Rotary Club of Westlake/Bay Village holds speech contest

Westlake High students Esther Park, Thomas Hanson, Jonah Petty and Katie Cirincone participated in this year's Rotary Club speech contest.

On March 29 the Rotary Club of Westlake/Bay Village held its annual high school Speech Competition. The purpose of the speech is to solve an ethical problem using the principles of the Rotary's Four Way Test: "Is it the truth, is it fair to all concerned, will it build good will and better friendships, and will it be beneficial to all concerned."

This year four sophomores from Westlake High School took on the challenge. Esther Park won the competition, followed by Katie Cirincone in second place, Thomas Hanson in third place and Jonah Petty receiving honorable mention. In addition to monetary prizes, Esther will now move on to the district competition, which will take place on April 8 at Aurora High School. There she will compete with the other Rotary Club contest winners in District 6630, which includes clubs across Northeast Ohio. Winners there will go on to the national competition.

Rotary International is made up of a group of 1.2 million neighbors, friends and community leaders who come together to create positive, lasting change in our communities and around the world. The Westlake/Bay Village club meets every Wednesday at Westwood Country Club from 7:30-8:30 a.m. If you are ready to do more to serve others, you are invited to attend a meeting.