Isabel Petta has won the Walt Whitman Association’s Annual Poetry Contest, taking home first place. This year’s theme was American Character, which was inspired by Walt Whitman’s essay Democratic Vistas. The association invited the contestants to express “their own ideas about America’s national character in their poem” (Walt Whitman Association).

A week before the deadline, Petta sat in front of her computer “attempting” to write poetry. With no intention to win, the lines of poetry she produced came purely from curiosity. 

“I don’t write poetry that often, but when I heard about Walt Whitman, I found it fascinating, and that is what [drew] me towards this competition.” Isabel Petta says. 

Isabel’s mother found out about the contest online and motivated her to write for it. She ended up gaining interest and thought – Why not give it a shot? Isabel put in a lot of effort to make her poem sound like she was reflecting parts of herself. 

While the theme for the contest was American Character, Isabel knew she wanted to make her poem more personal. Isabel focused on the countless opportunities she was able to gain by being in the United States, such as free education. 

Isabel’s work was inspired by her surroundings and Walt Whitman’s work. To prepare for this competition, she read a lot of Whitman’s work, including his poetry and essays. She was able to discover how Walt Whitman viewed the American Character and reflect this on her personal experiences. Isabel was inspired by her daily life, such as her experience in school, and how that shaped her own character. 

“[In my poem], I used a quote from Walt Whitman’s poem. I thought that really spoke out to me, so I wanted to incorporate that in my own poem.”

Isabel was a freshman in high school when she won this award. She was recognized and shared her poem with others at Walt Whitman’s old home. 

By taking inspiration from her daily life and others around her, she hopes to inspire many students to step out of their comfort zone and try something they would not normally do. 

“I hope I inspire [Lenape students], and I think that winning this contest really showed me that I can do this and I can excel in [poetry],” Isabel says. “I hope I can inspire anyone to shoot their shot and try something new.”