EDITOR’S NOTE: Saturday Lidiya Schneider placed 2nd in the Optimist Club District Competition. The junior received a $1500 scholarship.
On April 15, six students from Mrs. Gilson’s Honors Junior English classes participated in the Optimist Club Speech Contest, and three students were presented awards.
Third place was presented to Dominic D’Angelo, second place to Lidiya Schneider and first place to Alessandra Hernandez.
Students had to write and deliver an original speech addressing a specific question about optimism.
They were allowed to use notecards for a 4-5 minute speech judged by professional community members enlisted by the Optimist Club.
“I am truly thrilled,” said Hernandez. “The topic of my speech was how to change the world with optimism. The angle I took on it was that you can learn to be optimistic and how we can teach each other the value of optimism.”
The Optimist Club’s mission is to provide hope and a positive vision for youth and communities. Their purpose is to develop optimism as a philosophy of life.
One person who really appreciated the endeavors of the six competitors was their teacher, Mrs. Gilson. “I just want to thank you,” she told the students, “for reminding me why I love to teach.”
Schneider and Hernandez will advance to the second round of the competition held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 4. The winner there will receive a scholarship prize of $2500.
