The Good Citizen Challenge celebration at the Statehouse in 2026 Credit: Jeb Wallace-Brodeur

The midterm elections are just five weeks away, and the political partisans are at each other’s throats. But everyone, from the MAGA crowd to the Democratic Socialists of America, can probably agree that we want our kids to grow up to be responsible adults.

Seven Days organizes the Good Citizen Challenge to help them. Our youth civics project invited kids in grades K-8 to do 25 different community-minded activities between mid-May and Labor Day. On September 17, we celebrated the Challenge takers at the Statehouse in Montpelier. One hundred ninety kids participated; 55 of them joined us in the House chamber.

What does it mean to be a Good Citizen? In response to Activity No. 25, “Write a Short Essay,” Milton resident Chris Dupont, 10, wrote: “I think good citizens do a lot of things. They volunteer in the local community, pick up trash and don’t litter. They pay attention to the local news so they know about their town and vote in elections. They take care of the environment. They use the public library, donate to local charities when they can and help others.”

Our youth civics project invited kids to do 25 different community-minded activities.

Yep, that pretty much sums it up. Chris’ definition also touched on many of the Challenge’s 25 tasks, which included visiting the local library and reading the local newspaper. To incentivize kids to do these activities, we offered prizes — from a $50 Phoenix Books gift card to a free trip to Washington, D.C., donated by Milne Travel. The participants who finished all 25 tasks earned the title of “Distinguished Citizen” and received a framed certificate at the Statehouse event.

Chris is a Distinguished Citizen. So is Marshfield 6-year-old Myles Smith. Activity No. 9, “Get Prepared!,” involved talking with emergency responders. In his submission, Myles told us that he is the youngest “member” of the Cabot Volunteer Fire Department and attends monthly maintenance sessions. “Last night, I helped with sweeping the floors, filling the engine with water from a hydrant, rolling up hoses, putting back spanners and ladders, and cleaning axes,” he said.

To help kids complete Activity No. 20, “Talk to a Journalist,” we offered something new this summer: behind-the-scenes newsroom tours at Seven Days and our partners, Vermont Public and WCAX-TV. At Channel 3 in South Burlington, “I saw a meteorologist preparing the weather report and then going live on TV,” marveled 10-year-old Scarlet Martin of Hinesburg.

Grand Prize Winner Colt Mobbs with Cathy Resmer Credit: Courtesy

My favorite activity is always No. 13, “Organize Support for a Cause.” We received 57 submissions this summer from kids who set up lemonade stands, ran bake sales and sold flowers they picked from their gardens. Many of them used Front Porch Forum to spread the word. Their contributions included $428.44 to the Humane Society of Chittenden County; $150 to the Johnson Food Shelf; $50 to Franklin County Animal Rescue; $230 to school “take what you need” items; $74 to the Vermont Family Network; $52.62 to For the Love of Dogs Vermont; and $198 to Neighbors in Action, a Northeast Kingdom food relief group. In every case, the message is the same: Kids can make a difference.

At the Statehouse ceremony, we also revealed the winner of an activity we created with the Vermont Secretary of State’s Office, No. 22, “Design a New ‘I Voted’ Sticker” (congrats to Theo Moore, 8, of Burlington!). And recognized the top two teams — the Malikians and the Mini Farmers Market Crew — who each won the opportunity to give a $500 grant from Vermont Humanities to the charity of their choice.

And we drew the winner of the grand prize — Colt Mobbs, 6, of Winooski. He has never been on a plane before and is excited about the trip to D.C.!

Regardless of who won what, I hope each of these kids takes away the same lesson Chris Dupont did: “I’m going to be a good citizen when I grow up,” he wrote.

We couldn’t produce the Challenge without support from the Vermont Community Foundation and the Canaday Family Charitable Trust, which gives to Seven Days through Journalism Funding Partners, one of our fiscal sponsors. As we tie up this summer’s program, we’re already looking toward the next one.

Whenever I explain this initiative to others, they inevitably joke that we should do a version of it for adults. I wish I could say we don’t need one, but maybe now is the time?

This article appears in September 30 • 2026.

Seven Days’ deputy publisher and co-owner Cathy Resmer is a writer, editor and advocate for local journalism. She works in the paper’s Burlington office and lives vicariously through the reporters while raising money to pay them. Cathy started at Seven Days as a freelance writer in 2001 and still has the Rolodex to prove it. As the paper’s first online editor, she launched Seven Days email newsletters and started the paper’s first social media accounts. Cathy has overseen Kids VT, Vermont’s...