Zoie Baier recently won the Topeka Zoo Writing Award out of all the middle schoolers who submitted their projects. On April 18, 2025, she received an email saying she had won the competition in her age category. Baier was a part of the short story writing contest. Baier said she started developing her story before she knew about the competition. Baier said, “I set a reminder of the deadline and started working. It somewhat revolved around certain environmental aspects, so I put my story in the competition.” Baier got the award because the judges liked how it revolved around the requirements given. The requirements were to write a fictional story and raise awareness of real-life conservation issues. That includes habitat loss, poaching, climate change, and threatened and endangered species. The submission can be from the point of view of an animal or a person. It needed to raise awareness of the issue that she chose.
Baier wrote about a ferret and a little girl who were best friends, but went through traumatizing events together. “My story is about a girl and a ferret who are best friends. The ferret lives in a forest near the main character’s house and school. The main character has no friends, besides the ferret, and she likes it that way. The main character is an artist and top student, but very protective and secretive of her ferret friend. No one knows about her ferret friend. Deforestation and a wildfire separate the two before finally reuniting at the end.” Baier said
Baier said, Ms. Deters, WAVE SFA teacher, inspired her to write the story. “Ms. Deters inspired me because she was a great help with writing my story,” Baier said. Deters said that Baier winning the award was wonderful. “I love that Zoie won the award! Her excellent writing focuses on how nature can help express emotions in others. I think she will be successful in her life, and this award just proves it. I love that she got to win the award,” she said.
Since Baier won the competition, she got to pick one of three prizes: a zoo membership, a gift shop gift certificate, or an animal painting. Baier said, “I chose to have a painting done by an animal, preferably a big cat, as it would be extra special since an animal did it. I’ve always liked big cats like tigers and lions since I was a kid, and when I got the opportunity, I took it.”
Baier’s ELA teacher, Mrs. Appelhanz, was thrilled that she had won. “I am always proud of my students and their successes, especially when it’s ELA-related! I am sure she has been a strong writer for many years. I hope that the work I do impacts the lives of my students. But sometimes, as teachers, we may never know. I had one student years ago share with me a year later how one of my writing assignments inspired him to do more creative writing, and he would often send me his drafts for me to read years down the road. I always loved that!” she said.
Overall, Baier was ecstatic about winning the award and gave some advice to future kids. She said, “To future students who want to do this competition, don’t try too hard on it and stress over it, don’t fake it, use your creativity.”
