Ashton Jenzen, a senior at Waseca High School, placed first in the Minnesota Voice of Democracy speech contest, sponsored by the VFW. Jenzen first won the local competition in November. Earlier this month she attended a banquet for all the state finalists where she was announced as the state-wide winner. She will go on to compete against the winners from each state in Washington D.C. in March.In Washington D.C., there will be Voice of Democracy Parade of Winners and the national champion and runners-up will be announced. The top prize for the national competition is a $35,000 scholarship.Jenzen has competed in the Voice of Democracy speech contest all four years of high school. Last year, she won the regional competition but did not win state. This year, she says she set the goal of taking first at the state level and is gratified to have achieved it. While Waseca has had students win the regional competition in the past, there had never been a state winner in the 21-year history of the local program.
WHS Senior delivers winning speech
Thu, 02/06/2025 - 11:41pm
There are 200 Veterans of Foreign Wars posts (VFWs) in the state of Minnesota. This year marked the seventy-eighth annual “Voice of Democracy” and “Patriot’s Pen” youth scholarship competitions. Waseca High School senior Ashton Jenzen helped put Waseca on the map this year by winning the state-level competition and being advanced to national consideration. Jenzen has a chance at the national prize, a $35,000 college scholarship. Her accomplishment also marks the first time Waseca VFW Sweet-Sommers Post 1642 has had a state winner.
The Voice of Democracy (VOD) competition is open to students in grades 9 to 12. Jenzen has entered since her freshman year. She won the regional competition in 2024, but did not win state. After setting her sites even higher this year, she succeeded. The local VOD competition is coordinated by VFW Auxiliary member and chair of the committee, Barb Klampe, and high school advisor Karen Pfarr Anderson. Pfarr says she has worked with the VFW for 21 years on their scholarship programs as an advisor first for Patriot’s Pen, then an advisor for the Voice of Democracy. Jenzen received her local award during the Veterans Day program at the high school on Nov. 11.
The Voice of Democracy contest requires students to write a speech which lasts no more than 5 minutes, so about 700 words long. They are required to submit both an audio recording and a printed version of the talk. This year’s theme asked “Is America today our forefathers’ vision?” Of all the things she chose to take inspiration from, Jenzen selected the Federalist Papers, a collection of 85 articles and essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay under the collective pseudonym "Publius" to promote the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.
A Waseca resident her entire life, Jenzen’s dad grew up in Springfield, MN. Her mother grew up in Pennsylvania. Jenzen is one of five children, including three younger brothers Trey, 16; Eli, 11; and Augustine, 9.; and older brother is Jesse Thill, 22.
After she graduates from high school this year and goes off to college, Jenzen would like to remain a Waseca resident. Her plan is to begin by attending Riverland Community College in Austin, a two-year school where she can acquire some of the general credits needed toward a degree, then evaluate what her next step should be.
If she could pick and choose where she works after college, said Jenzen, “It would be Hartley Elementary, ideally.” She even knows what job title she wants to have, “An integrated elementary special ed teacher.” She believes special education students should not be separated from their contemporaries. “I don’t like the stigma around children with special needs,” she comments, saying the system should “treat everyone as equals.”
Just for fun, here is a list of all the awards Ashton Jenzen has won: 2018: Patriots Pen Essay competition: First place at local competition ($30 monetary prize). 2022: Voice of Democracy Oratory Competition: Third place at local competition ($100 monetary) 2023/2024: Voice of Democracy Oratory Competition: First place at local competition ($200 monetary prize); Second place in District 1 competition ($200 monetary prize) 2024/2025: Voice of Democracy Oratory Competition: First place at local competition ($200 monetary prize); First place at District 1 competition (prize amount unknown); First place at state level competition ($2000 scholarship plus $500 from the Auxiliary).