Hats off to the Spring Conference!

Teresa and LaShawn in their hats!

This past weekend, several Afterburners members attended the District 25 Conference “The Road to Success.” On Friday night, Sergeant at Arms Gary Chiu proudly carried in both of our club banners during the Banner Parade. Toastmasters International President-Elect Michael Notaro presented us with a ribbon for accomplishing our Dream BIG commitment of President’s Distinguished.

The hat ladies — Pat, Teresa and Linda

Our very own Brenda Daniels was the Friday night Chair and Toastmaster. She opened the weekend’s festivities with “Toastmasters Start Your Engines” which was taken from the NASCAR-themed decorations. The “HATtitude” contest was so much fun, with ladies and gentlemen donning all different types of hats. Linda Coleman, Teresa Wilburn, LaShawn Carter, Gary Chiu and Pat Quick all got into the spirit by wearing some great hats; some fashionable and some downright funny.

Gary interviews LaShawn

The Table Topics contest, presided over by the busy Gary Chiu, was kicked up a notch when Afterburners member LaShawn Carter competed on the district stage. She did a fantastic job and made every member present proud at how poised she was and how articulately she spoke.

District 25's Outstanding Club Officers

On Saturday during the Awards Luncheon, our website, afterburners.us, was chosen as the Best Club Website, Jodie Sanders was named the Outstanding Vice President Public Relations and Gary Chiu was named Outstanding Sergeant-at-Arms. Everyone at Afterburners knows that Jodie and Gary are outstanding, but now so does everyone else. Congratulations, Jodie and Gary!

George and Pat

After hearing the incredible speeches given during the International Speech Contest, it was time to dress in our best for the Saturday night Installation of Officers and DTM Ceremony. Cheers were shouted as George Arndt escorted Division A Governor Pat Quick in the Dignitary Parade and all members in attendance were all smiles as Setma Maddox received her DTM and Brenda Daniels received DTM number two.

Pat, Gary, Brenda and Setma

You would think that we would be just exhausted after all that fun, but we still had strength to make it to the Hospitality Suite hosted by Rose Timmons and Linda Coleman. They put out a spread of food that would make any restaurant jealous. I heard people talking about the delicious fare and the warm welcome they received from Linda and Rose. Kudos to both!

Steven and Rose

Also, a big “you done great” to Steven Timmons who assisted with Registration and did all the badges and tickets, behind-the-scenes work that was essential to a smooth member experience.

If you missed this year’s conference, you can make the next one. Mark your calendars for November 18-19, Fall Conference, “Let it Shine.” I’m already making plans to attend and I hope you will join me.

Pat Quick

See more pictures of Conference attendees and the DTM ceremony.

May 16: Thinking on our feet

We had a Table Topics Night — it was more unusual and challenging than any other normal meeting night we have had. You were missed if you weren’t there. It was a spectacular, educational, fun night! The theme was "Fly by the Seat of Your Pants."

The Toastmaster was Ryan Gallagher. There were two teams, one named X and the other one named O. Each team member was provided a topic and each member of the team did "rock paper scissors" to determine who got to go first. Each member of a team spoke either pro or con about the topic given by the toastmaster.

The Toastmaster provided topics such as: Donald Trump, is his hair the real deal? Is Texas the best state? Does money buy your happiness? Everyone shared their opinion and experiences and "thought on their feet."

It was an awesome night! Everyone spoke well and we learned a great deal on different topics.

Holly Trinh

Dream Big — by the numbers

The numbers are in and they have been crunched. I would like to share a few facts with you.

Afterburners had 41 commitments, more than twice as many as any other club in District 25, in all areas with the exception of High Performance Leadership (HPL) projects. This was 8.5% of the 483 member commitments made across the entire district.

Our 25 completions, again more than any other club, comprised 12.14% of the 206 completions made across the district. We stacked up an impressive 61% completion rate against the district's 43% completion rate. Our club outperformed District 25 by an 18% margin. This speaks to the commitment of our club members to meet the challenge and succeed.

I would like to thank each of our members who participated in the Dream Big Challenge:
George Arndt, John Bacon, Tammy Bailey, Ron Baker, Tom Brents, Gary Chiu, Brenda Daniels, Linda Coleman, Ryan Gallagher, Saraí Garcia, Greg Geis, Mike Kelly, Joyce King, Rodney King, Setma Maddox, Pat Quick, Jodie Sanders, Antoinette Silas, Phillip Silas, Dámaris Thorn, David Thorn, Rosita Timmons, Steven Timmons, Teresa Wilburn. Every one of you made a difference.

I would especially like to recognize Jodie Sanders and Ryan Gallagher for all of their hard work keeping track of the completions and the website reporting.

Steven Timmons, CC, CL
Chairman of the Club Dream Big
Public Relations Campaign

Incoming Officers Elected

Last night's business meeting resulted in the election of officers for the 2011-2012 Toastmasters year. Please welcome the following Afterburners to their new positions:

President: Linda Coleman, CC/CL

VP Education: Steven Timmons, CC/CL

VP Membership: Rose Timmons, CC

VP Public Relations: LaShawn Carter, TM

Secretary: Dawn Mercer, TM

Treasurer: Antoinette Silas, TM

Sergeant at Arms: Phillip Silas, TM

Holding an office in Toastmasters is an awesome responsibility. In a rocking club like Afterburners, it's an even bigger deal because we expect much more than the average club. Pledge your support to these officers, and do all you can to help them succeed. After all, they're working for YOU!

Ryan is the star of the show!

Caitlyn and Ryan

He did it! He did it! Ryan Gallagher completed his Dream Big challenge Friday evening at his parents’ home. It was really befitting for such a large feat Ryan was questing to accomplish. He actually gave two back-to-back speeches in one setting. That completed his 10 speeches. Simply amazing!

When Ryan greeted his fellow Toastmasters at the door, he seemed a little nervous. You know, the icebreaker kind of nervousness. In my opinion, anyone giving two speeches in one night should be nervous.

In attendance were myself (Antoinette), Phillip Silas, Steven and Rose Timmons, Jodie Sanders, Gary Chui, Teresa Wilburn and Joyce King. Ryan’s sister Caitlyn was a guest; we all thought she was his girlfriend and she assured us that she wasn’t. 

Timing equipment

Steven called the meeting to order. Jodie wore many hats: toastmaster, table topicsmaster and general evaluator. Rose was timer and improvised with a cell phone for the stopwatch and 2 books (green and yellow) and a red DVD case for the lights. Gary and Phillip were evaluators.

Phillip and Gary did some GREAT evaluations!

Ryan’s first speech was titled "A Matter of Survival." He talked about zombies. I am not into the scary things but everyone else got a kick out of it judging by the robust laughter. Gary’s evaluation of the speech was excellent. He chuckled and laughed through the whole evaluation.

Before the second speech, Ryan provided us with pizza and cheap & nasty beer (Ryan’s words). Then Jodie hit us with great table topics.

Ryan’s second speech "The Dullest Speech You've Ever Heard" was just that, dull. Phillip assured Ryan that he achieved the mission of the title. Ryan talked about paint, and the intricacies of its makeup. Yes, it was very dull, but wonderfully delivered. He proved from this speech that you can give a speech on anything.

What a wonderful unofficial/official meeting. It was a priceless evening. Good job Ryan! Congratulations on achieving your Dream Big commitment!

Antoinette Silas

Our day in court is coming!

Hear ye! Hear ye! On Tuesday, May 24, Afterburners Club 6191 will host The REAL Trial of the Century!

The Terrible Toasties, Club 9999 is lax, inefficient, and everything a Toastmasters club simply should not be. On this evening, the Terrible Toasties will answer District 25's suit against them for damages they are causing to the reputation of the good Toastmasters of District 25. The Honorable Judge Maurice Taitt, DTM will preside. Court will be called to session promptly at 7 pm.

This promises to be an educational and entertaining evening. Naturally, there will be the world-famous Afterburners food. More to come on this exciting and unusual event!

May 10th: It was a BIG night for Dream Big

Saraí Garcia, Rose Timmons and Teresa Wilburn show off their new badges!
Distinguished Toastmasters Tom Brents and Pat Quick also finished CCs.

By whatever the preferred nomenclature, the May 10th Speak-a-thon, Speechapalooza, or Speechfest 2011 saw the completion of five Afterburners Dream Big commitments (!) and one Dream Big commitment by our guest, Area 12 Governor Jacqulyn Hudgins.

The largest percentage of our speeches this evening were "inspirational" in nature — which translates to "long" (8-10 minutes each) for all you non-members reading this. Fortunately in this case long never equaled boring, and the messages given by each were varied enough to retain interest throughout the meeting.

LaShawn Carter kicked off the meeting by introducing the audience to her new best friend, Netflix (you have great taste in friends, LaShawn), while DTM Tom Brents took us along with him back in time to his days of travel to Taiwan.

I blathered on for close to 8 minutes about my Book of Success and my Book of Failure, and was followed by Saraí Garcia who told us all why she wanted to be a Saint. Something to work toward now that you're done with your CC, Saraí!

Rose Timmons then spoke about the importance of spending quality time with family. Rose took home the honor of Best Speaker for the evening. Congratulations!

Some of our Dream Big peeps!

Teresa Wilburn delivered a truly excellent speech about the importance of touch, reaching out to those close to you physically, and personalizing contact. I was lucky enough to get a big ol' hug from her in front of everyone. There was even a leg lift. Yeah, buddy!

She then provided everyone with both cards and stamped envelopes and told us to write a thank you note to someone important in our lives. No excuses for not getting these things in the mail, Afterburners! My address is...

Pat Quick told us all about the footprints in her funky room back when she was a teenager in the 70s. Oddly enough she told us that she is currently 29. Still trying to figure out that math, Pat. Must be that new math or something.

Finally, Jacqulyn Hudgins hyped us up about getting involved in some sort of cause to further the human condition. The noble cause she is personally championing is ending cancer. We're all behind you there, Jacqulyn.

All in all, great meeting folks. Thanks for stepping up into the role of Toastmaster, Steven Timmons, and thanks as well to all those other people who fulfilled the various opportunities. The meeting couldn't have run as smoothly as it did without y'all.

See y'all next week. And if anyone wants to behold my two speeches I'm giving Friday to fulfill my Dream Big Commitment, shoot me an email. If not, I don't blame you.

Ryan Gallagher

May 3: The "Cat Lady" makes an appearance

What do you miss when you miss an Afterburners meeting? I was the Toastmaster for the first meeting of May and it was a great evening. We had a full house of presenters, participants, and several guests as well. Our speakers included Teresa Wilburn, aka the Cat Lady. She gave another winning speech about the growing problem of stray kitties. As the floor was littered with the rogue offspring, she conducted a search for the daddies at large. Great job, Teresa!

The Table Topics were presented by our own Division A Table Topics champion, LaShawn Carter. With the night's theme "My Favorite Teacher," she was popping out questions like a Pez dispenser. Giving her a brilliant answer to win was long-time member Hunter Allen.

Finally, Holly Trinh made her debut as the General Evaluator. Her team of evaluators included a caped evaluator Steven "Super Evaluator" Timmons, who made an appearance to evaluate Aaron Robinson's alter ego speech, "Blake Stone." Our guests James and Kirti both participated in the Table Topics and said that they will likely be back.

Please do come and join our craziness. Next week promises to be a great evening as well. We have a full slate of speakers preparing to complete their Dream Big commitments.

Don't You MISS IT!

Rose Timmons

A great day at Division A

Linda

I am proud to say I attended the Division A Table Topics and International Speech Contest held on April 30. The food, of course, was to die for — fresh fruit, turkey legs, sausage on a stick, dessert items galore — something for everybody to feast upon.

Our club's Linda Coleman was the Toastmaster of the contest and she did a fabulous job of keeping the contest going on time with proper introductions for all the speakers and contestants.

First was the Table Topics contest — our club's LaShawn Carter was first up. The question was "What have you discovered about yourself through Toastmasters?" and LaShawn had quite a bit to say on the subject — basically she has a "gift for gab" and Toastmasters really enjoy hearing her life stories. LaShawn won first place — a well-deserved win, I must say.

Second was the International Speech contest and I thought that all the speeches were quite good. Regina Clay's speech on What is the worst 4-letter word you shouldn't use in a Toastmaster speech (the word is can't), won first place.

Mike

Then the outstanding officer awards were handed out and the winners announced. A great speech contest I really enjoyed attending.

Mike Kelly