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The Mattie Stepanek Poetry Contest 2025

Finalists

The Mattie J.T. Stepanek Poetry Award was established by The Mattie J.T. Stepanek Peace Foundation and The MY HERO Project in honor of Mattie Stepanek. Mattie was a poet and peace activist who encouraged everyone to sing the song in their heart in their lifetime.

Mattie Stepanek Film Prize sizzle

Learn about the Mattie Stepanek Poetic Film Prize in the MY HERO International Film Festival

The Mattie J.T. Stepanek Poetry Contest seeks heartsongs (poems) about heroes working for peace, human rights and the environment. This poetry contest is unique in that it is open to poets, artists, filmmakers, and spoken word artists of all ages.

See the 2025 finalists below: 

Adult

Wasyl Palijczuk

By: Michael Puskar

High School

The Fish

By: Yuna Kim

The Incantation

By: Elise Chen

Andy Gernand

By: Aubrey Gernand

For the kids who can't speak for themselves, this poem is for you

By: Vila Song, age 15

For Nature's Unsung Heroes

By: Vila Song

Beauty's Sleuths

By: Jordan Pham
Rory Mcllroy
By: Peter Liu

My Invisible Friend

By: Jasmine Zheng
Muhammad Ali
By: Davinson Harris
My Dad
By: Matas Latvys
Unspoken Love
By: Shannon Li
My Home on 9th Street
By: Zhiheng Xie

High School poems in 2 and 3 formats 

Dr. Nicholas Paul, CSIRO, and his Seaweed Research Group

By: Jaden Chen

The Case of the Stinky Gas (Audio Poem)

By: Jaden Chen

The Case of the Stinky Gas

By: Jaden Chen

Film

Cowabunga!

By: Rachel Chen

Cowabunga!

By: Rachel Chen

Forgetting to Be Grandpa

By: Alexander Lyon

Forgetting to Be Grandpa

By: Alexander Lyon

Middle School

For those who care about our planet, for indifference is the opposite of love

By: Natalie Chien

For those who weep for the Earth and care to save her

By: Natalie Chien

For the women who turn pain into beauty, here is a poem triptych for you.

By: Natalie Chien

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar / Imaginate Ink / My Life Plan

By: Aaron Chen

For the scientists who have captured the songs of icebergs, this poem is for you

By: Natalie Chien

Those of us who have the courage to face the blank page

By: Jubilee Sung

Scientists who invent solutions to the problems we've made

By: Ethan Wu

Behind the Apotheosis

By: Reika Fukushima

Untamed Rhymes

By: Evan Chan
Heroes
By: Angelina Irkutska
Derek Sivers
By: Ivan Zhang

Middle School poems in 2 and 3 formats 

The End of My Pink Cake Life

By: Alyssa Wu

The End of My Pink Cake Life (animated version)

By: Alyssa Wu

The End of My Pink Cake Life

By: Alyssa Wu

Nai Nai

By: Emilee Sung

Nai Nai

By: Emilee Sung

Andrés Ruzo

By: Lucas Chien

The Case of the Mysterious Boiling River

By: Lucas Chien

The Case of the Mysterious Boiling River

By: Lucas Chien

The Giants

By: Oliver Dai

The Giants

By: Oliver Dai

Ensnared

By: Isabella Lin

Ensnared

By: Isabella Lin

An Everyday Hero

By: Carter Chen

An Everyday Hero 

By: Carter Chien

Ode to my Fellow Writers

By: Jubilee Sung

Ode to My Fellow Writers

By: by Jubilee Sung

Before Rosa, Claudette Sat

By: Alivia Hsu

Before Rosa, Claudette Sat

Heroes in Lab Coats

By: Ethan Wu
Heroes in Lab Coats
By: Ethan Wu

Untamed Rhymes: Poems to Celebrate Sea Creatures

By: Evan Chan

Untamed Rhymes: Poems to Celebrate Sea Creatures

Film

Just Breathe

By: Ethan Wei

My Life Plan

By: Aaron Chen

A Puzzles Kind of Girl

By: Emily Song

The Glass Butterfly

By: Natalie Chien
My Heroic Quest
By: Victoria Hsu

Elementary

Patrick the Penguin and Other Poems

By: Lucas Chien

Elementary poem in 3 formats

What I Learned

By: Jordan Sung

What I Learned

By: Jordan Sung

What I Learned

By: By Jordan Sung, directed by Jubilee Sung

Learn more about Mattie Stepanek

Mattie Stepanek

By: Jim Hawkins
Mattie Stepanek is a hero to people of all ages around the world.

Mattie Stepanek

By: Nathan Smith
A short animated tribute to poet hero Mattie Stepanek. The soundtrack features the St. Paul's Episcopal Day School choir singing a song inspired by one of Mattie's poems.

"For Our World" a poem by Mattie Stepanek

Child peace activist and poet, Mattie Stepanek, wrote this poem after the tragedy of September 11. Read the poem that has touched millions.

Learn More about the Mattie Stepanek Poetic Film Prize


Organizer created on 6/4/2025 9:14:39 AM by Abigail Richardson

Last edited 8/4/2025 12:03:51 PM by Abigail Richardson

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