Young Voices Shine in the 2025 Mattie Stepanek Poetry Contest
- rutlandliving
- Aug 29
- 1 min read
MY HERO Celebrates Young Poets Who Speak from the Heart
The winners of the 2025 Mattie Stepanek Poetry Contest have been announced — and once again, young writers from around the world have shared powerful, creative, and deeply moving work. This year's entries were judged by Dr. Jeni Stepanek, peace advocate and mother of the late poet and peacemaker Mattie J.T. Stepanek. Said Jeni, "This year’s entries from high school students were filled with 'heavy' content. My heart goes out to all these young people.”
See all the winners here:
This contest continues the legacy of Mattie J.T. Stepanek, whose own poetry and advocacy for peace inspired people of all ages around the world. Through their writing, these young authors are exploring identity, empathy, justice, science, and hope — and, as Jeni Stepanek says, “sharing their hearts with the world.”
For more on MY HERO’s Mattie Stepanek Poetry Contest 2025 Winners, visit: myhero.com/mattie-stepanek-poetry-contest-2025
The Mattie J.T. Stepanek Poetry Contest seeks heartsongs (poems) about heroes working for peace, human rights and the environment. The contest is unique in that it is open to poets, artists, filmmakers, and spoken word artists of all ages. “A heartsong,” Mattie explained, “doesn’t have to be a song. It can be your message, your feeling - some people might even call it a conscience. Even though that’s not really what it is. It’s what you feel you need to do.”
