Some powerful oratory was on display on Saturday when the Crescenta Valley Lions Club hosted its annual Student Speakers Contest in Sadler Hall on the campus of St. Luke’s of the Mountains Episcopal Church. 

While California Lions Club rules prohibit naming the contestants or publishing their speeches, the two high school students who competed both spoke passionately on the assigned topic “Youth Mental Health: Overcoming Barriers to Well Being.” Each, in their own way, spoke movingly of the pressures and challenges facing young people today, from the relentless competition for college admission and the struggle to preserve their own authentic identity in a culture shaped by social media to the need to find spiritual connection in a world increasingly defined by commercial values. It was an impressive performance by both and judges lamented the need to settle on only one winner. 

This year’s Student Speaker’s Contest was the 89^th such event in California Lions Club history. Every year, high school students from all over the state compete for scholarship awards in a graduated system that begins on the local club level and culminates in a statewide final. The winner of this Saturday’s event was awarded $100 by the CV Lions and she also earned the opportunity to compete for increasingly generous scholarships. 

“Ultimately,” said CV Lions event coordinator Kyle Studebaker, “the grand winner can win an accumulated scholarship award of over $21,000.” 

The Student Speakers Contest is just one of the many ways that the CV Lions and their network of affiliated clubs work to support their community. As their motto simply puts it: “We Serve.” 

Throughout the year, CV Lions can be seen collecting food to support the Bailey Center food bank, hosting an annual fundraiser for the Fire House Youth Center, supporting GUSD hearing impaired students, awarding generous scholarships to CV High and Clark Magnet High school students for exemplary community service, participating in health fairs and vision-screening events, and collecting backpacks and essential supplies for young people in foster care in its annual Kases for Kids event. 

For further information, contact CV Lions at stephen.mack@sbcglobal.net or Lions91214@gmail.com.  

Contributed by CV Lions Club