LaSalle student wins state and more in poster contest

James Sanders' school doesn't offer art, so he often scours the Internet in search of contests he can enter on his own, and that paid off for the LaSalle Parish 10-year-old when he won a state competition to highlight the plight of missing children.

His entry then went on to place third in the nation, a first for an entry from Louisiana, says Sgt. Stacey Pearson, manager of the Louisiana Clearinghouse for Missing and Exploited Children.

James got the official word on his awards Tuesday at Louisiana State Police Troop E headquarters in Alexandria. Pearson presented him with a ribbon and certificates as his mother, Cindy Sanders, and grandmother, Nancy Corley, watched. He also received a $100 gift card from Amazon.

James and his mom live in Trout, and he just finished fifth grade at Fellowship Elementary School.

"For the first time, Louisiana has placed nationally," Pearson told James. "You got third place, nationally, out of 51 entries."

His drawing is of an American flag made of puzzle pieces. James said he was comparing the United States to a puzzle that won't be complete as long as children are missing. He does like to do puzzles, he said, and he finished his piece before showing it to anyone.

"Nobody deserves to go missing, and everybody should be found and come back," he said. "If all the puzzle pieces are together, that makes America America. If somebody goes missing, that puzzle piece is out of place, and that makes America not America."

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children lists 35 cases from Louisiana, some from Central Louisiana. The poster contest concluded on Monday, which was National Missing Children's Day. This year, 48 states, including the District of Columbia, Guam, Saipan and the Royal Air Force Lankenheath Military Base in England participated in the poster contest for fifth-graders, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

"In Louisiana, 13 children are reported missing, on average, every day," reads a Louisiana State Police release. "A large percentage of these children are runaways who are vulnerable and most at risk for becoming victims of crime, such as sexual exploitation. In an effort to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children, the Louisiana State Police recently formed the Special Victims Unit which is responsible for investigating cases of child exploitation, child trafficking as well as human trafficking."

Pearson works for that unit, and also coordinates Amber Alerts in the state. She stood near James' mom and grandmother as he spoke to the media. Cindy Sanders said Pearson told her about her son's accomplishment on April 16.

"She said to keep it kind of secret, so I told him we were coming up here for something, but he wasn't really sure for what," she said.

Sanders kept the secret for more than a month, but said they were lucky to be so busy with other activities, like baseball. As Pearson then took his photo, Sanders spoke about her son's recent "baseball mishap."

During a recent scrimmage, James was running to first base and got elbowed under his chin by the first baseman. The collision knocked him out momentarily and damaged his teeth so much that, only days ago, he underwent two root canal surgeries.

"Were you safe?" asked Master Trooper Scott Moreau, Troop E's public affairs officer.

"I was safe," said James with a grin.