Back in January, Google opened up their 2013 Doodle 4 Google contest and asked kids aged K-12 to give their best shot at constructing a Doodle based on the prompt “My Best Day Ever.” And today, after nearly 130,000 submissions and millions of votes, Google is displaying that contest’s winner on their homepage.
The Doodle, from 12th-grader Sabrina Brady of Sparta, Wisconsin, is titled “Coming Home,” and it features a little girl who is happy to see her father coming home from war.
Here’s what Google Doodle head Ryan Germick had to say about it:
Students across all 50 states amazed us with their creative interpretations of this year’s theme, “My Best Day Ever…” From scuba diving to dinosaurs to exploring outer space, we were wowed by the ways young artists brought their best days to life in their doodles.
Sabrina’s doodle stood out in the crowd; it tells the story of her reunion with her father as he returned from an 18 month deployment in Iraq. Her creative use of the Google letters to illustrate this heartfelt moment clearly resonated with voters across the country and all of us at Google.
As a prize for winning the contest, Sabrina will receive a $30,000 college scholarship and a new Chromebook. Her school will also receive a $50,000 technology grant.
Google has also named the 4 other national finalists, who will receive a $5,000 college scholarship. All 50 state winners will have their artwork displayed at the American Museum of Natural History in NYC from May 22nd to July 14th.