This is a winning year for Arya Sasne, 6, a first grade student at Maurice Hawk School. She has received grand prize awards in two categories in the inaugural Meet the Breeds showcase for dogs and cats at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City. She was awarded prizes for her picture of a Maltese dog in the best of breed division and in the first grade division for “Hello, My Breed is Maltese.” Her works will be on display Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and Sunday, at the Javits Center in New York.
Last spring she took adlit.org’s first place award in her age group in a nationwide letter writing contest. (The News, May 15). She also received a third place award of $25 in the K to second grade category for her poem, “Four Seasons,” in the Sarah Mook Poetry Contest. (The News, June 12).
Arya, who does not live with a dog, played with a Maltese every day at summer camp. “All of her stories and pictures include a dog,” says her mother, Supriya Sasne, who works at Films Media Group in Hamilton, a supplier of educational media for schools and colleges. “We go to Princeton and she wants to watch and meet the dogs that people are walking.”
The family lives in Canal Pointe where dogs are not allowed. They moved from Edison four and a half years ago for the school system. “She’s a smart kid and we wanted the best for her,” says her mother. Her father, Kailash Sasne, works in global transaction services technology with Citi Markets and Banking in Jersey City. Both of her parents earned master’s degrees in India.
Arye comes by her love of animals easily. Her father was raised with two dogs, three cats, rabbits, and guinea pigs. Her paternal grandfather, now retired, was a scientist who made vaccines for animals. Her mother also had dogs while growing up.
Arye’s father and grandfather are also artists and help her learn how to create. “The whole patio is filled with painting supplies,” says her mother. “When she enters a contest I prefer that she uses sketch pens, pencils, or crayons, as they are more age appropriate.”
Arye, who began reading when she was three, likes spending time at Barnes & Noble and the West Windsor Library. Her schedule also includes tennis, guitar (with her father), swimming, soccer, and ice skating. “Arye’s passions are animals and reading,” says her mother.
Meet the Breeds. Jacob Javitz Center, 655 West 34th Street, New York City. Saturday and Sunday, October 17 and 18, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. $10. www.meetthebreeds.com
