Two local Plant City Optimist Oratorical Contest winners are advancing to the Southwest Region Contest after earning first and second place at the Zone Level 6 competition Monday, March 27.
Katelyn Yarbrough and Mackenzie Edgemon took first and second place, respectively, in the local competition in February. They took top honors again when they competed in the Zone 6 competition against winners from both Lakeland and Winter Haven.
Gresham Stephens, who won the local competition in his category, placed third in the Zone competition.
Yarbrough and Edgemon will present their orations Saturday, April 22, at the John Germain Tampa Public Library Auditorium. They will compete against the representatives from other Tampa Bay area Zone competitions.
The winners from the region contest will advance to the North Florida District Finals in late April, where a $2,500 scholarship will be awarded to the top male and top female participant. One District winner will be selected to represent North Florida at the World Championship contest in June.
This year’s theme is ‘What the World Gains from Optimism.’ Criteria include poise, overall effectiveness, content of speech, delivery and presentation.
“We are very proud of the improvement our winners showed tonight,” Plant City Oratorical Contest Chairman Doris Robbins said. “They represented Plant City very well, and we have high hopes that they will advance beyond the upcoming Regional competition.”