Father Peter Harman, pastor of Cathedral Parish, Cathedral Grade School principal Michele Watson and several of the school’s students accept a $2,000 check from the Michigan Apple Sweepstakes.

Cathedral Grade School in Springfield won second place in the second annual Michigan Apple Sweepstakes. The school was recently presented with a check for $2,000. There were nearly 300 entries from all over Michigan and Illinois, and Cathedral was one of nine winners.

The Michigan Apple Sweepstakes is a program that strives to instill healthy eating habits in students and gives support to local farmers. The contest, developed by the Michigan Apple Committee, is open to accredited K-12 schools in Michigan and Illinois. To participate, students clip and save the Michigan Apples logo from the bags of apples and each logo counts as an entry for that school. All winners are chosen in a random drawing.

Cathedral School, along with schools all around the diocese, recently adopted a wellness plan to guide healthy food service. The school also participates in many fund-raisers and contests throughout the school year, said Cathedral's development director Casey Wichmann.

"This was the first year we entered this particular contest, and we are so excited to win," said Wichmann. "In addition to the award, this contest gives our teachers a great opportunity to talk with students about healthy eating habits and share with them the importance of agriculture."