PHOTOS BY SARAH WYNNE
Santino and Rosa Gumataotao Rios.
Santino and the another America250 contest winners at the entrance of the Kennedy Space Center.
McMurray Elementary 5th-grader Santino Wynne wins national essay contest and a trip to the Kennedy Space Center. BY NICOLE TAFE
When 9-year-old Santino Wynne sat down to write a short essay for his fourth grade social studies class, he wasn’ t expecting it would lead him all the way to the Kennedy Space Center, but that’ s exactly what happened. His 100-word paper on what America means to him won first place in the America’ s Field Trip contest, hosted by America250— an initiative to commemorate the upcoming 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Santino, now a fifth grader at McMurray Elementary, is the son of Lamont and Sarah Wynne. The Wynnes moved to Peters Township from Virginia when Santino was just 1 year old. Outside of school, Santino keeps busy playing trombone in the school band, taking after-school enrichment classes, attending workshops at the Peters Township Public Library, and enjoying his favorite hobbies— reading, art, biking, Roblox and visiting amusement parks.“ I love roller coasters,” he says.
When his teacher, Mrs. Shannon Hemmingson, introduced the America250 contest as an optional social studies assignment, Santino was right on board for the challenge.“ She was excited to share it with us, so that made me excited to write an essay,” he recalls. With encouragement from Mrs. Hemmingson and another McMurray teacher, Mrs. Tucker— who gave the class time to work on entries— Santino composed a heartfelt message about what America means to him.
“ I believe America is about growth,” says Santino.“ I wrote about how America has come a long way from when the Declaration of Independence was signed almost 250 years ago. I think that you can grow and be anything you want to be. I want kids of all backgrounds to believe in their dreams.”
That belief in possibility took him far— literally! As a first-place prize winner, Santino was able to choose his dream field trip, and he selected the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In August, he and his mom traveled to Orlando, where a private car drove them to their hotel. They enjoyed dinner with other contest winners and Rosa Gumataotao Rios— the former U. S. Treasurer and current chair of the America250 commission.
The next day, Santino’ s adventure began. He toured the Kennedy Space Center, met astronaut Steve Frick— who grew up in Pittsburgh and flew on two space missions— and even experienced a virtual reality moon-mining mission.
“ It felt like you were on the moon,” he says.“ The space flight simulator felt so real! I made new friends from all over the country. I was really proud of myself for winning the contest and thankful for getting to go on the field trip.”
For Santino, the experience was more than just a fun trip— it was the lesson he took from writing his winning essay.“ I learned that if you try your best, anything is possible. I still can’ t believe that my essay was picked out of thousands of entries.”
Looking ahead, Santino is eager to celebrate America’ s 250th birthday in 2026— already equipped with special gear he received during his trip. While he doesn’ t plan to become an astronaut, his fascination with space will always be there:“ I don’ t think I want to be an astronaut anymore, but I would like to work in the Mission Control Center.”
For now, Santino hopes other students will take the same leap he did.“ My advice would be to try your best and work hard,” he says.“ Everybody should enter the contest next year— they could win too!” n
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