On Thursday evening (February 25), the area Rotary Clubs hosted The Donald Hayman 2010 Rotary Against Drugs Speech Competition, featuring Johnston County high school students who spoke on the subject “What Must Be Done To Prevent Drug and Alcohol Abuse in the United States?”

Shaza Gaballah, a ninth grade student from Clayton High School, was the first place recipient. Her speech focused on the addressing the root causes of drug and alcohol abuse among teenagers. Ms Gaballah honestly shared that it is very tempting for teens to try drugs and alcohol because adolescents want to feel accepted by their peers and are naturally curious. Boredom, lack of opportunity to be involved in extracurricular activities, and low self esteem were other factors she identified. She spoke passionately about the need to have school based awareness instruction that is relevant to teens. While she applauded the D.A.R.E. program for fifth graders, she stressed the need for continued instruction at the middle and high school levels.

Shaza is involved in Key Club, HOSA (Health Occupations Students of America), and Relay for Life. She hopes to become involved with Interact Club. She and friend, Lizzie Tart, recently started a group called Coach Club, which is a tutoring club they run for freshmen. Shaza considers herself to be very motivated and loves coming to school. She is quoted as saying, “In the future, I hope to become a pediatric surgeon, hopefully through Duke or John Hopkins. My parent’s are Safaa Elridy (mom) and Ihab Gaballah (dad), both of which are very supportive of my academics and extra curricular activities. This is my first speech contest, and I hope to continue to do things like this throughout my entire life!”

The following students represented their schools at the Johnston Medical Mall Auditorium:

Shaza Gaballah – Clayton High School – First Place

Sarah Henry – West Johnston High School – Second Place

Brooke Wallig – Smithfield High School – Third Place

Shane Hinton – Princeton High School – Fourth Place

Elise Normann- North Johnston High School – Honorable Mention

Lionel Moran – Middle College High School – Honorable Mention

Lance Kapral – Early College High School – Honorable Mention

The Rotary Clubs extended special thanks to Superintendent Ed Croom, Pat Bridgers, principals, coordinators, and other employees of Johnston County Schools, for their support of this competition as a means for building awareness for addressing the issue of substance abuse among the young people of Johnston County.