Student thoughts on "Imagine Peace" were brought to two-dimensional life by over two dozen students at the Pleasant Valley Middle School. Their posters, a result of participating in the Lions International 2011-2012 Peace Poster competition, are now on display in the school's main lobby above the entrance to the cafeteria. The posters will be there until the end of February.

The competition was sponsored by the Western Pocono Lions Club with the cooperation of Pleasant Valley administration, including Superintendent Dr. Douglas Arnold, recently retired PVMS Assistant Principal Shelley Larthey and current Assistant Principal Josephine Fields.It was under Fields' guidance that a recognition assembly was scheduled for all participants.Addressing the students were Western Pocono Lions Charles Rush, president; Jon Evans, club secretary; and member Lion/Lioness Adele (Ewe) Argot, PV Class of 61, who serves on the Lions District 14U Peace Poster Committee and was liaison between the local Lions club and the school.Rush and Evans were on the club's local competition judging team. Both lauded the students for the excellence in the posters they had created and thanked them for doing the extra work. They and Argot included some suggestions for next year's project involvement.With thanks and applause for the administrators for their support, including PVMS Principal Howard Drake, all of the students were given back their respective posters and Certificates of Appreciation from the club."Today's assembly demonstrated how the community can work with schools to help students develop their minds," says Evans. "It clearly showed the dedication to that concept."Rush thanked the students for participating in the contest, which has been sponsored by Lions International for 25 years. More than four million children from nearly 100 countries have participated in the contest."The entries in this year's contest were exceptional and it sets a bar for continued participation in the program," said Rush. "The Western Pocono Lions Club sincerely appreciated the co-operation by the Pleasant Valley School District and its staff."The theme of the 2013-14 Peace Poster Contest is "Our World, Our Future.""I am really looking forward to working with the Lions and the students next year on this project," said Fields.