The power of a speech was centre stage last week when dozens of Richmond kids, aged between 5 and 15, spoke from the heart.
It was all part of the philosophy of the second, annual KidTalksCanada competition and its “Right Heart, Right Mind, Right Voice” mantra.
Over the past three months, led by author and mentor Dr. Greg Gerrie, 80 students were engaged in an afterschool leadership program, learning essential skills necessary to succeed in life.
And at Gerrie’s Focus Media venue on No. 3 Road, 30 students took to the stage with carefully crafted speeches in front of a panel of local judges.
“Right Heart,” said Gerrie, means that the speeches “come from hearts that value life, liberty and freedom; “Right Mind,” means students “learn to get the facts straight by doing the right initial research to craft a speech” and “Right Voice” is learning to speak with “poise, passion, articulation, body language and care.”
“We are seeing so many beautiful testimonies from this program. Shy kids now able to speak in public, better family relationships, improved friendships at school, more confidence and, yes, gold medals,” said Gerrie, whose own daughter, Sarah, 9, has won gold medals both in Canada and in China in both English and Mandarin for her passionate speeches.
