We all know everything is changing this school year due to Covid-19, but one thing that isn’t changing is the dedication of the OLCHS Speech team.

When I was in eighth grade last year, I saw the OLCHS Speech team perform and was in awe of how invested and devoted each member was. Each piece was performed with such vulnerability and talent that I knew I wanted to be a part of the team. Now, as a freshman, I’m doing just that. Except this year, neither myself nor any of the other people in Speech will be performing on a stage; we’ll be doing everything virtually.

The Speech team has already been holding weekly team meetings, individual practices with coaches, and novice workshops to ensure that we’ll be ready for our competition in November. It will definitely be different, but everyone’s very excited. Quinn Haywood, who will be doing his second year of Speech, had this to say on the topic of Speech this year: “With Speech being online it’s definitely a new challenge but many of the varsity members are ready for the challenge and just want to be able to compete and continue our success from last season. I don’t think there’s another team as ready and excited as us for tournaments in November.” I couldn’t agree more with his quote.

From returning members to new freshman like myself, the OLCHS Speech team is making an enormous effort to begin preparing and practicing. With our outstanding coaches and unbelievably talented members, I see this being a very successful season, no matter what virtual challenges we have to endure. Whether it’s by stage or by screen, the OLCHS Speech team is always ready to face challenges and give our best performances yet.