Submitted by Sally Stolly
Five area students shined at the Rotary Four-Way Test Speech Contest Monday during the Bellefontaine Rotary Club’s meeting.
Contestants included Jack Varner and Emily Taylor (both juniors from Bellefontaine), Madison Mescher (senior, Riverside), Sierra DeWeese (senior, Indian Lake), and Ireland Dulen (junior, Ohio Hi-Point/Graham).
Honoring the Rotary Club’s Four-Way Test, speeches had to emphasize the concepts of leadership, service to others, and life experience. The speech was given points based on four questions:
- Is it the truth?
- Is it fair?
- Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
- Will it be beneficial to all concerned? Originality, organization, language usage, and delivery were also factored into the score.
Among those on the judging panel were Bellefontaine Mayor Ben Stahler, Kathy Troyer, Becky Hoffman, and Pastor Ted Dennis. All judges are members of the Bellefontaine Rotary Club.
Mescher earned first place, winning a prize of $200. Second place and $100 went to DeWeese, and Taylor placed third with a $50 reward. Mescher and DeWeese have qualified to present their speeches in the Rotary District 6670 competition at Wright State University on Sunday, March 26, 2023.
