Lonya's Toastmasters Goal: Confidence in Public Speaking

Hello Afterburners! First I would like to thank you all for allowing me to join this fantastic organization. Everyone is so experienced and helpful! I feel that this is a great way to grow and learn personally and professionally.

I have always been impressed by those who are able to get up in front of a room full of people and speak eloquently. Personally, public speaking has always been a challenge for me; in fact I would try to avoid it as much possible. I heard about the Toastmasters from a friend a few years back; he told me how well it helped him with his confidence when speaking in front of large audiences. It took me some time to join due to other obligations, but here I am, ready and eager to learn and grow with you all.

Here is a little bit about me. I am from Madison, Wisconsin. I’ve lived in the Fort Worth area for a little over three years now. Currently I am a program analyst in the Air Force stationed at Carswell Air Force Base here in Fort Worth.

Again I thank you all! I look forward to your feedback.

Lonya Foy

Yajaira's Toastmasters Goal: It's All About Having Confidence

I want to thank you for the opportunity to be a member of your club. I work at AutoZone as a store manager, a company that I’m very proud to be a part of. I enjoy helping and communicating with customers. The purpose of my job requires having a lot of communication skills.

I am a very proud mother of three kids, which are my reason for living and to surmount the obstacles that life brings me.

My goal in Toastmasters is to improve the ability to speak with a higher vocabulary and to have confidence when I’m in front of a group of people such as at meetings and conferences. I get very nervous, tense, and I also get speechless; so I want to overcome the fear of speaking in front of an audience.

Yajaira Olvera

Jeni's Toastmasters Goal: Learning How to "Smoothly Navigate That Moment"

Hi there Afterburners! Thanks for the opportunity to join your club. I’ve really enjoyed it so far, and am looking forward to getting to know each of you.

One of my former colleagues always raved about Toastmasters, so when I began to have more speaking requirements at work, I decided to sign up! From April through October I was in DC for detail with EPA’s Office of Sustainable Communities, so I joined Toastmasters for the first time there, in the Dupont Circle of Speakers Club. I gave my Ice Breaker there, and am now preparing for my second speech! 

My goal in Toastmasters is to grow into a confident, articulate, polished speaker…sans uhs, likes, and ya knows. I want to learn how to smoothly navigate that moment when you realize you’re still talking, but quickly running out of things to say. In other words, I’d like to improve my ability to think critically while remaining fully engaged with my audience. 

Here in Fort Worth, I work for HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing. We administer the low-rent program and the voucher program to help low-income families find housing. Previously, my husband Andrew and I were both in the Army. Now we’re settling back into life in Fort Worth, moving into a house in December, unpacking, and hopefully finding the box with my Toastmaster manuals!

Cheers!

Jeni Webb

Afterburners inspires another guest to become a new member

Congratulations to John Bacon on his first outing as Toastmaster! He overcame several absences and filled all the roles before the meeting began. Thanks to everyone who took on extra responsibilities to ensure the meeting ran smoothly. And what a meeting it was! Five speakers gave us presentations that included music, poetry, storytelling, tips on teaching and reaching children, and keeping a positive outlook.

One man in attendance with us for the first time, Bill Erwin, decided to change his life for the better. His company is trying to organize a Toastmasters club at work, but things aren't happening quickly enough for Bill. He decided to join another club (that just happens to meet in the same building where he works) and on the very first visit, he submitted his application and dues for Afterburners. Bill had some experience with the still-formulating meetings at his job that showed him how to fulfill some of the roles. Several people with opportunities were unable to make our meeting last night, but Bill stepped right in when asked to present the Pledge of Allegiance and inspiration. With a willing volunteer spirit like that, voting him in at the end of the meeting was a no-brainer!

Additional guests last night included Bill's nephew Michael Erwin and a co-worker of Teresa Wilburn, Cherry Weaver. They had good things to say about Afterburners and how comfortable they felt, despite their misgivings about public speaking. We hope they come back again to see how Afterburners can help them overcome any fear!

Tammy Bailey

A brand-new Afterburner enjoys the Silver Jubilee celebration

Dawn Mercer

The Club had been talking about the Jubilee since I started going to meetings and I knew that would be the best way to get to know folks better (other than the weekly meetings); so I volunteered to bring a dish to share.

The Tuesday meeting before the event, I was (enthusiastically) jumped on by Brenda as to what time I could be at Bobby Bragan Hall on Sunday. My response was, “What time do you need me there!?” Being military has always led me to be first in the trenches (so to speak). Once I arrived early to help set up the event, I was put to work immediately and felt right at ease getting this event to come together. The Afterburners support system was well in action.

Toastmaster geeks confer

From watching Ryan trying not blow up his face (more than once) with the inflation of the balloons, to seeing a gaggle of men (Mike, Aaron, Gary) trying to figure out how to get the slide show to work (for an hour), to all of us ladies prepping food and tables for the lovely spread, I knew this was going to be a fun-filled event.

Once the distinguished guests arrived and the festivities began, I was nothing short of “in awe.” These guests (Distinguished Toastmasters and above), did not fall short of any expectation of greatness that I had envisioned when it was their turn to say a few words. The “testimonials” that Brenda had added into the program left a lasting impression on me. Not only did I get to listen to the  dignitaries and guests but I also heard from our own club members!  I am getting to know you all much better. I am looking forward to my first “educational retreat”!

President Tammy and

another new ribbon!

Two newer members, LaShawn and Holly, gave great speeches. They are very inspirational. Second chances and Confidence (respectively) were their messages, and I found meaning in both.

The food, the people, the respect and the support that was prevalent at the event is why I feel this club is the one for me!

And I had no idea that we had two banners!!!!!! We ran out of space for all the ribbons on one banner?!

Dawn Mercer


P.S. See more photos on the Afterburners website.

Nov 2: Election night debuts are winners

New members inducted tonight are (back) Ron Baker, Teresa Wilburn,
Ryan Gallagher, (front) Melessa Baker, and Holly Trinh

First-time toastmaster Ryan Gallagher worked hard on preparing for this meeting, and it paid off, with almost no changes to the agenda, and nearly every role player ready to go at the Call to Order. His organization and efforts to make sure everyone was ready were exemplary, and we hope everyone will follow his lead in their own opportunities.

In other debuts, Teresa Wilburn and our honorary member, Aaron Robinson gave their Ice Breaker speeches, showing us that we should anticipate good things to come from them. Aaron had previously given his Youth Leadership prize-winner, but this was his first official club speech, with a real-life verbal and written evaluation. Teresa has wasted no time getting started on her Toastmasters career, stealing a march on several other members who joined us before she did! 

And speaking of new members, we inducted Teresa, Ryan, Holly Trinh, and Melessa and Ron Baker tonight. All of them have jumped right into the swim by making speeches, taking meeting roles, and most exciting, volunteering for outside-the-club activities. We are glad they're here!

Jodie Sanders

Oct 19: Toastmasters in funny hats

Last night several of our speakers wore hats in honor of the theme "A Toastmaster Wears Many Hats!" The presentations can be equated to a train ride as we covered all the meeting roles and Toastmaster acronyms.

Pat Quick led the train by describing how to prepare for and to perform the Toastmaster role. Bob Titiryn tooted the train whistle by explaining the role of Timer. Conductor Dámaris Thorn gave a great lesson in the appropriate use of the English language, and Tom Brents counted the train stoppers — ah, umm, and-so, so, well, —. Our CPA deluxe, Steven Timmons, suggested several ways to prepare to be Vote Counter and what is expected at the meeting when serving in this role.

Whistle stop entertainment was provided by Brenda Daniels and Setma Maddox. Brenda pointed out that the Table Topicsmaster should know the theme and prepare questions ahead of time regarding the theme. She also provided guidelines as to who should be asked to answer Table Topic questions. Setma clarified many of the acronyms used in Toastmasters, explained how those acronyms get attached to your name, and provided a method to track your progress.

George Arndt kept us on track with how and why the General Evaluator should give feedback to the speech evaluators, and on the running of the overall meeting. Tammy Bailey demonstrated how to evaluate a speaker by giving Pat Quick a short evaluation on her presentation. Gary Chiu enlightened us to the fact that much goes on behind the scenes before a meeting can even take place, such as setting up the room and making sure all the equipment is in operative condition. Jodie Sanders reminded us that when we are not assigned a specific meeting role, we are in the Hot Seat. As such we should always be prepared to step up on the train and help make the meeting run smoothly no matter what role we are filling — including Speaker.

At the end of the meeting, two new members were accepted into our club. Welcome, Kim Alvarez and Teresa Wilburn!

We Are Leading the Way!

Setma Maddox

Sept 7: Fall contest has big turnout

Test speaker Rick Newton and evaluation contestants Mack Mercer,
Brenda Daniels, Dámaris Thorn, Joyce King, and Tom Brents

We had a big night at this year's Fall Humorous Speech and Evaluation Contest, in spite of it being the day after a holiday. First, we had excellent attendance: lots of members and several visitors came to assist with eating all that good food. (I'm sure they were interested in the contest as well.) Second, we had quite a full slate of contestants: five evaluators and five humorous speakers, with two people participating in both contests. Third, we accepted applications from three new members — Holly Trinh, Melessa Baker, and Ron Baker.

Yum!

Toastmaster Rodney King kept the contest humming along, with the necessary breaks for plate refills. Did I mention that we had a lot of good food? Leading off, our guest test speaker Rick Newton (of Tip Top Toastmasters) had us all wanting a Porsche. Or was it Por-sche? This was a question that came up several times in the evaluations!

After a short break (too short to be called halftime or intermission, but we had a lot of speakers still to hear), Rodney conducted the humorous speech contest. What an entertaining and educational night this was! A real-life "Bates Motel." A creative practical joker named Benny. The risks of apartment living. Dangerous, independent women. How to determine if your socks are ripe enough to launder. (If you are worried about that last one, don't sit next to Ryan at meetings.)

Humorous speech contestants Steven Timmons, Jodie Sanders,
Brenda Daniels, Dámaris Thorn, and Ryan Gallagher

After the judges and vote counters did their work, the highly-anticipated results were finally announced. There were two disqualifications for time (out of the 10 speakers). The first-place winners will go to the Area 12 contest on Sept 25. Each second-place winner will be ready to compete if the first-place winner is unable to.
Speech evaluation contest results:
1st place: Mack Mercer
2nd place: Brenda Daniels
3rd place: Joyce King
Humorous speech contest results:
1st place: Jodie Sanders
2nd place: Ryan Gallagher
3rd place: Steven Timmons

A big THANK YOU goes to contest chair Pat Quick and the helpers, judges, contestants, participants, club members, guests, cooks, and eaters — all of whom made our contest a success and created an enjoyable evening for everyone. I want to especially thank our wonderful photographer:

May 25: A very busy evening!

 President Pat Quick, new member Greg Geis, and VP Membership Bob Titiryn

Toastmaster Nick Colón presided over a slate of 5 (yes, FIVE!) speakers, using a streamlined agenda. Several members have committed to finishing their Competent Communicator goals before the end of June, so we will be hearing and making a lot of speeches before then. Linda Coleman won for best speech and Saraí Garcia was best evaluator. But everyone did a great job, especially Nick in his debut as Toastmaster!

Greg Geis was inducted into membership. He had just been an outstanding  Ah-Counter for the meeting, so we are excited to have him. Welcome, Greg!

In the monthly business meeting, new officers for 2010-2011 were elected. They will take office on July 1st.
President - Tammy Bailey
VP Education - Benson V
VP Membership - Joyce King
VP Public Relations - Jodie Sanders
Secretary - DeWayne Ivey
Treasurer - Rodney King
Sergeant at Arms - Gary Chiu

May 11: Welcome to our newest members

Afterburners is growing by leaps and bounds! Tonight we inducted our two newest members, Phillip and Antoinette Silas. Phillip and Antoinette have already given their Ice Breaker speeches and are contributing with their weekly opportunities. A return visitor, Greg Geis, decided Toastmasters can provide what he needs, and he joined Afterburners tonight as well!

If you haven't been to a meeting lately, you're missing some wonderful new people (who, incidentally, are missing you too!)

Be sure to check out the speaking schedule posted on the website for your upcoming opportunities, and let me know if any changes are needed to accommodate your attendance needs.

Tammy Bailey
VP Education

April 6: What did you miss tonight? FREE ICE CREAM!

Congratulations to Benson V, Nick Colón and DeWayne Ivey on their induction tonight into Afterburners, and special congratulations to Nick for giving his Ice Breaker and winning Best Speaker!

If you weren't at the meeting tonight, please know that we missed you very much. The club really isn't the same without you. Mentors, be sure to reach out to your fellow club members and let them know how much they add to (and get from) the meeting when they are in attendance.

The schedule for the next 4 weeks has been posted on the web site. As always, if you have a scheduling conflict, give the Toastmaster for that meeting as much advance notice as possible, and let me know so I can get you on the agenda for a different date.

Tammy Bailey, DTM

VP Education

Mar 23: What you missed at last night's meeting . . .

What an incredible meeting! Of course we missed YOU, but guess what YOU missed! Only THREE new members, that's all!

Nick Colón, who visited us last week, decided to join this week, and he'll give his Ice Breaker speech very soon. DeWayne Ivey, whom you might remember from our Christmas party at Mi Cocina, came back to visit, and also joined tonight. Benson Varghese (say "Var Geese") came to us on the recommendation of a friend with advanced communication skills. She gave Toastmasters the credit, and Benson tracked us down to our website.

We're extremely excited to have them join our wonderful Afterburners family, and we want to introduce them to everyone. So come on, EVERYONE! Come back to celebrate our 24th Anniversary next week, March 30. There'll be food and fun (and probably some new member inductions), but most important is your opportunity to welcome these newcomers and share what Afterburners means to you.

The speaking schedule is posted on the website. As always, it's a living document, capable of changing to suit our members' needs. If you have a schedule conflict, let me know, or contact the Toastmaster for the meeting in question.

Tammy Bailey, DTM
Afterburners VP Ed

PS: As you can see from the photo above, we also got to see Tammy's temples, which was a first for most of us.

Five new members inducted

 

We finally got caught up at the Feb 23 meeting when VP Membership Bob Titiryn conducted the induction ceremony for five new members who have joined Afterburners over the past two months. Basil Ogembo, Peichang Shi, Joanna Mou, Wyman Ward, and Parker Arndt received their Toastmaster's pins. Wyman, Basil, Joanna and Peichang have been regular meeting participants even before they officially joined, having bravely essayed table topics on their first or second visits. Parker, of course, is a longtime stalwart and substitute Sergeant at Arms. We are pleased and excited to welcome them to the club, and are expecting great things from them!

Oct 13 meeting: "Great Literature"

Hunter Allen and Mike Witt were inducted as members tonight.

It may not have been the best of times, but hopefully it wasn't the worst of times either, as Jodie Sanders made her debut appearance as Toastmaster. A shortage of warm bodies meant that we had some doubling of roles, but Saraí Garcia and Gary Chiu were outstanding as Timer/Listener and Grammarian/AH Counter, respectively. A big, BIG thank you to both of them for doing two jobs, one at very short notice.

We had three excellent, and quite different, speeches. Mike Witt's ice breaker "How's Your Dash" struck a serious and emotional note. Will Higgins made a model awards presentation specialty speech. Tom Brents' "Caught with the Net" was humorous with an underlying poignancy. Then Mack Mercer, Pat Quick and Tammy Bailey put on an evaluation clinic. (We need to look into getting some of these evaluations on video!)

Theresa Eller put Gary, Saraí, Hunter and our visitor Tyra on the spot with some downright Shakespearean table topics, but they rose to the occasion with tales of star-crossed love, betrayal, a bad kindergarten experience, and equivocation!

Jodie Sanders

Welcome to the club!

 

New member Mike Witt and his sponsor, Bob Titiryn. 

We're glad to have you, Mike!