C. Henry Smith Oratorical Contest
February 19, 2015
C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest
On Tuesday, February 17, five Goshen College students competed in the annual C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest in Umble Center. Participants delivered an 8 to 10 minute speech on a topic of their choice relating to peace. The purpose of the contest is to provide an opportunity for students to become involved with the cause for peace and develop rhetorical skills. The contest winner, Dona Park, a sophomore art and interdisciplinary major, gave a speech titled “Through the Eyes of the People” and spoke on the very real truths of what is currently happening in North and South Korea....
February 19, 2014
Deaton Takes First at C. Henry Smith, Hofkamp Second
Tuesday evening, students gathered to be informed, to be persuaded and to provide support for their peers during the C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest. Speakers included Martin Hofkamp, who spoke about juveniles in adult prisons; Lauren Treiber, who made a case for faith-based feminism; Alma Rosa Carrillo Flores, who shared about the femicides of Ciudad Juarez laborers; Natasha Weisenbeck, who was looking to save Africa from the media through collaboration; and Abby Deaton who expounded upon Goshen College’s hiring policy. Winner Abby Deaton Deaton won first place and a prize of $500, moving forward to represent Goshen College in...
February 21, 2013
Putnam’s ‘Peace in Laos’ wins oratorical contest
On Tuesday night Jacob Putnam, a sophomore, won the C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest, taking home $500 and the chance for his speech to compete in the bi-national contest. Judges Anne Hershberger, a previous winner; Bob Yoder, campus pastor; and Phil Waite, pastoral team leader at College Mennonite Church, collectively decided that Putnam’s speech, which discussed the problem of unexploded ordnances (UXOs) dropped on Laos by the United States, best met the contest criteria. Putnam explained the problem: less than one percent of the unexploded ordnances have been disabled in Laos and the U.S. is not spending enough money to...
February 13, 2013
Compassionate peacemakers prepare for oratorical contest
Goshen College students are preparing to reinforce the school’s core value of peacemaking through the tradition of speech making. This Tuesday, five students will compete in the C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest, organized by the communication department, to share topics related to various forms of peace. One contestant will move on to the bi-national competition. “This contest allows students to articulate being a compassionate peacemaker,” said Pat Lehman, professor of communication and contest coordinator, “and it is powerful to see students improving their speaking skills.” Each contestant will present an 8-10 minute speech that is 1200 words or less...
October 18, 2012
Treiber wins bi-national peace oratorical contest
For the first time in 6 years, a Goshen College student has won the intercollegiate C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest. Lauren Treiber, a junior PJCS major, won with a speech titled “The Real Occupy Movement: Understanding Capitalism in a Christian Context.” Treiber delivered the speech in the Umble Center last year for the pre-contest between Goshen students. The C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest is open to any student who attends a Mennonite or Brethren in Christ college or university. Currently, all of the competing schools reside in either the United States or Canada. Each school selects one speaker...
March 28, 2012
Undocumented immigrant shares her story on stage
At the C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest at Goshen College this year, Aranza Torres stood on the Umble Center stage alone, about to reveal her most intimate secret to a crowd of 300 students, faculty and staff, and community residents. Her hands were shaking, but not from simple stage fright. It was the fear of revealing a secret that might put her life in jeopardy. With the words “Our DREAMs can’t wait” cast in large letters on the screen behind her, Torres announced that she was living in the United States illegally. That night, she went on to advocate...
February 16, 2012
Treiber wins C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest with Christian critique of Occupy movement
On Tuesday evening, Feb. 14, students, faculty and community members packed into Umble Center to hear five students address various issues related to peace and justice in the C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest. The contest is an annual event sponsored by the GC communication department. Funding comes from the trust of C. Henry Smith, a Mennonite historian and professor at Goshen and Bluffton colleges in the early 1900s. Lauren Treiber, a sophomore peace, justice and conflict studies major from Grand Rapids, Mich., came away as the winner with her speech “The Real Occupy Movement: Understanding Capitalism in a Christian...
February 24, 2011
Hernandez speaks about migrant farm workers to win peace oratorical contest
Jair Hernandez, a sophomore public relations major from Goshen, won first place in the annual C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest on Feb. 22 with his speech “Migrant Farm Workers.” Hernandez was one of six Goshen College students who spoke about a variety of peace and justice issues during the contest. Hernandez received a $500 prize, plus a chance to enter Mennonite Central Committee’s C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest. Taking second place, and the $250 prize, was SaeJin Lee, a fifth-year senior Bible and religion and art double major from Elkhart, Ind. Her speech was titled “Rethinking SST: Beyond...
February 17, 2011
Six students to speak in annual C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest
Next Tuesday, Feb. 22 six students will be featured in the a college's annual C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest. At 7 p.m. in the Umble Center each participating student will deliver an eight to ten minute extemporaneous speech based on a chosen theme of peace. SaeJin Lee’s speech is titled “Rethinking SST: Beyond a three-months-long requirement to a life-long commitment of intercultural intentionality.” Lee is a fifth-year senior with a Bible and religion and art double major. Her speech will focus on cultural diversity on campus. Jeffery Moore's speech is titled “The games we play: How labeling leads to...
February 5, 2009
Students speak for peace: Gerig-Sickles takes top prize
Six Goshen College students took center stage in the Umble Center on Tuesday night to address pertinent peace and justice issues during the annual C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest. Analisa Gerig-Sickles, a senior elementary education major, won first place with her speech "No Mas Redadas/No More Raids." By winning the contest, she received $150 and the opportunity to compete at the U.S./Canada C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest, which is sponsored by Mennonite Central Committee. The runner-up was Isaac Yoder-Schrock, a first-year physics major, who earned $100 with his speech "National Healthcare, Caring for Others." In her speech, Gerig-Sickles...
January 28, 2009
Oratorical contest participants seek peace in speeches
Six students will compete for a cash and, more importantly, to get their message out to the Goshen community about issues of peace and justice, during the annual C. Henry Smith Oratorical Contest. The contest will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. in the Umble Center. "Goshen College has a history of campus engagement of critical themes and of servant leadership and activism that arises from our core values, and this year's speech contest participants are boldly adding their names to the list of those who are willing to take a stand for those values," said Rachel...