Congratulations to all of this year’s winners, and thank you for contributing to the success of the competition, and furthering Sir John’s legacy.
The Laws of Life Essay and Video Competition reached its culmination with a grand awards ceremony honoring the exceptional young minds of our country who have endeavored to demonstrate their understanding and application of the Laws of Life. The event, held on Saturday, June 14th at the British Colonial Hilton was a resounding success, celebrating the remarkable achievements of the competition’s participants.
An esteemed joint venture initiative between the Templeton World Charity Foundation and the Ministry of Education & Technical & Vocational Training, the Laws of Life Essay and Video Competition is in its 16th year since its rebirth in 2009. It aims to encourage students through their writing and video production, to reflect upon and articulate how the Laws of Life shape their lives, guide their decisions, and engender personal growth and positive contributions to society.
The 2025 competition was launched in November 2024, closing in early May of this year. The event organizers, inclusive of the Learning Resources Section of the Ministry of Education and the Laws of Life Planning Committee, continue to boast of the event’s status as the largest competition of its kind in The Bahamas. With over 1,300 entries obtained from students in grades 5-12, as well as students enrolled in local tertiary institutions, the distinguished markers and panel of judges faced the difficult task of selecting the winners among an array of exceptional entries.
Sir John Templeton’s Laws of Life are not a conclusive list - he fundamentally believed in the importance of the definition and ongoing audit of one’s own belief system based on new, and continued revelation of existing information. This year’s competitors from across our islands rose courageously to this challenge and engaged with their chosen topics in creative and nuanced ways. This year, students were invited to write about their own law, rule, or positive character trait that they strive to live by, an exercise that aimed to encourage them to reflect more deeply on their personal core values. During the awards ceremony, Ms. Tina Cambridge, President of the Templeton World Charity Foundation, focused her remarks on the participants saying, “The collective wisdom contained in your essays was just astounding. You drew from a variety of sources, whether from personal experiences, or inspirational people in your life including your parents, your grandparents, your teachers, or even some renowned individuals.” She further commended the participants for having the courage to share a range of experiences highlighting personal moments of joy, perseverance, inspiration, humor, as well as heartaches, disappointments and anxieties. “We witnessed grit, determination, resilience, and perseverance being employed to turn extraordinary circumstances and events into lasting life lessons” said Ms. Cambridge.
This year’s awards ceremony was attended by students, parents, teachers, school administrators, principals, and community members. Senior Under Secretary at the Ministry of Education Ms. Joan Collie remarked, “This competition challenges students to think critically and boldly about life and the world around them”. She further remarked, “Much like the founder [Sir John Templeton] himself, who championed bold, ambitious thinking, and creative communication across diverse topics, the competition aims to stimulate humility, curiosity, a sense of purpose, and an enduring enthusiasm for new discoveries. This competition powerfully amplifies the student’s voice.”
Since a digital format to the competition was introduced in 2021 to increase the efficiency of the competition, students can now easily access the platform to register and submit their essays and videos. Anonymous evaluations are also carried out via the platform. Continuing its digital trend, this year’s ceremony was streamed live on the competition’s social media platforms. The coveted top awards for all the divisions were presented to seventy-five students from public and private schools, as well as from local tertiary institutions. A lofty scholarship of $1,000 was given to the winners of the Primary, Junior, and Senior categories. The schools of each of these divisional winners also received a $1,000 prize.
The Templeton World Charity Foundation and the Ministry of Education & Technical & Vocational Training are adamant about fostering the personal and intellectual growth of our youth and are therefore committed to playing a pivotal role in providing this empowering platform for our young minds to shine.
As the Laws of Life Planning Committee continues to create further opportunities for students and the public to interact with the laws of life, the public is invited to connect and engage with them on their social media channels. More information about the Bahamas Laws of Life Essay and Video competition can also be found on their website: bahamaslawsoflife.org
Congratulations to all of this year’s winners, and thank you for contributing to the success of the competition, and furthering Sir John’s legacy.
The 2025 winners in each division are:
Primary Division:
1st Place: Dylan Bastian - Xavier’s Lower School
2nd Place: Jeshua Lubin - Thelma Gibson Primary School
3rd Place: Vashawn Johnson - Carlton Francis Primary School
4th Place: Amarii Moss - KidsCanWrite Program
5th Place Talia Watkins - Thelma Gibson Primary School
6th Place: Omari Clarke - Cleveland Eneas Primary School
--------------------
Junior Division:
1st Place: Arianna Miller (Overall Winner) - Queen’s College
2nd Place: Levine Stubbs - Bishop Michael Eldon High School
3rd Place: Kye Higgs - Samuel Guy Pinder All Age School
4th Place: Mark Storr - L.W. Young Junior High School
5th Place: Adriel Moxey - L.W. Young Junior High School
6th Place: Jewel Riggs - Summit Academy
--------------------
Senior Division:
1st Place: Talisa Johnson - C.V. Bethel Senior High School
2nd Place: Sohan Umesh - Queen’s College
3rd Place: Nalon Bartlett - Jack Hayward Senior High
4th Place: Fantacia Rigby - Jack Hayward Senior High
5th Place: Taleah Cooper - Bishop Michael Eldon High School
6th Place: Rogan Smith - St Anne’s High School
--------------------
College Division:
1st Place: Jada Culmer - University of The Bahamas
2nd Place: Sierra Turnquest - University of The Bahamas
3rd Place: Melusa Jean - University of The Bahamas
--------------------
Video Division:
1st Place: Aubrie Smith (Producer), Dion Smith- Queen's College
2nd Place: Joshua Marshall (Producer), Caleb Conliffe, Adoni Ambrister & Benjamin Smith - C.V. Bethel Senior High School
3rd Place: Anessa Seymour (Producer) , Ameah Seymour, Andrea Seymour - C.V. Bethel Senior High School
