Speeches

The speeches were great. I'll try to write something about every single one:

Steve - Steve had great stage presence, he was the only one who did not appear restricted by the podium. He moved around, he used changes in tone to his benefit, and it was especially impressive how he connected the charity to the texts we had read.

Breanna - Breanna earned the most "money" for obvious reasons - she had a very emotional speech that was presented in a very effective way. There's not a lot more that can be said than "wow".

Katie - It was clear that Katie was very dedicated to Schools on Wheels. You could tell that the charity was important to her. I was surprised and impressed with her speech.

Jessica - Jessica did a great job of using her statistics to present a compelling speech. She had great stage presence and it was clear that the charity meant a lot to her.

Chris - It was clear that Chris was very nervous, as he admitted in his blog, but I thought he still did an excellent job talking about Greener's Food Bank. It's a great charity and his speech reminded me that so many people in the world aren't as fortunate as us.

Ashley - It showed in Ashley's speech how much she cared about the charity. Her speech was effective because she combined ethos and pathos. I was impressed with her public speaking ability.

Kwame - Kwame obviously has some public speaking experience from his time in stewardship - and it clearly showed. Kwame was very confident in talking about Second Helpings.

Alyx - Alyx did a great job presenting her speech on the Special Olympics. I found her story about the boy from her brother's basketball game very touching. It was difficult for a lot of us to wrap up our speeches, but Alyx did a great job of leaving the speech on a big note.

Brian - Brian's speech was impressive because it was clear that he could have kept talking about United Way forever. He was very well prepared and it showed in his speech.

Jordan - Jordan's experiences with School 67 showed through in her speech, it was clear that the school was very important to her. It was particularly interesting how she brought up the point that if the school wasn't so underfunded they could hire more teachers which would lead to better results - on tests and in the community.

Katie - I thought Katie started out her speech very well by sharing a story from her personal experience in Big Brothers and Sisters. Like Breanna's speech, Katie's speech was effective because it shared a personal connection along with all the other important information about the charity.

Kailey - Kailey's speech was energetic and motivational - she did a good job of presenting the Julian Center in such a way that it showed the tragedy of the people who go there and then the great ways in which they succeed.

Molly - Molly impressed me with her public speaking abilities. She was very captive and kept a great stage presence throughout her speech on Habitat for Humanity. She did a great job of presenting how Habitat for Humanity helps people around the world and people locally.

Marcus - Marcus's speech was great considering what he had to work with - I know it's hard to find statistics on the Red Cross. But he did a great job of presenting what the Red Cross does - especially in their blood donation program. He also added some effective humor to his speech, but not so much that it overshadowed what he had to say.

I was impressed with everybody's speeches and thought everybody did a great job!