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ST. CLAIR SHORES — The Shorewood Kiwanis in collaboration with Macomb Community College unveiled this year’s Harper Charity Cruise logo on Feb. 14.
The winners were Nina Emery in first place, Joyce Drayer in second place and Monica Warren in third place. All three took the Design 3 class at Macomb Community College, a class only offered during the winter semester.
The students were given a set of criteria for the design and using that, they created their award-winning designs. This year, they could choose whatever car they wanted. The students had two weeks to complete the designs, and it was the first project of the semester.
The students received awards as well, presented by the Shorewood Kiwanis and Roy O’Brien Ford. The awards were $1,000 for first place, $650 for second place and $350 for third place.
The logo contest has taken place for 18 years and the cruise has been around for 31 years.
Amy O’Brien-Kravitz, a sales manager at Roy O’Brien Ford, said she is blown away by the creativity of the students every year.
“They make it very hard to narrow it down to three winners, yes,” O’Brien Kravitz said.
Deanna Sheehan, a faculty member at MCC for Media and Communication Arts, said the judges were at the college for two hours trying to decide a winner.
“There were 11 entries and yeah, they were all, all of them were spectacular,” Sheehan said. “It just depends on what tastes we have for that year, for what they want for that cruise.”
Emery, 21, is a design and layout major set to graduate this semester. She said the project has been an exciting experience.
“I’ve never done anything like this before and it’s very eye-opening,” Emery said. “It’s a great experience.”
She added that the real-world experience is going to help her when she graduates. She thanked her fellow classmates and said they did a great job.
Drayer, 22, is a graphic design major and will finish college at MCC in the spring. She said it was an exciting process.
“With projects like this you’re really able to take that creativity and kind of do whatever you want with it and then kind of work off of it,” Drayer said. “So I think it’s really cool getting the opportunity to make something like this, for sure.”
She said she was surprised she placed in the top three and that she thought everyone made amazing logos.
Warren, 22, is a design and layout major currently in her last semester. She said she wasn’t expecting to place in the contest.
“I was glad I was even in the top three,” Warren said. “But I knew as soon as I saw Nina’s design, which is the first-place winner, I knew she was going to be in the top three at least.”
She said the experience was cool and that she is grateful to be there.
O’Brien-Kravitz said Roy O’Brien Ford has been a sponsor of the cruise since its inception.
“It’s a great, great project for our community,” she said.
“And I love the fact that 100% of the funds that they raise go to charity,” Sheehan said.
