AH THE SUMMERTIME AT LAST -- I THINK? The way Jim S. smacked the
lectern – waking us all up -- I thought for sure the weather
would start behaving itself too. For the last meeting of this
season, we once again had an impressive turnout – including
three guests.
Diane C. introduced our Chairman (who has been a Club member of
7 years!!!) a very warm and appreciative welcome.
Our Chairman Jan K. sure knows how to run a great meeting – her
sense of humour makes for a warm and a welcoming lectern –
fabulous bridging too!
Li-Ying K. welcomed our guests with warmth and sincerity – as
only Li-Ying can.
Barbara M. as Wordsmith chose a sexy summer word “sultry” – she
included a good, clear explanation of her role – catching “the
interesting phraseology of the evening” too.
Our Jokemaster Robert G. has the natural and easy humour of a
good storyteller – great word images in his anecdote.
Kate E. was our Inspirator – encouraging people to donate to the
Food Bank this summer. Thanks Kate what a great idea!
Albert L. as our Timer gave clear and meticulous reports –
showing no inhibition to ringing the bell when needed!
Table Topics Master Diane C. had a different slant to her role,
giving people the opportunity of agreeing or disagreeing with
the question/phrase posed to them.
Steve Z. felt that “summer is the best season” – and told of how
much he enjoys swimming in the summer – I liked the way he asked
the audience a question in his introduction.
Jim S. felt that “summer is NOT the best season” – “There is no
perfect season: they are all wonderful.”
Delene B. felt “Yes. School must be year-round.” “It’s too hard
to occupy kids when they’re out of school.” – “We must shorten
the summer break.”
Dave A. responded that “School should NOT be year-round.” --
“The best experiences of my life have been during summer
vacation.”
Jane A. took the “½ and ½” view when responding to “Summer: a
time to relax or time to get fit?” She keeps fit in summer doing
various sports and finds it relaxing at the same time too.
Albert L. felt the best thing to do in the summer is “To
experience something new, - go somewhere you’ve never been
before.”
Michelle F. felt that “You don’t need to go abroad to have a
good time.” – she described the virtues of traveling in a camper
van throughout the province – no housework – feed your kids
handful of cookies and they’ll run around outside in circles for
a surprisingly long time.
Our Table Topics Evaluator Christina R. appreciated the creative
“debate style” to the session – had very insightful and
individual feedback – loved her tip to use the old “Ws” if you
get stuck in a Table Topic: where, when, why, how?
Toastmaster Jane A. spoke of reminiscences of “Theatre Under the
Stars” in Malkin Bowl – her Toast was “To outdoor theatre in the
Summertime.” Jane gave a great explanation of the speeches and
the speech manuals – well-prepared introductions to the speakers
and their projects – and clear instructions to the Timer.
Barbara M.’s speech “Considerations if you’re asked to sit on
the Board of Directors of a Private Company.” – An informative
speech about liability and risks of directors – very interesting
– food-for-thought for all of us who might be asked to sit on a
Board – Barbara had great eye contact, and good, strong vocal
projection.
Jennifer S.’s speech on “Employee Privacy” was really
interesting and very informative. As was evident during her
speech, this topic is something she felt passionate about.
Proving, yet again, that selecting topics that matter to us
helps us create superior speeches.
Karen A.’s speech “Got Milk?” was delivered with great poise and
enthusiasm. Karen explained in her introduction, that her
speech’s goal is to promote alternative ways (to milk) to
getting our calcium. This was Karen at her best: teaching us as
she explained a health benefit. Perhaps a lesson for us all:
sometimes when we’re teaching, we lose our nervousness in our
eagerness to share new information.
Li-Ying K. evaluated Barbara’s speech and made some good
suggestions to us all for making a technical speech – slowing
our pace to maximize audience comprehension. Li-Ying had some
really good catches of Barbara’s success in maintaining eye
contact while still being able to scan notes.
Michelle F. gave a very well-organized evaluation of Jennifer’s
speech. Michelle hit the major speech goals first, and the minor
speech elements afterward – great use of specific examples –
very well-rounded.
Delene B. gave another great teaching evaluation of Karen’s
speech. Highlighting and praising specific positive techniques
Karen used that other members could use in their own speeches.
Delene gave a good explanation of why Karen’s was a persuasive
speech, and how speakers build persuasion step by step.
Installation of our new executive – always a pleasure to see a
fresh executive eagerly step into their roles. This group has so
much strength, humour and positive energy that next year bodes
very well!
Dave A. our General Evaluator always leaves us giggling with his
great humour. Loved his introduction saying that, as he was
pressed for time, anyone he didn’t have time to mention should
come to see him afterwards. Always good protocol: Dave mentioned
the major roles first, so that if he ran out of time for the
minor roles, the big ones were critiqued for all those who might
perform those roles in the future. Dave showed a great
appreciation of good techniques that various people modeled this
evening. A good teacher! Excellent observations!
June 23rd was our Toastmaster’s windup potluck held at the home
of Jim S. – thanks for the use of your house Jim.
Congratulations to the following who one awards: Jane A. – Most
Improved Toastmaster; Diane C. – Best Evaluator; Delene B. –
Best Wordsmith Award; Kate E. – Leadership Award.
HAVE A GREAT SUMMER EVERYONE!!!
Our next Toastmasters meeting will be Monday, Sept. 8th, at
7:15pm in our regular location. Come join us in "Learning
Through Fun and Friendship".
Club 1085
