Stanislaus Presentation Day was held at the Stanislaus County Ag Center on Saturday March 12. Six Orange Blossom 4-H members from Leader, Joyce Reed’s Public Speaking project participated in the competition. All members chose the type of speech they gave, and have been preparing and practicing since the fall. All members who participated were awarded gold awards, the highest honor at the county level for this event.

Three of the members competed in the junior division for nine- and 10-year-olds. Giving two performances, Avery Terra did an interpretive reading of “Chameleon’s Colors” and presented a demonstration of how to transplant tomatoes. Payton Avila gave an interpretive reading of “The Monster at the End of This Book,” and Molly Terpstra did an interpretive reading of “Casey at the Bat.”

In the Intermediate division for 11- to 13-year-olds, Emma Fernandez gave a demonstration of “How to Do a Rope Braid,” and Rhys Ludlow did an interpretive reading of the poem “Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout.” Furthermore, Halley Smith competed in the senior division for 14- to 19-year-olds and presented an informational prepared speech on the “History of Ninjutso.”

At the end of the competition, a member from each competition room was selected to go on stage in front of everyone before the awards assembly to give a Command Performance. Rhys Ludlow, Emma Fernandez, and Molly Terpstra were all chosen for this additional honor. As all of these presenters received gold awards, they will move on to the next level of competition, which will be the (regional) sub-sectional level that includes Stanislaus, Tuolumne, Merced, Mariposa, and Madera counties. The contest will be hosted by Stanislaus County on April 9.