Winning the Tall Tales Contest was Tom Brents. Tom told us a big tale titled “A Dangerous Bit of Shade,” about when he was training for the Olympics and leaned up against the wrong tree to get a little rest. He told us how he was taken hostage and held inside a huge mansion. He was interrogated by a couple of mean characters and feared for his life. Eventually he gathered his strength and used his keen senses and skills to escape and finally elude his captors. The twist in the story was that this mansion was located in Tom’s neighborhood and was the reason why many neighbors had gone missing. I don’t know about you, but I am going to think twice about attending another one of Tom’s Christmas parties! You never know if those neighbors are still around.
Next was the International Speech Contest which was won by Mack Mercer. Mack inspired us with “Small Things with Great Love.” He told us about how his mother and father took 5 cousins into their family after a horrible tragedy. Adding the 5 cousins, Mack’s two siblings and Mack made a total kid count of eight and with only one bathroom! We remember Mack singing a little song “2, 4, 6, 8 now the bathroom’s a longer wait.” My favorite part of Mack’s speech was about his brother Richard who used to sleepwalk right off the top bunk bed. Richard dreamed he was diving into a pool filled with water but instead dove onto the hard terrazzo tile floor. This talent served Richard well in life because later he was hired at Euro Disney to dive off stagecoaches while performing in the Wild West shows. Richard continues to entertain audiences at Disney and has been there for 17 years. Mack’s story reminded us that we may not be able to accomplish big things, but we can accomplish small things with great love.
Congratulations Tom and Mack! Both will represent Afterburners in the Area Contest on Saturday, March 20th.
Pat Quick
