ST. GEORGE — In the fantasy realm of innovation among the world of Figmentation, Ainsley Joy Beaton was victorious and became ruler of the youth writing contest for her story about herself as the current princess and future Queen of Golgi who destroys a beast known as Desperation.
Beaton, 12, is a home-schooled girl who became the newest winner of the youth writing contest. The contest was sponsored by the Figmentation Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes the use of imagination among youth.
The announcement of the winners took place Monday at 5 p.m. within the Utah Tech University Atwood Innovation Plaza. At a less formal event, the winners and their families in attendance were given their awards and congratulated on their success in originality and innovation of storytelling.
“It’s really cool,” Beaton said about her victory.
The winners were the following:
- Sierra Ball, third place
- Emery Fackrell, second place
- Victoria Smith, first place
- Ainsley Beaton, overall winner
Each winner received a trophy of a hand holding a star and a certificate. Beaton got something else as the overall winner: a full costume, which was handmade and based on her design for herself as a character in the story she wrote.
In her story, she was a human princess with archery skills wearing a dark-blue princess outfit, including a gown with a robe. Beaton said she based some of her character’s personality, archery skills and costume on Susan Pevensie from The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis.
The costume was created by the co-creator of the nonprofit organization, Jeremy Bird. She is a master costumier who has worked on productions within theatre and film. The costume was valued at approximately $1,200 and took over 40 hours of work.
Beaton broke out with a smile when the costume was revealed to her.
“It is so pretty. … I was not expecting such a pretty dress,” Beaton said. “They did such a good job on it.”
Bird, along with her daughter Jacque Ence runs the organization, which also helps youth who have experienced some traumatic experience in their life to be their own hero.
During the summer, Figmentation Foundation helped bring one local youth’s superhero dreams to life as they helped write, produce and direct a film with Alex Lowery of Hurricane as the star. The movie “Scorpiation” was shot over five days and shows the main feature and purpose of the organization:
“To help kids who experienced something very horrific and traumatic in their life to heal and be their own ‘superhero” of their life’s story,” Ence said.
Figmentation Foundation also recently formed partnerships with Utah Tech University as well as several big corporations.
The contest was open to all youth within Washington County, and each school decided on one winner for the school and submitted it for the overall contest. Individual submissions were available for homeschooled youth and youth whose schools did not participate.
Ball and Fackrell attend Sunrise Elementary, but the school did not participate, so they entered the contest individually. Smith’s story was selected as the winner for Tonaquint Elementary.
Beaton, in response to the importance of the writing contest for youth, said: “It shows kids can be good enough and win things.”
And as for what led to Beaton’s story standing, Bird said it had to do with creativity.
“We just loved the originality of Ainsley’s story,” Bird said. “We are so excited for youth to explore and invent. Not use someone else’s ideas but use their own. We need kids to realize their ideas are as good as anyone else’s. They just need to use them. … Create and spark unsupervised and unstructured creative play.”
Photo Gallery
L to R: Jacque Ence, Ainsley Beaton and Jeremy Bird of Figmentation Foundation celebrate the winners of a youth story contest, St. George, Utah, Oct. 31, 2022 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News
Ainsley Beaton sees her costume for the first time as the Figmentation Foundation youth writing contest winner, St. George, Utah, Oct. 31, 2022 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News
Emery Fackrell, second place of the Figmentation Foundation youth writing contest, St. George, Utah, Oct. 31, 2022 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News
Victoria Smith, first place of the Figmentation Foundation youth writing contest, St. George, Utah, Oct. 31, 2022 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News
Sierra Ball, third place of the Figmentation Foundation youth writing contest, St. George, Utah, Oct. 31, 2022 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News
Ainsley Beaton, the overall winner of the Figmentation Foundation youth writing contest poses with her prize of her own costume of her main character in the story, St. George, Utah, Oct. 31, 2022 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News
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