Monogram Foods

Penny Hardaway Essay Contest Winners Announced

MEMPHIS, TN – (December 4, 2015) – Ten Memphis high school seniors each will receive a $1,000 college scholarship as the winners of Monogram Foods’ Penny Hardaway Essay Contest, part of the company’s IMPACT10 community giving campaign. 

More than 170 students earlier this year submitted 500-word essays, which focused on Hardaway and how his strength of character, commitment and perseverance helped him become a successful professional basketball player who returned to Memphis to help make his hometown a better place to live. 

The winning essays were written by:

  • DeWayne Tunstall of Carver High School
  • Gabrielle Grace of Horn Lake High School
  • Garrett Reeves of Lewisburg High School
  • Giana Darville of Shelby County, home school
  • Kathryn Roe of Brighton High School
  • Momina Meer of Marion High School
  • Quiesha Paige of Martin Luther King Jr. College Preparatory High School
  • Shawon Jones of Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering
  • Shelby Mitchell of Horn Lake High School
  • Victoria Hefner of Brighton High School

The contest was open to all 11th grade students living in Shelby County, Fayette County, Tipton County, Crittenden County and DeSoto County. The essays were judged by a committee of eight Monogram employees. The scholarship winners will join Penny Hardaway and 90 other students whose contest essays were judged among the top 100 at a University of Memphis basketball game.

About Monogram Foods: Founded in 2004 with the purchase of King Cotton and Circle B brand meats from Sara Lee Corporation, Monogram Foods manufactures and markets top-quality food products. Among these are a full range of meat snacks, corn dogs, pre-cooked bacon, smoked sausage, appetizers, pet treats and other value-added meats. Monogram Foods’ brands include Wild Bill’s, O’Brien’s, Trail’s Best, Hannah’s, Bull’s, Snapps and licensed brands Bass Pro Shop’s Uncle Buck’s, Johnsonville, Butterball and Team Realtree. Monogram Foods is a major co-packer and private label provider for strategic partners throughout the nation. Monogram Foods is headquartered in Memphis, TN. and operates facilities in Virginia, Minnesota, Indiana, Texas, Iowa and Wisconsin.

Media Contact: Blair Jackson, Communications Coordinator, bjackson@monogramfoods.com, or (901) 654- 2869

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