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25th Annual Japanese Speech Contest
On March 26, the 25th Annual Japanese Speech Contest was held at the Consulate’s Japan Information Center.

The contest winners are determined by a strict judging panel, comprised of Japanese specialists, and there are many wonderful prizes, including a round trip ticket from Chicago to Tokyo’s Narita Airport. For these reasons, participation in the contest is a goal for many Midwestern Japanese students, as well as an incentive to study more.

This year, the 39 speakers who made it past the first round of judging were divided into the following 4 categories, and recited their Japanese speeches, competing with the fruits of their daily studies.
Category 1: Elementary and Junior High School Students
Category 2: High School Students with less than three years of Japanese experience
Category 3: High School Students with more than three years of Japanese experience; College Students and Adults with less than one year of Japanese experience
Category 4: College Students & Adults with more than one year of Japanese experience
After much deliberation, the judging panel, consisting of college Japanese educators, representatives from the Japan America Society of Chicago (JASC) and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Chicago (JCCC), and Consulate officials, awarded Haneol Nam the grand prize for his speech, 「『幸せ』の意味」 (The Meaning of Happiness), and the other participants were awarded the prizes listed below.

This year marked the 25th Anniversary of the Annual Japanese Speech Contest, so the Japan Information Center’s Consul Menda gave a presentation on the history of the event, and then introduced Dr. Jason Jones, Assistant Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and winner of the Sister City Osaka Award at the 14th Annual Japanese Speech Contest. Dr. Jones reminisced about his own experience in the contest, and about his connections with Japan in the ensuing years.

In his closing speech, Consul General George Hisaeda informed the audience that the champion of the first Japanese Speech Contest, held by the Japanese American Association of Chicago in 1970, was Mr. Dave Spector, currently the star of many Japanese TV programs. The Consul General then expressed that the effort required to learn Japanese is not easy, but that it is a very valuable skill, so he implored the participants to continue studying as hard as they could.

Then the award ceremony was held, and prizes and certificates were conferred upon each of the participants by representatives from each of the sponsoring organizations, such as the JCCC.

This speech contest would not have been possible without the cooperation and work of the JCCC, the JASC, the Osaka City Chicago Office, the Chicago Sister Cities Osaka Committee, and many others who gave their time. Thank you!


JIC Director Akira Tajima gives his opening remarks



  
First Prize, Category 1
Ms. Chase Dorn

First Prize, Category 2
Ms. AnnHee Kong


  
Sister City Osaka Award Winner
Ms. Katharine Snyder

Consul Menda explains the history of the
Japanese Speech Contest for its 25th Anniversary


  
Assistant Professor at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Dr. Jason Jones gives his speech

The Consul General gives his closing remarks



  
Commemorative photo from 1970 speech contest
Second from the right onstage is Mr. Dave Spector

Grand Prize winner Mr. Haneol Nam
and the Consul General


  
Commemorative photograph with the participants and judges


Summary of Prizes and Winners
Award Speaker Speaker's School Speech Title
Grand Prize Haneol Nam University of Wisconsin-Madison Meaning of Happiness/「幸せ」の意味
Round-Trip Ticket to Japan Donated by Japan Airlines
$200 Gift Certificate Donated by Mitsubishi International Corporation
$200 Gift Certificate Donated by Nippon Steel, USA
Sister City Osaka Award Katharine Snyder University of Chicago Thoughts Before Graduation/卒業前に考えていること
Round-Trip Ticket to and a Three-Week Homestay in Osaka, Japan Donated by the City of Osaka Chicago Office and the Chicago Sister Cities Osaka Committee
First Place (1 recipient in each category)
$150 Gift Certificate Donated by Astellas Pharma
Category 1 Chase Dorn Addams Junior High School My Memorable Trip to a School in Japan/楽しかった日本の学校
Category 2 AnnHee Kong Glenbrook South High School The Japanese Song That My Grandpa Tought Me/おじいさんがおしえてくれた日本語のうた
Category 3 Eileen Ting University of Chicago My Encounter with Nihongo/日本語との出会い
Category 4 Amanda Poore University of IL at Urbana-Champaign Unhappy Feet! What Feet Can Tell You about a Person/足で分かる人の本音
Second Place (1 recipient in each category)
$100 Gift Certificate Donated by Sumitomo Corporation
Category 1 Margie Vollkommer Thomas Dooley Elementary School If You Loose a Tooth/はがぬけたら
Category 2 Jacovie Rodriguez Whitney Young H.S. My Ambition towards Physics/物理への野心
Category 3 Pan Jun Kansas State University Racism? Not a Big Problem/人種差別？大した問題じゃないよ
Category 4 Eugene Kwon Washington University in St. Louis Learning Foreign Language to Prevent Its Extinction/廃れ行く言語を習う理由
Third Place (1 recipient in each category)
$50 Book Gift Certificate Donated by Tokio Marine
Category 1 Jordan Nowlin Thomas Dooley Elementary School Komodo Dragon/コモドドラゴン
Category 2 Lidia Gasca Northside College Prep. Prejudgment/勝手にかんちがいされること
Category 3 Joseph Castronova Western Illinois University Life Changing Experience/私の人生
Category 4 Dana Fager University of IL at Urbana-Champaign Finding My Second Home/第二の故郷を見つける
Special Award (2 recipients in any category)
Railroad Model Donated by Kato USA
Category 1 Eliot Chang Thomas Dooley Elementary School America and Japan's School/アメリカと日本の学校
Body Composition Monitor and Scale Donated by Omron Corporation
Category 3 Yuan Muzi Kansas State University What is a real girl like?/「女の子らしい女の子」って？
4th Place (1 recipient in each category)
$30 Gift Certificate Donated by Ark Technologies, Inc.
Category 1 Emma Dickson Happy Hollow Elementary School New Japanese Friends/あたらしいにほんのともだち
Category 2 Pamela Federico Northside College Prep. Appreciation/感謝すること
Category 3 Nicolas Cho University Laboratory High School Atomic Bomb/げんばく
Category 4 Charles Durran Kelly Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Difficult to understand Japanese for native English Speakers/英語母語話者にとって理解しがたい日本語
The Japan America Society of Chicago Award (1 recipient in each category)
Books About Japan (Categories 1-3), 1-year Membership to the JASC, All Donated by the Japan America Society of Chicago
Category 1 Rafael Vazquez Burr Elementary School My School/ぼくの学校
Category 2 Carolyn Epmeier Whitney Young H.S. The Difference between Amerian and Japanese High School/アメリカと日本の高校の違い
Category 3 Susan Zhao Whitney Young H.S. Optimist/オプトミスト　らっかんしゅぎしゃ
Category 4 Brittany Partin Valparaiso University The Things in Our Power/私たちにできること
The Chicago Shimpo Award (2 recipients in any category)
1-year Subscription to The Chicago Shimpo donated by The Chicago Shimpo
Category 3 Joanne Mai Whitney Young H.S. Depression/デプレッション　よくうつしょう
Category 4 Inga Strinz University of Wisconsin-Madison The Place Where Darkness Turns to Light/暗然は安全になる所
The Japan Airlines Award (1 recipient in each category)
A Flower Vase or Decorative Plate Donated by Japan Airlines
Category 1 Cecily Abbott Montessori Language Academy Story about Tsuki/月のはなし
Category 2 Evelyn Roback-Navarro Northside College Prep. Adventure in Japan/日本でのぼうけん
Category 3 Annie Sae-Hoon University of IL at Urbana-Champaign 'I Believe in the Teaching of a Thief/こそどろのおしえをしんじています。
Category 4 Elliott Taylor Oakton Community College The Heart of Japan Met in Chicago/シカゴで出会った日本の心
The Illinois Association of Teachers of Japanese Award (1 recipient each in categories 1 and 2)
Assorted Japanese Items Donated by the Illinois Association of Teachers of Japanese
Category 1 Rebecca S. Iseli InterCultural Montessori Language School My First Making Papers Experience/はじめての紙づくり
Category 2 Lana Sutker Streamwood H.S. The Ideal Boy/りそうてきな男の子
The Bonjinsha Award (7 recipients in any category)
Japanese Dictionary donated by Bonjinsha Publishing Company
Category 1 Mariana Pastorczak Andrew Jackson Language School Okonomiyaki/お好み焼き
Category 1 Rafael Vazquez Burr Elementary School My School/ぼくの学校
Category 2 Ellis Srubas-Giammanco Northside College Prep. What I've Learned from Working/働くことから学んだこと
Category 2 Mindy Nguyen Northside College Prep. The Media's Influence/メディアの影響力
Category 3 Ian Cochran Westrn Illinois University Story of a Dream/ゆめのものがたり
Category 4 Conner Hutchins University of Wisconsin-Madison Why Americans Should Become More Internationally Aware/アメリカ人は国際化すべきだ
Category 4 John Wheeler University of IL at Urbana-Champaign The Memories Connecting My Grandfather and I/祖父と私をつなげている思い出
Participation Awards
All participants receive soy sauce donated by Kikkoman, a toothbrush donated by Sunstar Americas, Inc., and Japanese snacks from TH Foods
All spectators receive Japanese snacks donated by TH Foods