Hanke, Henschen Earn Trips to State in Individual Speech
It takes a bit of courage to put yourself in front of others and to express yourself through speaking and acting. This year, two MVAOCOU seniors were courageous enough to take on the individual speech challenge. Both did well at Districts on February 24th and advanced to the state competition which was held on March 9th in Carroll.
"I was emotional going into and out of my last competition, because I have been doing it consistently for four years, and it was sad seeing something I love doing so much come to a close," said Grayce Hanke, daughter of Jesley and Chad Hanke of Mapleton and a veteran of speech. "I wish I had a few more years."
Grayce competed in Improv at Districts where she earned a I which gave her the opportunity to perform one more time at State. Technical difficulties at State may have cost her a I rating, but Grayce had done the best she could in her final performance.
"Grayce has shown such great dedication and leadership. She worked hard all four years in both group and individual speech, and she has set a great example for the younger members," commented Coach Stephanie Kolln. "Her confidence when performing is truly inspiring to her peers and me. Grayce's commitment to speech really made a difference in the program, because I truly believe she recruited a lot of our awesome members over the years."
Grayce definitely was a speech advocate over her high school years.
"If someone was contemplating joining, I would tell them to sign up immediately," she said. "Speech doesn't have to be you on a stage, alone, reading off of a piece of paper. Speech allows you to act, sing, speak, and express yourself. Speech was a way I could be creative and be myself. I've always loved acting, and speech gave me the tools to fulfill it. I have improved in my speaking skills, obviously, but I also have become more open minded, creative, and adaptive. Speech skills are skills you will need for the rest of your life, so I encourage everyone to join."
Unlike Grayce, a veteran at Speech, Caralyn Henschen was a newbie on the speech circuit. She had been hesitant to try this extracurricular activity, but she found the courage to give it a try and earned a trip to State in Poetry.
"I decided to join speech to take new risks and try new things," commented Caralyn, the daughter of Peggy and Jim Henschen of Charter Oak. "I wanted to participate in speech in the past, but I got too nervous to join. I am very happy that I finally joined this year!"
While she didn't have the experience that other Speech seniors had, Caralyn had the drive to do the best she could and practiced poetry until she could practice no more, and it paid off with a trip to State. Her State performance earned a II rating.
"This was Caralyn's first year on the speech team, and she worked hard and had a lot of fun with it," stated Kolln. "She not only worked hard but also found joy in being a part of the speech team, making the most of every opportunity to learn and grow. Her positive attitude and willingness to step out of her comfort zone was really fun to watch!"
Henschen advised underclasspersons to not wait until their final year in high school to try something new to them, such as speech.
"If an underclassmen wanted to join speech, I would tell them to join right away. I wish that I had built up the courage to join before my senior year. I would encourage them to do it. I would also inform them that you do not have to do it alone; you can do group speech."
Congratulations on a good speech year, ladies!