OKLAHOMA CITY, Tuesday, Feb. 26 – The Thunder has selected five Oklahoma students as grand-prize winners of its fifth annual Thunder Black History Heroes Challenge, presented by Sprite. The team named Antonio Love of Tulsa, Jaden Pierce of Lawton, Nautica Thomas and Bobbi Jarmon of Oklahoma City, and Carissa McGouran of Duncan as winners in their age categories from 500 entries submitted by students across Oklahoma.
Students who submitted entries honored heroes from black history or personal heroes through original artwork, poems, videos and crafts.
The prize for each winner includes four tickets to watch the Thunder take on the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday, recognition on court prior to the game, a personalized trophy, an autographed player jersey and a Sprite prize pack. The winning entries, along with other select submissions, will be displayed on the concourse during Wednesday’s game.
Kindergartener Antonio Love attends Chouteau Elementary in Tulsa and submitted an essay and pictorial collage about his grandfather. Love won the kindergarten/first-grade division of the contest.
Second-grade student Jaden Pierce attends Woodland Hills Elementary in Lawton and won the second/third-grade category with an essay about his musical mentor, organist Moses Tyson, Jr., who inspired him to develop his musical talent. Pierce also submitted a video of himself performing on the organ at church.
The fourth/fifth grade winner was Nautica Thomas, a fifth-grader who attends Tulakes Elementary in Oklahoma City. Thomas submitted a poem honoring Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Sojourner Truth.
Bobbi Jarmon won the middle school category with an essay about President Barack Obama. The eighth-grader attends Douglass Middle-High School in Oklahoma City.
Carissa McGouran, a high school freshman at Oakstone Academy in Duncan, took top honors for the high school category with a photographic tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of equality for all children. Her photo depicts children of different races holding hands on a train track, symbolizing those who escaped slavery through the Underground Railroad.
Other entries included posters, crafts, drawings, paintings and videos.
Media Note:
A select number of entries from all age groups will be displayed on the concourse of the arena during Wednesday’s game. For more information, please contact a member of the Corporate Communications staff.