Patton wins two TFB titles

By LYNN MONTGOMERY | East Texas Edition

December 18, 2003 -- With a speech entitled "Free Enterprises-No Bull," 17-year-old Marissa Patton of Stamford (north of Abilene) won the Texas Farm Bureau's Free Enterprise Speech Contest held during the organization's 70th annual convention.

"I was completely shocked I won the contest," Patton began during a phone interview on Dec. 10, just a few days following the big win. "I knew I had strong competition. I was so nervous. That's the most people I have ever talked in front of. I did my best."

The contest involves a persuasive speech about the free enterprise system.

"Hitting the topic pretty straight forward," Patton said she didn't know anything about free enterprise until attending the Farm Bureau Citizenship Seminar in the summer of 2003. It was during the seminar, held at Angelo State in San Angelo, that she found out about the speech contest.

To prepare for her speech, the Stamford senior said she researched the topic at the library and on the Internet. Patton spoke about the free enterprise system as a whole, while others spoke about the system in relation to Farm Bureau.

The win was not Patton's only one at the state convention - she was also crowned Miss Texas Farm Bureau, and will now tour the state promoting Farm Bureau.

"I look forward to representing the Farm Bureau and the travel," Patton, who is the daughter of Lindy and Lisa Patton, said. (Mr. Patton is the state director of the Boll Weevil Eradication program.)

But the "Miss" contest was not something Patton, the oldest of three, wanted to do in the beginning.

"Mom heard about the pageant and asked if I would like to do this. (Eventually) we were at the district contest in San Saba. I was chewing on Mom pretty bad, asking 'Why did you make me do this?' but, when I won, I thought 'This isn't so bad.'"

The Miss TFB contestants are judged on, among other things, questions answered in an interview session, and poise.

With the two wins, Patton earned $6,000 in scholarship funds ($4,000 for the speech, and $2,000 for the Miss TFB win), which will go towards the plan to attend Texas Tech University in Lubbock and major in pre-law. She also won a $500 natural fiber wardrobe, and a set of luggage.

An all expense trip to Washington, D.C., in 2004, was won by all six speech contest finalists. Of the finalists, the runner-up was Daniel Alders of Nacogdoches, a 17-year-old home-schooled junior. Alders, the son of David and Nicole Alders, won a $2,500 scholarship and plans to attend Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches.