Lincoln high school students create posters to remind people to call 911

Envision Lincoln recently announced the winners a poster contest they sponsored at for Lincoln High School graphic design students as part of an effort to remind Lincoln-area residents to call 911 during emergencies or when they see something suspicious.

Alyssa Rios took first place and the $50 prize with her straightforward design featuring 911 in bold red numbers. Mackenzie Storey's design, featuring the tag line "Small things matter, don't be afraid to call," took second place and a $25 prize.

The poster contest grew out of the Envision Lincoln community survey, which identified the drug problem in the area as one of the top things residents would like to see change. The contest itself grew out of the community group's organizational meeting in January, during which Chris Joyce, Lincoln's resident Lewis and Clark County Deputy Sheriff, discussed the challenges he has faced in convincing locals to call 911 or the Sheriff's Office non-emergency number, rather than calling him directly or not calling at all.

"Obviously, Chris Joyce has done a fantastic job of cleaning up some of the crime issues Lincoln has struggled with, but when we asked him to participate in an Envision Lincoln meeting it was clear he needed the community's help," Karyn Good, the lead organizer for the group, told the BVD. "What could Lincoln do to help local law enforcement? Simple, start by calling 911 if you see suspicious activity or a crime taking place."

At local meetings, Joyce has repeatedly made the point that complaints can remain anonymous, and that by calling 911 the information gets into the dispatch system so a Deputy can respond regardless of whether he's off-duty, out of the area or otherwise occupied.

Laurie Richards, who is on the Envision Lincoln Health and Well-being Team with Good, approached Laura Allen-Bullis with the contest idea for her design class. Good said Allen-Bullis was happy to help and appreciates the student's efforts.

Zach Muse, Bill Frisbee, Aaron Birkholz, Chris Joyce and Lisa Gibson served as the contest's judges and Lincoln Council for the Arts donated the first-place prize money. Joyce kicked in an additional $25 as a second-place prize.

"I think the winning posters did a great job depicting the message we wanted to get across," Good said.