Russell wins District 4 Oratorical Contest

POLSON – Polson High School Student Sharidan Russell edged out Ashlin Stahlberg from Stillwater Christian School in Kalispell to win the annual American Legion Department of Montana District 4 Oratorical Contest held in Polson on March 10th. The contest consisted of an 8 – 10 minute prepared speech on a topic of the contestant’s choice and a 3 – 5 minute speech on an assigned topic selected randomly. Both topics had to be related to the United States Constitution. Both contestants selected the Sixteenth Amendment as the topic for their prepared speech and the assigned topic concerned Article 2 and the qualifications for the president. The contestants presented the topics in a clear, concise manner and displayed a good knowledge of the constitution and its principles.
For second place, Stahlberg was awarded $100 for future education expenses. First prize earned Russell $150 for her education and the opportunity to compete against the winners from other districts in the American Legion Department of Montana in Belgrade on March 24th. Success in Belgrade will result in an all-expense paid trip to Indianapolis in April to compete on the national stage and a possible scholarship of $18,000 for the winner. There are additional scholarships for winners at the various levels.
American Legion District 4 includes posts from Lincoln, Flathead, Lake and Sanders counties.
Russell had qualified for the showdown at the district level after winning the annual oratory contest sponsored by the Polson American Legion Post #112 on Feb. 25.
-Courtesy of Keith Sibbert and Keith Baker