Forsyth Students To Represent County In Oratorical Competition

CUMMING, GA -- Four young orators will represent Forsyth County in the 2019 Optimist International Oratorical Contest. They were the winners in the county-wide competition that began with almost 4,000 students from throughout the county. They will move on to compete in the zone competition. The local event is sponsored by the Sawnee-Cumming and Forsyth-Cumming Optimist Clubs.

Winning the county competition were Alayna Daws, West Forsyth High School; Samiksha Gaherwar, Lambert High; Delaney Bingham, Pinecrest High; and Arnav Rao, South Forsyth High. They each won $500 awards.

Winners in the zone competition move on to the area, then district (Georgia and eastern Tennessee) contests. The winner at the district level receives $2,500 college scholarships.

The competition is open to sixth through 12th-grade students from all Forsyth middle and
high schools. A separate competition in Forsyth County allows fifth-grade students to
gain experience. Speeches cover a variety of subjects. This year the topic was, "Is There
a Fine Line Between Optimism and Reality?"

The Oratorical contest is the longest running Optimist program, established in 1928, according to
Gene Valde, oratorical chair of the Sawnee-Cumming Club. The Forsyth County competition is the largest in the world, she said.

"We have so many talented students here in Forsyth County," Valde said in a release. "We’re grateful to the school coordinators, principals, club members and parents for their support of these remarkable students. Also, we are proud to claim several past state winners from Forsyth County.”