AUBURN #- Katherine Daloia was only in first grade on Sept. 11, 2001, but she remembers the announcement being made that the Twin Towers and the Pentagon had been hit by planes.

This past winter, she watched the Olympics and was thrilled when United States athletes won medals.

In each case, Daloia was proud and moved to see the American flag flying.

Recently she turned that pride into an essay, “What the Flag of the United States of America Means to Me.”

To her delight and surprise, Daloia's essay won a local contest, then a statewide competition sponsored by the Daughters of American Revolution organization.

She will be honored locally at a luncheon June 17 and at a state DAR conference in September in Albany.

“I was really excited to find out that I won locally and then the state contest,” Daloia said.

She wrote the essay in one evening after brainstorming with her mother and a neighbor. Her first draft won the approval of her teacher at Owasco Elementary School, where Daloia is in fifth grade.

“I just thought of things I had learned about the flag and what people do with it,” she said.

Daloia also was inspired by things she learned in school about wars in which Americans have fought, going back to the Revolutionary War.

“A lot of people fought in it. They didn't give up. That's the reason we can make choices,” she said. “If we didn't fight, things would still be the way it was before that.

“People have died for our rights and our freedom,” Daloia said. “They've given up their lives for us. I'm really honored by that.”

Her mother, Debra, said her daughter understands that war is tough, but knows it has meaning.

“She understands that as ugly as it is, war is necessary if we're going to enjoy the freedoms we have,” Debra said.

“I think she appreciates what being an American means.”

Connie Daloia, Katie's father, said his daughter put her heart into the essay.

“When she puts something like this together, she lets her feelings come out,” he said.

Katherine enjoys writing. She keeps a journal and has written other essays for class, most recently one on aviator Amelia Earhart.

“When the mood strikes her, she gets up and writes,” Connie Daloia said.

“I didn't really do stuff this extreme,” Katherine said. “I started to think more about writing.”

The Daloias keep a flag flying beside their door, and Katherine sees the flag every day in her classroom. She says the Pledge of Allegiance every morning.

“I just find it really fun to do,” she said. “It gets me awake and makes me feel happy.”