissions were selected as honorable mention winners. The honorable mention winners include Aatiyana Davis, Brittany Biddle, Elise Schut, Guillermo Flores, Jacqui Carroll, Jill Berryman, Sarah Spohn, Tobias Vanderbush, William Rowan and Phillip Smith. Photos and narratives submitted by the honorable mention winners can be viewed on the City’s Facebook page as well: https://www.facebook.com/cityofeastlansing/posts/3827193250674560.
"My staff and I wear our masks to protect you. We ask that you do the same to protect us! We want to thank all of the participants of the “Why I Wear a Mask” Photo Contest for their commitment to wearing masks and we extend our congratulations to all of the winners,” said Michael Krueger, owner of Crunchy’s and a member of the East Lansing DDA.