“The Voice”

By Alan Sivell

When I was entering the 10th grade, the first year of high school in my hometown, my mother signed me up for a speech class. She wanted me to get over shyness.

She was the type of person who made conversation with everyone - trips to the grocery store or the fabric shop were never quick - and my father was a gregarious salesman.

When not with my friends, I looked at my shoes and mumbled. 

Not for the first time or the last, my mother knew what she was doing. The class did wonders for me. Well before the end of the semester, I couldn’t wait to get up in front of the class and speak. Oh, I got nervous, but the end result was usually so satisfying, I couldn’t wait for my chance.

The class didn’t start with much promise. It was filled with seniors who, to me, looked like fully functioning adults outside of class. But in class, they did not do well. They were no better than I, the lowly sophomore, at the start of the semester. And they didn’t really seem to care. Speech was just a class to get through.

However, I listened to what the teacher had to say and put it into practice. I’d like to say that was because I was a serious and obedient student. But, no, initially it was to gain status with some of the seniors in the class.

And with each speaking opportunity, I got better. And better. I could tell the other kids wanted to hear what I had to say.

And the teacher noticed.

Mr. Reimer began calling me “the voice” and challenging the seniors to do as well or better than “this sophomore.” He selected me to narrate the Christmas play that year. And predicted that I would make a career in broadcasting.

And for 10 years I did, at WQAD-TV in Moline, IL. While fun, it was not – in my opinion or the opinion of my spouse – a job for an adult, let alone a parent. The hours were crazy.

So I moved into a faculty position at St. Ambrose University, where I’ve spent my career teaching broadcasting and speech.

I still write speeches for others and write and deliver my own. And I still use my voice for radio and narration work, always thinking about Mr. Reimer just before I throw open the microphone and click on the record button. 

Here’s a recent voice-over piece I did for John Deere. I wish my mom could see and hear it. It would be one more validation of her own parenting skills.