Hamilton Students Named Winners in Optimist Club Oratorical Contest

Pictured from left to right: Aashi Iyengar, Emily Hokanson, and Owen Peterson

Three Hamilton High School students won awards in this year’s Optimist Club of Sussex, Lisbon, Lannon and Butler Oratorical Contest.

● Junior Aashi Iyengar took first place and $250 prize.

● Senior Emily Hokanson took second place and a $150 prize.

● Junior Owen Peterson earned third place and a $100 award.

Winners were also given a medallion for their success in the 4- to 5-minute speech contest. This year’s topic was “Discovering the Optimism within Me.” Iyengar and Hokanson advanced to the next level of competition.

Optimist International is one of the world’s largest service club organizations with 80,000 adult and youth members in 2,500 clubs throughout the world. Since its start in 1928, the Optimist Oratorical Contest has become the longest-running program sponsored by Optimist International. The contest is designed for youth to gain experience in public speaking, perfect self-expression, gain self-assurance, improve communication skills and provide them with the opportunity to compete for a college scholarship.