A persuasive and expressive performer, Auburn’s Brittne Lunniss has a flair for the dramatic.
Her classmate, Sheila Ojeaburu, is more reserved but just as convincing.
Both are gifted students, leaders in their own way and prime-time players when it comes to stepping onto the stage and delivering a well-scripted message from the podium.
The Jefferson High School students will put their skills and nerves to the test when they represent the school at the inaugural Tournament of Champions speech contest at Fullerton, Calif., on May 14-16, and again at the National Speech and Debate Tournament in Kansas City, Mo., on June 13-18.
Jon Mount will be Jefferson’s third competitor at nationals.
Lunniss, 18, a senior, and Ojeaburu, 16, a junior, are the school’s first T of C qualifiers in speech. Each must memorize and deliver a 10-minute address in front of judges and a large audience.
For Andrew Buchan, the school’s speech, debate and broadcasting instructor, the students represent hard work and commitment to the craft.
“Those two girls are great,” Buchan said. “Both of them haven’t been in the program that long, but they are really devoted to it and enjoy what it offers.”
Lunniss will compete in the dramatic interpretation category on the topic of the 9/11 tragedy and its psychological effects on family members. The fact that her mother, Leslie Garman, is a flight attendant struck a personal connection to the subject matter.
Ojeaburu, meanwhile, will compete in original oratory on the topic of money and happiness: how materialism doesn’t necessarily equate to contentment.
Speech and debate have helped shape the academic fortunes of the well-rounded girls. Both take challenging courses. Both have plans.
Lunniss, buoyed by the skills she acquired at Jefferson, landed a $20,000 scholarship to Pacific Lutheran University. She would like to study pre-law, perhaps one day work as a legislative attorney, a path spurred by her experience of shadowing Rep. Mark Miloscia at Olympia. She also might pursue a career in broadcast journalism.
A classical pianist for 14 years, Lunniss is active in school theater and choir. She also is a member of a select organization, the Alexander Hamilton Leadership Academy.
Ojeaburu, a full-time student in the school’s International Baccalaureate program, is active in sports and community service. The daughter of a physician, Ojeaburu might pursue a career in the medical field.
In the mean time, both are looking to polish off a solid school year with back-to-back national speech performances.
“Getting up in front of my peers is probably more nerve-wracking than facing 100 people I don’t know,” Lunniss said of the challenge. “It becomes a second home to me.”
For Ojeaburu, the challenge is different but just as great.
“I’m more introverted, so it’s harder for me to put myself out there,” she said. “The first competition was very difficult because I was so nervous. … But it gets better. You get used to it. You just perform.”
