Conrad Grebel University College student Leah Reesor is the winner of the college’s annual Peace Speech contest and will represent Conrad Grebel’s Peace and Conflict Studies program in the bi-national C. Henry Smith Oratorical Competition in May.
Reesor, a fourth year student in Peace and Conflict Studies and Political Science who recently organized an international peace conference held at Grebel, spoke on “Giving and Receiving: Exploring the Spirituality of Service.” In her speech, Reesor reflected on lessons learned through her experience as a peace intern in Jamaica. She will receive an award of $300 from Conrad Grebel in recognition of her accomplishment.
Lowell Ewert, Director of the Peace and Conflict Studies program at Conrad Grebel and one of the contest judges, said,
The Peace Speech contest challenges students to explore how best to communicate how our peace position can be applied to practical problems facing the world. Leah prepared and gave an inspiring talk that recognized the importance of combining service and spirituality in order to be truly effective peacemakers.
Last year, Grebel student John Wray won second-place in the bi-national oratorical contest which receives speeches from Mennonite and Brethren in Christ universities and colleges across Canada and the United States. The oratorical contest was established in 1974 in the name of the late C. Henry Smith, a Mennonite historian and professor, in order to foster continuing thoughts about peace issues and a vehicle for making such views known. Speeches are judged on topic, content, delivery, introduction, conclusion and creativity.