St. Bartholomew student is national winner in Christmas artwork contest

For the fourth year in a row, a student from St. Bartholomew Catholic School in Bethesda, Maryland, has been recognized as a winner in a nationwide Christmas artwork contest.

Sarah Juzbasic, a seventh grader at St. Bartholomew School is one of 24 winners in the National Christmas Artwork Contest sponsored by the Missionary Childhood Association. The winning artwork will be on display at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception’s Memorial Hall throughout the Advent and Christmas seasons, through Jan. 11, 2026.

The previous winners in that Christmas artwork contest from St. Bartholomew School included Brooke Hughes in 2022, Sophia Delaney in 2023 and Claire Schreiber in 2024. Over the years, all those students contributed artwork to the Junior Saints children’s feature appearing on the website of the Catholic Standard newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington.

Juzbasic’s artwork features blended pastel colors with painted highlights, showing the silhouetted figures of Mary riding a donkey following Joseph toward the town of Bethlehem in the distance, guided by a bright star overhead in the nighttime sky.

Ivica Bradley, her art teacher at St. Bartholomew School, said, “I like the theme that she chose. It showed she was thinking about the hardship and hard times they had to go through before Jesus was born.”

The art teacher said she also liked the artwork’s composition, and the contrast between the complementary colors of orange and blue. “I also like the foggy feeling (in the artwork). It’s like Mary and Joseph did not know what was awaiting them.”

Reflecting on her artwork, Sarah Juzbasic said, “I just wanted to capture the adventure of them going there.”

The 12-year-old student is the daughter of Velida and Amir Juzbasic. Her parents immigrated to the United States from Bosnia in 1999 just after the war in that country ended.

“We saw it (the beginning of her interest in art) when she was 3, the way she held the brush and pencil,” said Velida Juzbasic, who noted her daughter has been taking art lessons since she was 5 years old. She expressed gratitude for how Bradley encourages Sarah and the other art students at St. Bartholomew School.

Sarah Juzbasic agreed, saying, “My teacher Mrs. Bradley is always pushing my creative talent.”

The student said she likes working with pastels, explaining, “I love how it’s easy to blend, and how it gives texture to the drawing.”

Artwork gives her an outlet, she said. “It helps me let all my thoughts out. Sometimes I express my emotions in my drawings.” She added, “I love how you can capture a moment in a drawing. It means so much.”

From the time she entered St. Bartholomew School as a first grader, Sarah Juzbasic has felt at home there, she said. “I love how everyone’s so kind and welcoming. As soon as I walked in the doors, I felt I was part of the community.”

The winning student artists were recognized and presented with commemorative plaques during a ceremony on Dec. 5 at the National Shrine, where their artwork is on display.

Founded in 1843, the Missionary Childhood Association is part of the Pontifical Mission Societies, the official missionary arm of the Catholic Church, which promotes a universal missionary spirit and supports evangelizing work in mission territories. Each year, the Missionary Childhood Association supports thousands of projects for children in 1,130 mission dioceses, including programs that provide food, education, healthcare, catechesis and safe places to learn and grow.

In 2013, the Holy Childhood Association in the United States – well-known for its Christmas seals designed by children – became known as the Missionary Childhood Association, and that year it launched the National Christmas Artwork Contest.

This year, thousands of students from kindergarten through eighth grade in Catholic schools and parish religious education programs across the United States participated in the contest. The judges included Dr. Geraldine Rohling, the National Shrine’s curator and archivist.

“In a world that is sometimes tempted to despair, these children are preaching hope with crayons, paint and colored pencils, reminding us that the Light of the World born in Bethlehem still shines in every darkness,” said Msgr. Roger Landry, the national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies.

“Their artwork not only depicts the beauty of Christmas but reflects the missionary call of this Jubilee Year: to bring Christ’s hope to every corner of the world,” he said.

Alixandra Holden, the national director of the Missionary Childhood Association, emphasized how the contest helps form the missionary heart of young Catholics.

“Children understand the Gospel in a wonderful, pure and direct way,” Holden said. “Their art becomes a first act of evangelization — sharing the hope, joy, and tenderness of Jesus’ birth. In this Jubilee of Hope, their creativity reminds all of us that mission begins with a heart turned toward Christ and open to the world.”

This year’s grand-prize winning drawings were created by Janielle Perez, a student from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, and Diana Uytingco, a student from the Diocese of Fort Worth, Texas. In addition to receiving a $250 award, their artwork will appear on the official Christmas cards of the Pontifical Mission Societies.