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Kids Tag Art Pinellas Goes Virtual Again to Celebrate Local Students

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL – Local fifth-grade artists were celebrated Thursday, January 20th via livestream for the seventh annual Kids Tag Art awards ceremony.

Although initially planned as an in-person awards ceremony, Pinellas County Tax Collector, Charles W. Thomas, and members of his team decided to pivot the ceremony to a virtual livestream as conditions surrounding the COVID-19 worsened. While not an easy decision, it was made with the best interests of all those planning to participate in mind.

Thomas, along with his team, members of the Pinellas County Schools Visual Arts Department, and a few VIP-level presenters livestreamed the ceremony from Largo High School. Students, teachers, and parents were invited to virtually tune in via YouTube as awards were presented to the top student and teacher artists of the year.

“Last year, we knew from the get-go that we’d have to hold a virtual awards ceremony,” Thomas says. “This year we had to adapt fairly quickly to virtual – but, while it’s disappointing to miss out on the excitement of these students getting their awards in-person, we really had to think about the safety of these young citizens first and foremost. I think that despite another virtual ceremony, we still found a great way to celebrate these students and their achievements.”

Out of over 2,300 unique entries, 147 were selected by a judging panel of retired art teachers to receive an Award of Excellence. The winners receive a certificate and Kids Tag Art medal to mark their achievement. Program sponsors also select designs to receive special honors by choosing their favorite design or best work from a themed contest. These Sponsor Choice Award winners receive a framed copy of their design on a metal tag, a swag bag full of goodies, and a special prize.

Tax Collector Choice Winning Tag by Claire Leach
Tax Collector Choice Winning Tag
by Claire Leach

The Tax Collector Choice Award, the highest award of the program, is personally selected by Thomas. This year’s winner was Claire Leach from James B. Sanderlin PK-8. Claire designed a colorful underwater scene featuring a shipwreck and a host of sea life. As the top winner, Claire will receive a limited-edition Adobe T-shirt, a Tampa Bay Lightning puck signed by #10 – Corey Perry, and a 3-day/2-night stay at the Holiday Inn Harbourside Hotel!

“I selected Claire’s design because she is clearly incredibly talented and I can tell that she spent a lot of time on this due to the attention to detail,” Thomas explained. “I also really like all the different sea creatures featured – it reminds me of the wonderful aquatic life we have here in Pinellas.”

PerfectSince its inception, more than $250,000 has been raised by Kids Tag Art Pinellas for local elementary art classrooms and programs. The winning tags from each year are put on display at tax collector offices throughout the county.

In addition to tag sales, Kids Tag Art helps to bridge the elementary art funding gap by collecting donations from community sponsors. This year’s program sponsors include: Tag Agency of Pinellas, Direct Mail Systems, DPrint, Motor Vehicle Network, Florida Heart Research Foundation, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Office & Flooring Worx, Lauren’s Kids, PostcardMania, AutoNation Ford, Grant Street Group, MicroLumen, Umai Café, the Don CeSar, Liberty Lanes, Bill2Pay, and Holiday Inn & Suites Harbourside. To find out more about the program, or to become a sponsor, visit kidstagartpinellas.org. Follow agency updates about Kids Tag Art Pinellas on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at @PinellasTC.

Congratulations to all the student winners! The full awards ceremony can be viewed by the public at https://bit.ly/KTA_2022. Find more info about Kids Tag Art at pinellastaxcollector.gov/kta.

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ABOUT THE PINELLAS COUNTY TAX COLLECTOR’S OFFICE: The Pinellas County Tax Collector’s Office is a constitutionally elected office. Responsibilities include collecting and distributing state and local taxes and providing driver license and motor vehicle registration services to Pinellas County residents. For more information, visit pinellastaxcollector.gov.

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