Greenville teen overcomes challenges to shine in oratorical contest

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    GREENVILLE — Keegan Cannell didn’t finish first in Saturday’s American Legion Oratorical Contest held at Thomas College in Waterville.
    But he still came out a winner.
    Oona Mackinnon-Hoban, a 16-year-old sophomore at Portland High School, won the state competition out of the seven district winners and will advance to the national round later this year in Indianapolis.

KEEGAN CANNELL

    The contest consists of delivering two speeches — one on a topic of the presenter’s choice and the other related to the U.S. Constitution. A panel of five judges evaluated the students based on the content of their speeches, the ability to cite examples and their speaking skills, including poise, body language and diction.
    Keegan, a sophomore at Greenville High School, was born with autism spectrum disorder, according to his mother, Liz McKeil Cannell.
    “He had significant speech delays and was barely verbal,” she explained. “I remember how hopeless I felt wondering what his future would be like.”
    Eventually he was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome which can affect motor skills, make youngsters uncomfortable in social situations or cause them to be preoccupied with only a few interests.
    Today, Keegan is candid about his diagnosis and said that entering the oratorical contest for the second year was very important to him. “My teacher (Alan Cartwright) said it would be a good idea, so I entered in my freshman year and went to the regionals,” he said. “My specific goal was to do better this year”
    Keegan’s chosen theme for the contest was alcohol abuse. “I talked about alcoholism, how it affects a person and their family and dangers of drunk driving,” he said. “It took quite a while to finish it, but Mr. Cartwright was a huge help.”
    Was he nervous about speaking in public? “I was the first year,” he said. “But after that, I realized that people liked to hear me and really cared about me.”
    Liz Cannell said that the Greenville school system “has made all the difference in the world to Keegan. He had a whole entourage of his own at the contest, including Mr. Cartwright. We’re so grateful to live in such a supportive and tight-knit community.”
    Keegan and his mother lived in Colorado until they moved to Maine three years ago, and he agreed that it’s a vast improvement. “When I was in third grade in Colorado, it was terrible,” he said. “They bullied me constantly.”
    He attended a different school starting in sixth grade “but it wasn’t much better. I didn’t do anything embarrassing, but I really didn’t fit in.”
    Liz Cannell said that Asperger’s is actually classified as an autism spectrum disorder, which makes it easier for families to get help from medical professionals and social service agencies. “We were fortunate enough to see a specialist in southern Maine when we moved here,” she said. “Child Development Services was a real help to us.”
    Keegan, who also plays baseball, said his favorite classes are math and English. “My goal is to become an architect,” he said.
    He also has some words of advice for anyone else with Asperger’s, “Don’t let the condition control your life. Just because you have it doesn’t mean your life is going to be built around it. You can live up to your dreams just like a normal person.”