The assignments for this Thursday, October 22, are as follows:

Speaker 1 – Alexandria Merchant
Speaker 2 – Malcolm Miles
Evaluator 1 – Lorie Jones
Evaluator 2 – Brian Duvall
Toastmaster – Wade Thompson
Topics Master – Karen Roop
General Evaluator – David Bass
Grammarian – Leigh Prom
Timer – Karen Harris
Vote Counter           Becky Workman

I’m still not sure if I will be able to be there Thursday, so please let me know by tomorrow night if you can not fulfill your assignment.  Thank you.

Last Thursday it was great to see everyone.   Brian took home the ribbon for Table Topics by answering “What is wrong with our National News?

We had two interesting speeches.  Becky did a speech on “Kirlian or Aura Photography” which is a photo that measures energy levels physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.  Each color of the aura around the person or area of body being photographed, has a meaning.  One area where this is used is in the health field.   In 1970 this photography came to the US.  Thanks Becky – But I must say I am a skeptic on some of that stuff.

Wade gave a “hip pocket” speech titled “Throw Me The Ball”.  He shared the five (5) basic pitches that a major league pitcher might throw with the baseball.  They are 1.  fast ball,  2.  curve ball,  3.  screw ball,  4.  knuckle ball, and 5.  change up ball.  He demonstrated each one (with a cue ball).  Besides being a champion Frisbee thrower he also pitched and played 3rd base in baseball.  Thanks Wade – He took home the ribbon.

Both evaluators did great – giving helpful tips as well as praise where the speaker did well.
Brian took home the ribbon.  All other assignments were done well.

BITS & PIECES

“Every day give yourself a good mental shampoo.”
“I am neither an optimist nor pessimist, but a possibilist.”
“The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing in the right place but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.”

We had two great speeches and they were both about our canine friends.

Becky Workman spoke about “earth angels”.  Dogs are playful, reliable, forgiving, loyal to a fault, love you no matter what, etc., and good listeners.  It’s amazing what they can be taught; and some have that “sixth sense”     to help people with epilepsy, sleep apnea, the blind, in natural disasters, etc.  Aren’t they amazing creatures?  Nice speech Becky.

Stephanie’s speech “Puppy Love” was about her new puppy “Bailey” and how this adorable puppy is helping her get through her heartbreak and loss of Wicket.  This little ball of fur is energetic, playful and a joy to have.  And guess what, they bonded right away, because Bailey peed all over Stephanie on the way to her new home.  We wish you many happy years with Bailey. Stephanie took home the ribbon for Best Speech.

We had two very good evaluations with helpful suggestions.  Leigh took home the ribbon for Best Evaluation.  All other jobs were done well.

BITS & PIECES

“The two hardest things to handle in life are failure and success.”
“Each day comes bearing its own gifts.  Untie the ribbons.”
“Have a great meeting Thursday and a good contest.”

Eleven of our members were present and a guest, Kelvyn Harris, from the River City Toastmasters Club, in Danville.  Instead of Topics we had “one minute radio spots” (for WYTI Radio), from Leigh, David, Joyce, Brian, & Wade. They all did great on sharing different aspects of Toastmasters to help Franklin County be more aware of what Toastmasters is all about, its benefits and when and where we meet.

“Balance and Harmony” was the title of Alexandria’s speech.  She shared with us about Tai Chi, which originated in China. It works with the mind, spirit and body.  It took away her husband’s “night terrors”, and her back pain, without using drugs .  It has also helped Alzheimers patients, arthritic patients and alleviates stress, etc.  Alexandria’s company The Merchant Institute for Health and Wellness if offering free sample classes for Tai Chi.  If you are interested let her know and she’ll give you a handout giving dates and times of these free classes.  Very interesting speech Alexandria.

“False Advertising” was the title of Wade’s speech.    We are all victims to false advertising.  Wade gave us a little bit of history about the Federal Trade Commission which was established in 1914 to monitor and punish companies and individuals for false advertising.  I bet we will all read the “maple syrup” label the next time we have to purchase some.  And what about those Pennsylvania Dutch mushrooms coming all the way from China.  BE AWARE OF SCAM ADVERTISING!!   Wade took home the ribbon for best speech.

Evaluations were done well by Brian and Joyce.  Brian took home the ribbon.
Stephanie was General Evaluator for the first time and she did a good job.  All other jobs were done well.

REMEMBER:
Our club’s speech and evaluation contest is Sept. 10.  We have 2 speakers and 2 evaluators to date (any one else interested?).  We will also need timers, judges, a chief judge and a contest master.  This is an important function of our club.  I hope you will say YES if asked to volunteer for one of the positions mentioned above.

BITS & PIECES:
“There are two worlds:   the world that we can measure with line and rule, and the world that we feel with out hearts and imagination.”

“May the work that you have – Be the play that you love!”

Monica was the guest Vote Counter.  Becky Workman did a great job as first time Table Topic Master.  She had pictures of politician “scallywags”.  Wade and Monica tied for first place in the Table Topics competition.

The prepared speeches were given by Karen Scott (that’s me) and Brian Duvall.  My speech was on osteoarthritis and the alternative plan.  I have osteoarthritis and the older we get the more risk we have at developing an arthritic disease.  The alternative plan is preventive natural medicine instead of inflammatory drugs and pain-killers.  I see the orthopedic again on 8/19 for my problem knee.   I hope the verdict is a positive one.

Brian had an interesting speech called “The Most Powerful Secret of Successful Marketers”.  There are three top direct response copy writers that Brian recommended we all study, Clayton Makepeace, Gary Bencivenga and Gary Halbert. They influence people with the written word.  There are four main points for direct response…

1. Connect with folks on emotional level.
2. Your audience should be interested in what your are selling.
3. You have to have a compelling offer.
4. Make sure you have a strong call to action.

If you didn’t attend the meeting you missed finding out that saving & studying junk mail (called a swipe file) is important to help you succeed.  Thanks for sharing your expertise with us.  Brian took home the ribbon.    Leigh evaluated Brian’s speech and did an exceptional job.  She took home the ribbon for best evaluator.
All other assignments were done well.

BUSINESS:
The Fall Conference is the weekend of Nov. 20-22 in Richmond, VA.  Take a look at your calendars and see if you might be able to attend.  Learn at the wonderful interesting workshops, and make sure you can stay for the “Evaluation Contest” and the “Humorous Speech Contest. It’s a great Toastmaster environment and experience.

BITS & PIECES:

“If you want to leave your footprints in the sands of time….wear work boots.”
“Don’t plan the future with a rear-view mirror.”
“The purpose of life is to matter…to have it make a difference that you live at all…by using whatever talents you may have to the very fullest.”
“Never let yesterday use up today.”

We have a new member!  A BIG WELCOME to  Becky Workman.  She will be giving her Ice Breaker speech next Thursday August 20th.  Also we will induct her into our club. Karen Harris, if you have a camera, please bring it to take a picture for the paper.

We had two guests: Ginger Chenier and Keith Duvall.   Chad did a good job with topics questions.  Keith Duvall took home the ribbon by answering what happened on his worst date.

We thought we only had one speaker, but Wade did another great hip-pocket speech.   Brian Duvall was our first speaker and spoke about how to raise $250,000 on the Internet. Three key steps:

1. Offer value first – give them a reason to listen to you.
2. Be consistent -  (Social Media at one hour a day)
3. Engage in a conversation -Build a relationship

Brian has raised money for non profit organizations such as the Chamber of Commerce and the Food Bank.  His speech was interesting even though I didn’t understand some of it. Read my lips:  I will get better at understanding the things that are available to us over the Internet.

He mentioned Twitter is one of the newest social media tools.  We look forward to learning more on this subject in Brian’s future speeches.  Brian took home the ribbon for Best Speech.

Wade’s speech, “What’s in Your Wallet?” was humorous and showed us just how organized he is.  Everything has its special place in his wallet.  Thanks for stepping in and filling a void.  We all enjoyed it.

Joyce and I were evaluators.  Joyce did a great job and took home the ribbon for Best Evaluator.  All other jobs were done well.

BITS & PIECES:

“Your success in life will be in direct proportion to what you do after you do what you are expected to do.”

“The way in which we think of ourselves has everything to do with how our world sees us.”