AUSTIN — AUSTIN - Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush is proud to announce the winners of the 2017 Texas General Land Office Adopt-A-Beach Treasures of the Texas Coast Children's Art Contest. The grand prize winner, selected from the 40 overall winners, was Debbie Bong, a 6th grader from Ridgeview Middle School in Round Rock. Debbie's teacher, Kara Russell, will also receive a prize package as well. Download hi-res images of all the winning artwork at http://bit.ly/2owGvme. 

"Thousands of children across the state participated in the 21^st anniversary Treasures of the Texas Coast Children's Art Contest," Bush said. "This contest is a great way for young Texans to show their artistic skill and vision while learning about the natural beauty of our precious coast. Each year selecting the winners is a tough process because of the volume of creative submissions, but Debbie's artwork stood out for its unique expression of playfulness on the Texas coast."

Debbie's artwork, along with 39 runners-up, will appear on the cover of the 2018 Adopt-A-Beach calendar, which will be distributed statewide. The artwork of all winners will be on public display in the South-Central Gallery of the Texas Capitol May 23rd - 31^st for all visitors to view and appreciate. The exhibit will be sponsored by Texas State Representative Eddie Lucio, III (District 38, Brownsville).

Debbie's winning artwork earned her two-round-trip coach-class tickets from United Airlines to any United destination in the 48 contiguous United States, Alaska, Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean, one seven-night Caribbean cruise from Royal Caribbean International departing out of Galveston, Miami, Tampa, Ft. Lauderdale, Port Canaveral or Puerto Rico, and a class party at Schlitterbahn Waterpark in New Braunfels. Debbie's teacher, Kara Russell, will receive two round-trip coach-class tickets from United Airlines, and one seven-night Caribbean cruise courtesy of Royal Caribbean International. 

Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush selected Debbie's masterpiece from more than 3,200 entries submitted statewide. The annual competition encourages schoolchildren to learn more about the Texas coast and express what they've learned through their art. Open to grades K-6 across Texas, the contest motivates thousands of young artists each year. 

All 40 winners will receive a ticket to the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi, a ticket to the Houston Zoo, two all-day passes to Schlitterbahn Waterpark in New Braunfels, prizes and a certificate of recognition from the Texas General Land Office and a calendar displaying the winning artwork.

*Grand prize winner  

To learn more about the Adopt-A-Beach program, visit TexasAdoptABeach.org or contact the GLO at 1-877-TX COAST. Like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/TexasAdoptABeach and follow us on Twitter at @TXadoptabeach.