Minutes – August 5, 2013

Club meeting of Eagle Toastmasters Wallingford, #3161 at Park and Rec in Wallingford, CT

Attendance: 12 members, 2 guests, 1 new member

Word of the Day

“selfie”

 

Speakers

Paul Douglass

Kate Kelly

Tom Piekarski

Enhance, Exercise, Encourage - August 19

Dear Members,

 

We certainly had an excellent meeting last night!

 

We had distinguished guest Area Governor, Diana Drysdale, who gave a compelling speech about participating in club contests. Participating may be intimidating, but there are incredible benefits to it. As Diana put it, "enhance yourself, exercise your confidence, and encourage growth in yourself" and at the same time "enhance your club, exercise your community, and encourage each other." She encouraged us to step outside of our comfort zones, using herself and a friend as testimonies to the benefits. Diana said the last three years of Toastmasters has been the sole development tool for her and she could not be happier with the return on investment, especially since the cost is remarkably low. So, anyone thinking of participating, I hope you heed Diana's words because it is a tremendous opportunity to grow, learn, and ultimately increase your self-confidence. It may be scary, but you truly have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

 

Richard gave us an exceptional speech, which was his first from an advanced communicator manual. He took that opportunity to toast the club and all the members' efforts and contributions. Those of us who knew where Richard began in his speaking ability and where he is now can testify to his growth. As I recall, he jumped right into the humorous speech contest last year not long after joining Eagles! He is a sure example of someone who has done what Diana prescribed... he has enhanced himself, exercised his confidence(evident last night), and enhanced his ability. I can't wait to see what Richard has in store for us in meetings to come!

 

I threw a bit of a curve ball last night. I decided to abandon my planned speech and gave an impromptu one instead. I was inspired by Richard's speech and wanted to take a moment to encourage our members to take chances, especially because that is exactly why many of us join in the first place. Public speaking is a kind of risk because the risk of failure seems gargantuan, but here in the Toastmasters environment, we have a safe haven to fall without judgment and get up again with a helping hand.

 

Our club is hosting its Humorous Speech contest on September 19th. Whether you plan on participating or not it is a great meeting to attend. It's a fun meeting filled with belly laughs!

 

Also, a reminder, Wallingford Parks and Recs is closed for Labor Day. Therefore, we will be having the 1st meeting of the month on September 9th. See you guys then!

 

Best,

Sonia Dean

President, Eagle Toastmasters

Action & Adventure - August 5th

Dear Members,

 

Tonight's theme was evident with each speaker giving his/her own brand of action and adventure.

 

Paul gave us an enviable ice breaker speech filled with adventures such as snorkeling and sky diving. It was clear this wasn't his first time speaking -- evident by his energy, vocal variety, gestures and storytelling ability. He described a side of himself that I believe all of us have, but may be afraid to take risk or, dare I say it... take a "leap".

 

Kate's speech was a call to action to live life to its fullest no matter your age. She carefully orchestrated her speech by giving us a glimpse into the lives of people who we wouldn't otherwise have expected to have any energy left. Yet, they have more vitality than some people half their age. She encouraged us to break free from the mundane and truly live. Not only do you live healthier, but you have more fun in the process. Forget the number of candles on your birthday cake, now is the best time to view life as an adventure. Skydiving anyone?

 

Tom did not disappoint with his interpretive reading of the song "Alice's Restaurant Massacre", by Arlo Guthrie. The monologue is about an American Citizen who's life changed because he took an action that was seemingly inconsequential (littering), and forced to enlist in the Vietnam war. Tom has certainly honed his skills, and was so convincing that at times I thought he was speaking about a time from his own life.

 

We also had three new guests. I believe two of them are already members! That is a testament to the life and energy of this club, and I want to thank everyone who attended tonight. You guys are loads of fun and truly make each meeting worth attending. Thank you!

 

Sonia

President, Eagle Toastmasters

Minutes - July 15, 2013

Minutes – July 15, 2013

Club meeting of Eagle Toastmasters Wallingford, #3161 at Park and Rec in Wallingford, CT

Attendance: 10 members, no guests

Invocation

“The man who can think and does not know how to express what he thinks is at the level of him who cannot think.”   Dionysius the Elder
“Second thoughts are ever wiser.”  Euripides
“Mind your speech a little, lest it mar your fortunes.” Shakespeare, “King Lear”

 Word of the Day

“sagacity”

Speakers

Susanne Morse
Ute Brinkmann
Rachel Mele

Minutes - July 1, 2013 - Happy New Year

Minutes – July 1, 2013 – Happy New Year!

Club meeting of Eagle Toastmasters Wallingford, #3161 at Park and Rec in Wallingford, CT

Attendance: 16 people including 3 Toastmasters from Cromwell and 1 guest who became a member at the end of the meeting

     Congratulations to another successful Toastmaster year 2012-13

Thank you 2012-13 officers:

Chandra Palla (Kate Kelly, Joe Katucki, Ian Brooks, Sonia Dean, Elaine Piazza, Ute Brinkmann, Lucy D’Angelo

Educational Achievements 2012-13:

CC – Ute Brinkmann, Richard Freeman
AC – Chandra Palla, Kate Kelly
Leadership – Joe Katucki, Ute Brinkmann

Membership in 2012-13:

New members: 20
Beginning of the year: 25
End of the year: 31

Year                       President

2001-02                Ute Brinkmann
2002-03                Sabine Kirstein
2003-04                Tom Piekarski
2004-05                Robin Corrigan
2005-06                Chris Lewis
2006-07                Dan Schmidt
2007-08                Fred Swiderski
2008-09                Udaya Neelam
2009-10                Elaine Piazza
2010-11                Ute Brinkmann
2011-12                Kate Kelly
2012-13                Chandra Palla

Eagle Wallingford: A Presidents Distinguished Club since 2001-2002

 

Speakers
Crystal Storo and Tom Alvord from Cromwell
Tom Piekarski
Kevin Manner (Icebreaker)
Colleen Ventner (guest)

Misc.:
Elaine Piazza is stepping up to be the VP-PR for 2013-14
Maybe Eagle and Cromwell Toastmaster have a joint meeting in the near future.
Perhaps we can visit the local TV station again.

So Cool - July 14th

Dear Members,

 

It was a hot Monday night, but no worries, we had a very cool meeting!

 

We had two humorous presenters and twice as many laughs! Ian and I "brought down the house" with our own brand of tongue-in-cheek jokes. 

 

Suzanne gave a wonderful speech titled, "Meet My Exotic Friend". She started by introducing us to an endearing prop of a toy bird that made life-like sounds, then proceeded to guide us through choosing the perfect bird. The speech was interlaced with story and factual information that described all the in's and out's of your perfect new family member. Organized, informative and entertaining, Suzanne presented an excellent second speech from her CC manual. She also did a great job filling in for Tom Corrigan as Toastmaster. The meeting flowed well and we didn't miss a beat.

 

Aptly titling her speech "Poverty", Ute gave a passionate speech referencing her trip to India. Ute provided visual aids that supported her words, "poverty is not just a concept, it has a face" - indeed it does. Sometimes we develop a narrow focus in life and forget that the world is bigger than what is in our immediate surroundings. It seems it is Ute's mission to expand our vision and realize that not only is there more to see in this world, but also more to do.

 

Right off the bat, Rachel gave us a humorous anecdote of her inability to cook. Long story short, her attempts at cooking required calls to the fire department and possibly the paramedics... It's sad to say that some of us there could relate. Actually, I started taking notes hoping she would give some great advice on avoiding charred meals. Her solution: "The Whole 30". It's a nutrition plan that teaches about food and healthy living. Rachel has had great success with the program. In fact, she has lost twenty-seven pounds since she first began one-hundred and eleven days ago! Truly, I believe she has discovered the key to success in the kitchen, and that is you must enjoy what you cook and eat. When you enjoy it, you take better care to do it right. The result... no more calls to 911.

 

On a side note...

 

Recently, I came across the text "Difficult lessons teach the hard way. It's much better to plan your growth intentionally." We all join Toastmasters to grow an area of our life that we feel is lacking. Put another way, we are looking to improve. Honestly, when I joined it didn't occur to me that I had to be intentional about my growth. I thought that it's just something that is supposed to happen. After all, I joined an organization geared toward the development and success of its members. As evident by the members who have been participating in Toastmaster for many years, growth doesn't happen by accident. There is a secret behind their passion for this club, and it's not much of a secret at all. The "secret" is that this really works because the more you put in, the more you get in return. This is only my second meeting as President of Eagle, and as daunting as the task may seem to me, I realized there is no failure except my lack of action. So, I encourage all of you to take advantage of this opportunity. As Woody Allen said, "90% of success is showing up".

 

Stay cool!

 

Sonia Dean

President, Eagle Toastmasters

July 1st - Happy New Year!

Hi Everyone!

 

Today was the first meeting of the Toastmasters new year! We had a great start with yummy bubbly and cookies, courtesy of Ute.

 

Tonight, we had Crystal and Tom visit us from the Cromwell club and impart their wisdom regarding the benefits of video taping our speeches. Their title, "Watch Your Speech", says it all. It's the perfect tool to see yourself as others see you and conduct a self-evaluation. They acknowledged that even though it may be scary at first, if you begin with focusing on the positive you can see your strengths for yourself and in effect, build on them. True, your first instinct is to shun the idea of seeing yourself on camera, but when you can give yourself an honest review, it gives you an edge on making bigger learning strides. Tom filmed our meeting tonight, and I hope that especially those of you who attended will be brave enough to go ahead and watch the video. It may take a few tries to get used to it, but I think it's hugely beneficial to see yourself as others see you.

 

Tom Piekarski gave a memorable reading of "General Douglas MacArthur's Farewell Speech". Tom was genuine and passionate. He chose an interesting speech because the General wrote the speech on May 12th, 1962, but there were aspects in it that hit too close to home.

 

Congratulations to Kevin, who gave his ice breaker speech tonight. He gave a chronological rendition of his life's events with delightful humorous anecdotes peppered throughout. It was immediately clear that Kevin has a talent for humor. We look forward to many more speeches from him.

 

Colleen made a vast improvement from our last meeting and read a poem in preparation for her niece's wedding. We all have been told at one point in our lives or another that practice makes perfect, and Colleen is a perfect demonstration of this concept. Thank you Colleen and good luck!

 

Some food for thought, as mentioned in today's meeting, Crystal and I think it would be mutually beneficial for our two clubs to get together and have a combined toastmasters meeting. We will set up a time some time during the second or fourth week in August. It's a great opportunity to break out of comfort zones.

 

Speaking of comfort zones... we had an excellent experience taping a meeting at the Wallingford Public Access. It's a great way to break down barriers on our road to personal growth, which is what Toastmasters is all about. I know that's why many of us join Toastmasters, and I hope that people will join in taking advantage of such a great opportunity.

 

 

Sincerely,

Sonia Dean

President, Eagle Toastmasters