See Part 1 for disclaimer and recap of contestants 1-5.
Speaker #6:
Herminigildo (Hermie) Garrobo (DNAR)
Lessons From a Broomstick
Kudos to Pat Johnson for her masterful introduction of Hermie’s speech. It was obvious she was working hard to pronounce his name correctly! I understand he goes by the shortened version of his name – Hermie – so that’s how I’ll refer to him here.
The first thing I noticed about Hermie was his big, infectious smile. This is a man whose face positively lights up when he grins. As for his voice, it was pleasantly resonant, and surprised me – I expected a different voice to come out of such a slight figure.
The focal point of Hermie’s speech was an analogy involving the use of a broomstick to scare away snakes. The cord had come loose, and the branches making up the broom had scattered to the ground. His mother gathered them up, and taught him to wrap the cord “tight & strong”.
Some years later, his mother left the country to find work as a domestic. His family, he said, was like the broomstick: scattered. Then, he had an accident on the rice field that left him with only half a thumb. He was called names like, “Felix the Cut”, “9 ½ man”, and “Thumbelina”. He became very withdrawn and shy. Scattered broomstick (family) … no way to chase away the snakes (his fears and self-doubt).
Until one day a teacher forced him to enter a speech contest. He realized his own sticks were scattered on the ground, and he needed the cord of courage to wrap them up tight again.
That day, he came in 3rd place … out of 3 speakers … but it’s that same cord of courage that brought him to stand on the WCPS stage.
Hermie’s got a very expressive face. I wish I’d been able to take photos during his speech; his facial expressions would have made for some terrific shots.
Speaker #7:
Stephen Cornwell (Region V)
The Choice
Stephen is gifted with a penetrating gaze and a sweet southern drawl, both of which he uses to great effect as a speaker.
This is another one where I’ll say “watch the video” – rather than giving up too much of his punch-lines. But the basic gist of Stephen’s speech was that we’ve lost the true meaning of the word “love”. We tell someone we love them, and in the same breath, we love hamburgers.
“Love has become how people and things make us FEEL,” he said, “instead of love being what we give.”
Watch for the words of wisdom Stephen’s father shared with him and his masterful delivery of the lines that follow. He absolutely nailed it, and the audience was howling.
Stephen’s overall message was that we need to learn to love ourselves before we can love others, and to truly get to the heart of what it means to “love”.
Speaker #8:
Mark Hunter (DNAR)
A Sink Full of Green Tomatoes
How can you not like Mark Hunter? Seriously, I don’t know that I’ve ever met anyone who didn’t like – or outright adore – this man. He’s competed at the Interdistrict contest six times, and this was his third trip to the World Championship. In 2007, he took 3rd place, and I’ve never seen anyone so happy to receive a third place trophy. Seriously – check out the photos - http://blog.angiekey.com/photos/2007wcps/3hunter.html - he positively radiated joy.
This year, Mark came out on stage and delivered a message of such significance, one that touched both our heads and our hearts, that there was really no question; he was going to be our new World Champion.
If you’re unfamiliar with Mark’s story, you should know he was paralyzed at the age of 22 during a waterskiing accident. (I hope I’m remembering correctly; if not, Mark, please correct me!) He’s confined to a wheelchair, but the man is NOT handicapped. In fact, he proved during his speech that being in a wheelchair can actually give you an edge in delivering a speech.
Mark opened with a quote from Don Quixote, and said he wanted to ride off on his trusty steed. As he delivered that line, he pushed his wheels and then used his hands to mimic holding a pair of reins, and bounced up and down gently … it totally looked like he was riding a horse. Try doing that while standing without looking like a moron!
Mark used his wheels again when he delivered a quick interjection of “Yee Haw!” and actually popped a quick wheelie. (I thought Jim was going to wet his pants, he was laughing so hard.)
And in his conclusion, as Mark was speaking with deep power and conviction about “if we are to change the world”, he was rolling across the stage from right to left, and executed a quick spin on the word “change” so that he was then zipping from left to right. “If we are to change” – SPIN – “the world…” Dude, it gave me chills.
I cannot emphasize enough how much you MUST see the video of Mark’s speech. He proved that a wheelchair isn’t a handicap to a speaker; used correctly, it can be something amazingly powerful, and you can do things with it that a speaker simply could not do on two feet.
And then, there was his message. Mark talked about how at 22, he suddenly saw the world from a new angle – “that of a consummate navel gazer”. He retreated, and wanted to become invisible. He asked himself, “Do I want to fit in, or stand out?”
And then he went to the source of all answers … his Nana’s kitchen. (Watch this section especially for his masterful use of humor.) The nutshell version of the story is that she had a sink full of green tomatoes soaking in water, and one bright red apple rolled off the counter and dropped in the water. His Nana said, “look at the sink – tell me, which would you rather be? Just another green tomato or that red apple?”
His response? “I want to be … the water.” Which, of course, made us all laugh … but then he explained. The water embraces and encompasses all – both the tomatoes and the apple. It’s like love … “liquid love”.
And as Mark said, “when we love with the intimacy of water, our differences don’t exist.”
“From that ordinary kitchen,” he concluded, “came an extra-ordinary lesson.”
WOW. Wowowowowowow … wow.
Speaker #9:
Mary Cheyne (Region VII)
Nellie
One of Mary’s natural gifts as a speaker comes from the initially jarring yet ultimately fascinating effect of an Australian accent coming out of the body of a Chinese woman. Indeed, that’s a point she directly referenced during the opening of her speech.
The core message of Mary’s speech involved overcoming the voice of your inner critic.
She told us the story of her childhood friend, Nellie, who helped her acclimate after moving to Australia from Hong Kong when she was seven. “As a child, she was my friend,” Mary said. “As an adult … she was judgmental.” When Mary wanted to pursue her dream of moving to America, Nellie argued with her and told her she’d fail, just like she’d always failed.
Nellie, it turns out, was Mary’s inner critic. After seeking wise counsel, she learned Nellie was like a computer program created by her past negative experiences. This is another one where I’ll say “watch the video” – she uses the triad of “Stop! Reset! Continue” to great comic effect.
Mary has an extremely expressive face and a true gift for humor. She also tapped into some seriously gut-wrenching emotion as she talked about fighting her inner critic, and the audience was both moved and inspired by her message.
Speaker #10:
Maureen Zappala (Region VI)
Bless, Not Impress
Before she even opened her mouth, Maureen impressed me by her poise and carriage. She practically glided across the stage, a tall, slender brunette in a gorgeous black suit. (Okay, so that’s the woman in me talking … but she cut a beautiful figure on that stage!)
Maureen talked to us about playing hide & seek – she asked, “do you hide behind pride, or do you seek to serve?” I love the way she put it: “Have you ever met someone who is so impressive – to themselves – that they imply they’re God’s gift to you? But have you also ever met someone who is so gracious, they imply you’re God’s gift to them?”
Let me tell you, the audience totally went “ooooooh” at that moment. That’s some good writing!
Maureen talked about hiding behind makeup. Lipstick was her armor of choice. “I had an I problem,” she said, “and a person wrapped up in themselves is a very small package.”
Rather than standing out from the crowd, she challenged us to sit with the crowd and bless others. “Can we stop hiding?” she asked … and promptly wiped off her lipstick. Talk about great use of an unlikely prop!
Maureen’s message truly blessed me … and I heard a lot of women talking about wiping off their lipstick later that day, so I know I’m not the only one!
The Ultimate Outcome
I must say that I’m glad I wasn’t a judge this year! Of course, I tend to say that every year, don’t I? But speaking of judges, here’s how their decision stands:
3rd place – Erick Rainey
2nd place – Mary Cheyne
1st place – Mark Hunter, the 2009 World Champion of Public Speaking
Congratulations to all ten of this year’s contestants. I learned something from each of you last weekend, and you’ve inspired me in a variety of ways. For that, I thank you.
To all my Toastmasters friends, I hope you've enjoyed this recap; it's been "The 2009 World Championship of Public Speaking, According to Angie." And if you haven't ordered your copy of the DVD yet, do so NOW. (Bill Stevens Productions is the place to order it; 2009 isn't listed on the website yet, but should be soon.) This is definitely one you'll want in your personal collection!
Your recap is spellbinding, and your photographs, well, what else can I say except: they're completely awesome!
Posted by: Melanie | August 19, 2009 at 07:10 AM
WOW - What great reviews! Thanks for the insight and the wonderful reflection of some powerful speakers. You made me feel like I was there. Sure do appreciate the beautiful photos too - they helped bring the stories to life.
Posted by: Irene | August 18, 2009 at 11:46 PM