Prior to Public speaking
TUESDAY APRIL 9TH, 2019
It’s the week of April 7th and public speaking event had just kicked off! Seven schools from the Lower North Shore are represented here. And this giant event will start off with a meet and greet from all around the Coast, but the main activities have just started with…
7:08 PM SPELLING BEE
First up on the dock will be our first ever Lower North Shore spelling bee! Here is the order!
First Paige, then Jaylyn, after Cady, then Drew and lastly Philip. There were some hard words like: geyser, playwright, pharaoh and the game finishing diffusion. And at the end, only one could win, being………….CADY! CONGRATULATIONS! She won a free trip on the Bella Desgagnés with a paid bed. BUT! There are two of them and the other one is for…….
8:00 P.M. OPEN MIC
A little after the spelling bee was the open mic… oh boy!
First up was an unscheduled poem by Jaylyn Fequet, one of the contestants who has lost the spelling bee:
“Roses are red, violets are blue, I lost the bee, so it will sting you!”
After the “joke” poem everyone almost died of laughter, in my opinion, it was a divine poem.
Melody’s was about the Coast and how it can help find your happy and calming place. I personally found it beautiful how it painted a picture in your head of the beauty of the Coast.
Sara’s was next, it was the struggles of depression and how hard it is just to continue. I also adored how it was like reading a book of a very complicated woman going through life.
Then Brooklynn’s was about how our generation is adapting to our new way of lifestyle and how everything is affecting our young. It was like a mini public speech about how terribly our society is developing.
Next was Drew on the piano (Which was beautiful)
Nash singing Darlin (It was hilarious)
The Kokomos (a group of girls from Chevery) that sang: Jolene, One Horse Town, Good Riddance and ending with Galway Girl. (IT WAS AMAZING!!!).
And lastly Logan with Supermarket Flowers (it made me cry beautiful tears) and the second winner of a trip on the Bella Desgagnés was picked randomly and out popped Arianne from the Kokomos group! CONGRATULATIONS!
Public speaking
Before the event, the contestants are preparing themselves to execute their speeches, the MC’s of our event, Brooklynn and Nash, are testing the microphone and the judges are preparing their judgement.
The event begins with our MC’s greeting and informing the public of today’s occasion. Our principal, Madame Céline Girard, then thanked everyone who made this event possible, such as volunteered students of École St. Augustine School who helped prepare food, everyone who made donations (Pal Airlines, Relais Nordik, Commission Scolaire du Littoral) and our administrator Philip Joycey of the school board who greeted and talked to our contestants, trying to relieve the stress of our speakers.
There aren’t many rules of public speaking; you share your opinion on a chosen topic and share to the public for 3-5 minutes, anything out of that range will result in a point deduction.
Alas, the speeches begin, starting with the junior division. Kayla Anderson of Harrington Harbour is first to share her speech: “Technology is ruining our imagination” which had a time of 4:45. Kaylie Bobbitt of Mecatina: “Unusual pets are misunderstood” which had a time of 3:27. Mason Kennedy-Spingle of St. Augustine: “Big words are useless” with a time of 4:59. Savanah Perron of Netagamiou: “What if there was a nuclear war?” with a time of 4:53. Madison Letto of Mgr Scheffer: “Happiness” with a time of 5:26. Karlie Roberts of St. Paul’s: “The impact of protesting the seal hunt” with a time of 3:42. Jada Roberts of Harrington Harbour: “Life of a teenage girl” with a time of 3:50. Mathis Perron of Netagamiou: “Hunting” with a time of 4:15.
After all these speeches, we took a short break. Refreshments, healthy snacks and beverages, were provided to everybody.
We continued with the junior category after the break, Abigail Smith of St. Paul’s gave her speech: “A need for sex education in school” with a time of 3:56. Mackenzie Ransom of Harrington Harbour: “Texting and driving” with a time of 2:55. Renee Flynn of Mgr Scheffer: “Choosing yourself” with a time of 4:03. Brooke-Lyne Anderson of Netagamiou: “The five stages of love” with a time of 4:17. Brooklyn Robertson of Mecatina: “Terrorism has no place in our society” with a time of 3:12. Keathon Monger of St. Augustine: “Loss of loved ones” with a time of 4:13. Ella Guillemette of Mgr Scheffer: “Explaining a diagnosis” with a time of 4:54.
Junior category was now completed and the judges had to make the difficult decision… but luckily, during this tense moment, Nash Driscoll, our very own MC, sang Wagon Wheel by Darius Rucker to entertain the audience… it was absolutely amazing.
The judges made their decision, but first, they announce the honorable mentions: Mason Kennedy-Spingle “Big words are useless” and Ella Guillemette “Explaining a diagnosis”… They both won $25. Kayla Anderson of Harrington Harbour placed 3rd with her speech “Technology is ruining imagination” winning $75. Mathis Perron of Netagamiou placed 2nd with her speech “Hunting” winning $100. Savanah Perron of Netagamiou placed 1st with her speech “What if there was a nuclear war?” winning a return ticket on Pal airlines.
A taco lunch, along with refreshing beverages, was served to all.
The senior division began after lunch. The first speaker up was Ethan Chubbs of Mecatina: “How school can be improved” with a time of 2:37. Emma Dumas of Mgr Scheffer: “The benefits of being single” with a time of 2:54. Audrey Marcoux-Mercier of Gabrielle-Dionne: “The end of the world and how to avoid it” with a time of 4:24. Amy Willcott of Mecatina: “Life feels like a test we didn’t study for” with a time of 3:30. Blaire Marcoux of Mecatina: “Life isn’t a phase” with a time of 3:22. Sammie Gallibois-Driscoll of St. Augustine: “Seeing double” with a time of 3:41. Harley Driscoll of St. Augustine: “Distraction” with a time of 3:53. Arianne Marcoux of Netagamiou: “Writing and its uses” with a time of 3:55. Mallory McKinnon of Netagamiou: “Legalization of prostitution” with a time of 4:42. Kassandra Anderson-Bobbitt of Netagamiou: “Equality” with a time of 3:45. Mark Letemplier of Mgr Scheffer: “The negative effects of public speaking” with a time of 2:44. Maggie Gallibois-Driscoll of St. Augustine: “Slut shaming”… sadly, she was unable to complete her speech… nervously, she walked off the podium. As somebody who has already heard her speech, I know that the speech was great and it’s too bad she was unable to share the greatness. Jacob Anderson of St. Paul’s: “Transportation on the Coast is a struggle” with a time of 3:21. Grace Keats of St. Paul’s: “Reflection of youth” with a time of 5:37.
The two honorable mentions were Jacob Anderson “Transportation on the Coast is a struggle” and Audrey Marcoux-Mercier “The end of the world and how to avoid it”. Arianne Marcoux placed 3rd with her speech “Writing and its uses”. Mallory McKinnon placed 2nd with her speech “Legalization of prostitution”. Kassandra Bobbitt placed 1st with her speech “Equality” and won a trip sponsored by PAL Airlines.
Public Speaking isn’t easy, but principal Céline Girard is proud of all participation….and there was cake… 🙂
Written by Jaylyn Fequet, grade 7,
and Mason Kennedy-Spingle, grade 7,
École St. Augustine School
Life on the Coast - La vie sur la Basse-Côte 
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