Alameda Elementary School

Danny Fisher, a senior at Grant High School, was the winner of the Truth Be Told Story Slam

Danny Fisher, a senior at Grant High School, was the winner of the Truth Be Told Story Slam

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At the start of his story, Danny Fisher is at a blood drive, donating “the elixir of life.” At the end, he is nursing an eye injury that makes him look “like a monster for a few days.” The tale of what happens between those points earned the Grant High School senior first place in the Truth Be Told Story Slam held Thursday at Grant.

The event, held for the third year, brought together the top two finishers at story slams at four participating PPS high schools (Grant, Lincoln, Franklin and Madison). Each student was given 5 minutes to tell a personal story that followed this year’s theme: hindsight.

Fisher’s tale, titled “An Eye on a Light Saber,” involves him and his brother purchasing light sabers at a specialty store after a road trip that included his parents (“who really will put up with anything”) and girlfriend. Naturally, Danny and his brother get into a light saber duel, with Danny’s eye paying the price.

“Unlike hindsight, I was not 20/20 for a few days,” Danny says. “But maybe things turned out exactly the way they were supposed to.”

Troodon Althoff, a senior at Franklin, finished second. Troodon told a story from elementary school of joining, then trying to leave, a Warrior Cats club, ending with a bittersweet lesson about friendship.

Other competitors were Ivy Letherwood of Franklin; Jina Lim and Lisa Burke of Lincoln; Ellen Lovre of Grant; and Tyler Horan and Wyatt Mejia-Lopez of Madison.

The judges were professional storytellers who rated contestants on the quality and delivery of their stories. The Truth Be Told Story Slam is a program of PPS libraries.

View the full Truth Be Told Story Slam (Warning: some of the stories include mature language):