A THORNLANDS student at Calvary Christian College won her way through to the final only to be pipped at the post in the regional Lions Youth of the Year contest.
Taylor Birtchnell breezed through the two initial levels of the competition with her public speaking talents, which she says is made much easier "if you care about your topic".
In year 11, Taylor and the college's Amnesty International club members made a social media plea and raised awareness over the abduction of the Nigerian school girls.
The girls joined the worldwide compassionate call for action for the #BringBackOur Girls campaign.
The decision was easy for Taylor, whose prepared speech of five minutes was on the topic of "The surrender of Freedom".
Not only does Taylor speak about the injustices of the Nigerian school girls, but she also brings it home to what has happened to the Australian indigenous people, and in particular the Stolen Generation.
Taylor said she had found public speaking events gave her a great sense of affirmation, created amazing opportunities to improve her self-confidence, assisted with interviewing skills and promoted self-esteem.
The overall regional winner was Gold Coast student.
