THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 22, 1997 TAG: 9702220286
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: JEFFREY S. HAMPTON, CORREPSONDENT
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: 48 lines
Joven Anthony Whidbee grinned and shook his head when he realized Mayor Rick Gardner was about to announce him the winner of a speaking contest for a local youth organization.
Just before the competition, he seemed to know he would win. Whidbee, 13, exuded confidence while he waited with six other speakers to take the podium in the gymnasium at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Ehringhaus Street.
``I am a bit nervous,'' said the cherub-faced teen with the perpetual smile and large round glasses. ``But I'm just going to let it flow.''
The speech contest was open to members of Support Our Students, an after-school program for young people. The teens spoke about their heroes Wednesday afternoon before a panel of judges, their teachers and their peers. The teens heroes ranged from great-grandmothers to Martin Luther King Jr.
After the contest, the judges deliberated longer than expected.
``We had an extra difficult time deciding who was best,'' said Gardner as he presented the awards. ``All of you were good. I'm glad I will not be running again when you get older. I see some stiff competition.''
Whidbee's winning speech focused on Malcolm X, the civil rights leader slain in the 1960s by rivals in the Nation of Islam.
``I liked him because he stood up for what he believed in,'' said Whidbee. ``Because he stood up for what he believed in, he was killed. We should also stand up for what we believe in.''
SOS falls under the auspices of the Economic Improvement Council and is in its last year of a three-year grant. SOS provides after school programs ranging from financial planning to family values. Most teens who join SOS face challenges ranging from not having parents at home after school to juvenile delinquency.
SOS will likely renew its grant and come under the state's Community Based Alternatives program next year, said Charles Hough of the CBA, who was at the speech contest to monitor the SOS program. The CBA falls under the N.C. Division of Youth Services.
Marvette Freshwater won second place and Shianne Dance took third in the speaking contest. Prizes included $25, $15, and $10 for first, second and third respectively. Other speakers included Syreeta J. Mullen, Micole C. Barnes, Jessica S. Skinner and Shareise Gresham.
The panel of judges included Gardner and Councilwoman Anita Hummer, who serves as an adviser to SOS. Other judges included local resident Onisce Gaines, Coast Guard Capt. Grant Leber and Fentress Morris, director of the local EIC.