June 15th Meeting - Graduation Night

“Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.”

-          Socrates

Eagles,

June 15^th, our last meeting of the 2014-2015 year, was another fun evening…..Too bad I missed it. However, I did make it to Jake’s!

When I arrived at Jake’s, I was immediately wowed by the fact that our club is truly a family….and that was before I saw my entire family at the far end of the table!

During our celebration, I learned that Meghan was “on top of her game” as the Toastmaster. I also learned that Rachel, my back up, was delayed due to traffic challenges on I-91…..No problem! Ute, “the back up to the back up” stepped up with the President’s message. As they say, “this is exactly how we drew it up in the playbook”!

The Eagles enjoyed a full night of four speeches…..Robin’s body spoke about miniature golf. Sandy gave her 11^th speech of the year about “doing less more meaningfully”. Joseph gave an interesting speech about General Patton. Last, but not least, Tom taught us that beer drinkers do not get cholera (at least that’s what Allie told me she learned!).

Susanne joined us for the last meeting of the year. Susanne was our president for the first half of 2014-15, but had to step down due to her demands at work. She enjoyed seeing how much the Eagle seedlings she met last year have grown. Susanne’s contributions were felt throughout the entire year!

The above quote describes one of my favorite lessons from the 2014-15 TM year……..I realize many of us are Eagles because we like to learn. However, I underestimated how invigorating it is! Many Monday nights I would have to drag myself to a TM meeting after a long day at work.  After our meeting, I would be so energized I would have difficulty going to sleep.

It has been a privilege being your president for the last six months. I was very moved by Joe’s presentation of my gift and am thankful for your expressions of appreciation……I am very excited about our 2015-16 year with Kate Kelly as our President. Kate is extremely committed - not only to our club, but as a helper to others.  

Our next meeting on July 6^th promises to be fun….We have three speakers lined up already but lots of roles still open….please log onto www.eagletoastmaters.com and sign up for something!

I look forward to seeing you on July 6^th!

Tony Centorino

Pets!

On Monday June 1^st, we had another fun meeting with Pets being the theme. The meeting lasted 2 ½ hours, which is 17 ½ dog hours! This is why we’ve had trouble attracting canine members. The lack of opposable thumbs that prevents them from being timers is another reason.

Joseph Oddie showed us his skills as our Toastmaster by keeping the meeting moving and providing interesting commentary between speakers.

Ruchi Pandey was our Quotemaster, kicking our meeting off with an inspiring quote. For those that have never done this before, it is a great opportunity to share your wisdom with others.

Sandy Centorino provided us a Values Moment about an organization that serves people, young an old, with pets. The organization is called Pet Partners -http://www.petpartners.org/

Sandy was also our Topics Master with pet related topics. Harry Thurow, our newest member, gave not one but two Table Topics……before his check even cleared! We also learned about Allie’s glass gold fish and Cassie’s uninvited pet turtles.

Jon Weinberger “broke the ice” and shared his interesting background with us. If Jon felt uncomfortable speaking in public, he certainly fooled us! It was an auspicious debut indeed! (Kate, do I get credit for using the word of the day?)

Robin Corrigan completed her 9^th speech, speaking about her dragon and her trip to Tibet.

Allie Centorino researched her topic for her second speech, inspiring us with her story about overcoming a personal challenge.

And then there was Elaine Piazza……..Elaine completed her Advanced Communication Silver with her 10 minute speech, providing pointers about public speaking.  Elaine had told us early this year that she was going to complete her ACS this year and she did it! She also pushed Eagle over the top…..We are now President’s Distinguished for the 14^th year in a row!

At the end of the meeting, Ian Brooks shared an opportunity to help another organization with a “Speechcraft” event. Ian is working with a Manufacturing Company in North Haven that is looking to improve their speaking skills. He is seeking volunteers at Eagle to provide a couple of hours of time on either a Wednesday or Thursday TBD.

As exciting as it is to grow at an Eagles meeting, I learned that helping others learn our craft is incredibly energizing! The bonus is that Eagle’s treasury will get a nice boost as this is a paid gig! Please reach out to Ian if you are interested and able to help. Several of us told Ian we can do it if provided enough notice. If you think you can find time to help (even if you’re not sure) just let Ian know. He will do his best to make it work.

I look forward to seeing you at our final meeting of the Toastmaster year on 6/15 (don’t worry, “next year” begins on 7/6). After our meeting, we will celebrate at Jake’s Tavern. I hope you will join us!

There are openings for our 6/15 meeting…..Please log onto http://www.eagletoastmasters.com/ and sign up for something!

Tony