The winners of the Centreville Constituency Urban Renewal poetry competition walked away with more than just their certificates, marking their accomplishment yesterday.
They also got a rare opportunity to read their work before Prime Minister Perry Christie.
Ten finalists, including the four trophy winners, met Christie at his Cable Beach office.
The primary school students penned poems on, "What I love about The Bahamas".
Aashlee Cartwright, 11, of Palmdale Primary, came in third.
Romero Moxey and Aaliyah Taylor, both 11, of Centreville Primary School, tied for the second spot.
Keshawn Williams, 11, of Columbus Primary School, won the top prize.
The first and second place finishers received Android tablets along with their certificates. Cartwright won a $75 gift certificate for any store in the Mall-at-Marathon.
Christie congratulated the winners and encouraged all of the students to continue to excel.
Christie told the students that he made mistakes in his life, but learned from them and continued to push himself until he became the leader of the nation.
"I went to school with plenty people who were smarter than me," he said. "But you see they all work for me now.
"Keep on believing in yourself and things may happen for you. It may take you long...but keep on believing.
"Always think about what you want to be in life and know that to be that, you have to work hard and you have to do all the right things," he said.
Christie also encouraged the parents and teachers of the students to continue to push them and help them to hone their talents.
"Teach them the difference between right and wrong. Most of my generation had the benefit of knowing what is right and wrong. That is so important today," he said.
"...What you do with these kids now will help to determine what they will do in this country."

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