Oskaloosa girl draws top prize in seat belt poster contest

This colorful poster by Corissa Bandel, 6, of Oskaloosa, was among three statewide winners in the Put the Brakes on Fatalities Day Poster Contest, coordinated by the Kansas Department of Transportation. The 2010 contest drew more than 750 entries from 5- to 13-year-olds statewide. Corissa is a student at the Lawrence Virtual School.

A girl who lives in Oskaloosa and attends Lawrence Virtual School is a winner in a statewide poster contest intended to help improve safety on Kansas roads and highways.

Corissa Bandel, 6, won in her age group in the Put the Brakes on Fatalities Day Poster Contest, coordinated by the Kansas Department of Transportation. She was among 18 regional winners and three statewide winners.

Her “Buckle Up For More Birthdays!” poster features a driver and passenger smiling and wearing seat belts, seated in a birthday cake decorated with headlights and frosted with pavement and lane markings.

“We have always stressed to all our children the importance of buckling up every time they enter a vehicle,” said Chrissy Bandel, Corissa’s mother.

For her winning effort, Corissa received a new bicycle from Wal-Mart, a $50 gasoline card from QuikTrip and a family package to stay at Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City, Kan.

The contest, open to students from age five to 13, drew more than 750 entries statewide.