Speaking up for life wins prize

The 18-year-old parishioner of St. Pius X Church in Loudonville won the New York State Pro-Life Oratory Contest, which gave him the opportunity to compete on a national level. The problem was that the competition was scheduled for the same day as his high school graduation.

Tadhg chose to compete in the nationals, and that decision paid off: He won the competition, the first student from New York to take the top prize. Winning the national contest made missing his graduation from Shaker High School a bit more bearable.

"It was a difficult decision to make after I won the state [competition]," he said. "The [graduation] ceremony would have been nice. It would have been a little more disappointing if I hadn't won."

He spoke on euthanasia after watching a family friend struggle with a serious illness and die.

His first experience with the contest came last year when he entered the Capital Region Pro-Life Oratorical Contest. Without having made speeches before, he placed second in the contest with a speech on abortion.

He entered again this year but admits that at first he didn't put a lot of effort in. "I wrote it real quickly before the first contest," he said. "After that, I worked on it. I practiced it by myself, getting it down, not making mistakes."

At the national competition, held in Milwaukee, he wasn't sure how he would do. "I was excited," he said. "I thought I could place, but winning came as a bit of a surprise."

The former high school soccer player and student government representative will attend Boston University in the fall to study political science and journalism. If he has time in college, he will consider entering similar competitions. "It's a good deal," he said.

He won $250 at the local level, $1,000 at the state, and $1,000 at the national level, plus his travel expenses.

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