Silver Pen is a writing competition open to high school seniors, focused on bridging the communication gap between high school seniors and our Members.
Essays Due: January 31st, 2027 BeginHow to Submit Your Essay
Follow the steps below:
Step 1
Read Essay Requirements
Essays which do not meet the following guidelines will be disqualified:
Essay must:
- Be at least 1000 words excluding cover page and works cited.
- Include a cover page.
- Include a works cited page (if applicable).
- Be double spaced.
- Be submitted before deadline.
- Be the applicant’s original work.
- Follow the prompt given.
- Have been written by the student without the use of AI.
- All essays will be checked using an AI tester.
- Any essay written by AI will be immediately disqualified.
Am I Eligible?
Silver Pen is open to:
- All high school seniors who live or attend school within 25 miles of the community they are applying to. (Osprey Village on Amelia Island, FL is open to applicants within 35 miles)
- Community employees and children of employees
- Residents limited families – grand (great grand) children, nieces and nephews (grand nieces and nephews)
Review FAQs
Each essay is received at the Home Office (of Senior Living Communities and Wellmore) in Charlotte, NC. The essays are carefully sorted into their respective communities. All personal identifiers (name, school, contact info, etc.) are removed from the essays. Instead, each essay is given a unique number. The essays are sent to the participating locations for judging.
Step 2: Participating LocationsAt the participating locations, the judges, who are members at the retirement community, read and select the winners. The judges will read all the essays without knowing the applicants’ names. This means that the winners are selected based on the quality and strength of their essay alone. Each community has different metrics for judging the essays. If a member has a family member who is submitting an essay, they are not allowed to be a judge.
Our judges are looking for:- Research, insight and perspective.
- Theme development.
- Inspirational quality.
- Meaningful personal connection.
- Creativity.
- Clarity of ideas.
When you click the submit, you will see a green bar appear under the submit button that says your essay submission was successful.
If your essay, transcript or any other files are larger than the attachment size limit (5mb), please email them to ASimmons@Maxwell-Group.com. She will ensure that the attachments are placed in your essay file.
Yes. If your school has a policy against releasing transcripts to students, the school can mail the transcript to Aimee Simmons.
Address:
3530 Toringdon Way
Suite 204
Charlotte, NC 28277
Sorry, this opportunity is only open to high school seniors. The good news is that juniors can apply next year.
Absolutely.
No. Each applicant is limited to one essay.
No. Even if an applicant is close to two communities, they can only submit one essay.
Step 2
Find Your Location Specific Topic
Select the Location Nearest You:
-
Amelia Island, FL
| Osprey VillageAre schools doing enough to prepare students for adulthood? What is successful and how can they improve?
-
Bridgewater, NJ
| Laurel CircleHas technology made people more connected or more isolated? What would the world look like without social media? Have smartphones affected our interpersonal communication? If so how?
-
Charlotte, NC
| The CharlotteHas technology made people more connected or more isolated? What would the world look like without social media? Have smartphones affected our interpersonal communication? If so how?
-
Carmel, IN
| The StratfordReflect on what today’s teenagers will be remembered for in 50 years.
-
Columbia, SC
| Wildewood DownsDescribe a personal or professional goal you have set for yourself. How do you plan to achieve it?
-
Daniel Island, SC
| Wellmore of Daniel IslandIs artificial intelligence improving education or making students too dependent on technology?
-
Greenville, SC
| Cascades VerdaeIs success determined more by hard work or opportunity? Can failure be more valuable than success?
-
Greenville, SC
| The GablesWhat invention has had the greatest impact on human history?
-
Lexington, SC
| Wellmore of LexingtonAre schools doing enough to prepare students for adulthood? What is successful and how can they improve?
-
Mount Airy, NC
| RidgeCrestHas technology made people more connected or more isolated? What would the world look like without social media? Have smartphones affected our interpersonal communication? If so how?
-
Myrtle Beach, SC
| BrightwaterIs success determined more by hard work or opportunity? Can failure be more valuable than success?
-
North Branford, CT
| Evergreen WoodsAre schools doing enough to prepare students for adulthood? What is successful and how can they improve?
-
Pawleys Island, SC
| The Lakes at LitchfieldYou and your peers will soon be entering a university, trade school, or career. Do you feel that higher education or life experiences best prepare you for life? Why do you feel that way?
-
St. Simons Island, GA
| Marsh’s EdgeDescribe a personal or professional goal you have set for yourself. How do you plan to achieve it?
-
Spartanburg, SC
| Summit HillsEvery generation inherits an environment shaped by the choices of previous generations. What environmental responsibility does today’s generation have to those who will come after us?
-
Tega Cay, SC
| Wellmore of Tega CayWhat is the biggest misconception adults have about your generation and how do you feel this will present challenges in the future?
-
Winston-Salem, NC
| Homestead HillsYou and your peers will soon be entering a university, trade school, or career. Do you feel that higher education or life experiences best prepare you for life? Why do you feel that way?
Step 3
Write Your Amazing Essay
Step 4
Submit Your Essay
Timeline
Essays Due: January 31st, 2027
Winners Announced: March 5th, 2027
Awards
1st Place – $2,5002nd Place – $1,250
Submit Your Essay
Select “Apply Now” to fill out the form below:
Apply NowAbout Silver Pen
- The Silver Pen Writing Competition started in 2012 as a way to bridge the communication gap between high school seniors and our members.
- Each community chooses an essay topic this year’s competition. Topics will not be released until the day Silver Pen is released to schools.
- Members at each community will select two winners.
- Winners will receive their awards at a special Silver Pen Ceremony.
Stats at a Glance
$671,000
Total awarded since 2012
587
Total Award Winners
17
Participating Locations
32
Winners selected last year
15
Average essays per community
$3,750
Amount awarded per community
247
Total essays received in 2025-2026
Winners
View Winners
Apply Now
Essays Due: January 31st, 2027 at 11:59 PMRequired Documents
- Essay
- Transcript
IMPORTANT!
After submitting your essay, you MUST receive a green confirmation box thanking you for your submission. If you do not get the green box, your submission did not go through and there is no way for us to receive your essay. Click the button below to see what the confirmation message looks like.
Confirmation Example