International Speech and Table Topics Contest

Fellow Top O' The Rock Toastmasters,

We had our Club contest yesterday for the International Speech and Table Topics.

Excellent job by all of our contestants: Jemerson Diaz, JoAnne Heinrich, Andrea Siracusa and Tom Snead.

Special thanks to our member and Past District 47 Governor Wanda Brown for her excellent job as Contestmaster.

Congratulations to:
Tom Snead who won both the International Speech and Table Topics and Andrea Siracusa who took second place in both contests. Tom and Andrea will go on to compete at the Area 12 Contest on Saturday, March 7, 2009.

Our contestants need your help – come to the area contest to cheer on our winners and help them in possibly moving on to the next level. Our Area Governor is also looking for help for the contest. Lisa is looking for Vote Counters, Check-In assistance and Raffle assistance. If you are interested in helping please contact Lisa at LHethington@jaa.aero. We really hope that members from our Club will take part in helping with the construction of the contest.
Remember the Area Contest will be located at the JIA Administrative building. Below is the address and location for the Area Contest, which will start at 10:00AM. All contestants please be at the contest early for the appropriate procedures.
AREA 12 CONTEST
Saturday, March 7, 2009
10:00AM
JIA Administration Building
14201 Pecan Park Rd. – 2nd Floor
Jacksonville, FL.

Meeting Minutes (2.18.09)

Top O’ The Rock Toastmasters
Meeting Minutes (2.18.09)

Meeting Call to Order: 12:00PM

Attendance: Catalina Agustin, Jemerson Diaz, JoAnne Heinrich, Flor Lepervanche, Jose Lepervanche, Andrea Siracusa, Tom Snead and Sue Stack

Invocation provided by JoAnne Heinrich

Guests: Nekia Holland and Ingrid Rodriguez-Mackey, both are looking to improving their speaking skills in a Toastmasters Club that provides a supportive and growing environment. They were welcomed by all members.

Grammarian (Andrea Siracusa): Word of the day was indolent. The word means to be lazy; slow in growth; slothful. Example sentence: She was too indolent yesterday, she did not do any of the work she was assigned to complete.

Speakers
Speaker #1: Flor Lepervanche (Competent Communication-Project 1) – Flor gave her Ice Breaker Speech titled My Wonderful Life. She gave us a great look into not just herself but also her family.

Evaluations
Master Evaluator was Sue Stack, who provided a great evaluation on how the meeting was handled.

Evaluator: Catalina Agustin was the evaluator for Flor’s speech. Catalina provided a great evaluation of Flor’s speech – providing great insight and constructive criticism.

Table Topics
Jemerson Diaz provided the Table Topics. The topics dealt with jobs. Members talked about: jobs they would have wanted to have; if they could do it all over again what would they do; aggravations at the workplace; and what is best about their current job. All members had a chance to participate.

Andrea Siracusa who was voted best Table Topic Speaker.

Roles
Um and Ah Counter : Andrea Siracusa
Vote Counter: Jose Lepervanche
Timekeeper: JoAnne Heinrich

Club Business:
(Andrea Siracusa): Andrea went over the current standings for our Membership and Participation Drive. The top three members in the drive before yesterdays meeting are: Tom Snead, Jacqueline Rudloff and Jose Lepervanche. We are half way through the drive and there is still plenty of time for members to participate – you can get 10 points for just competing in our upcoming contest this Wednesday for our Club level. Andrea informed members to sign up for roles or the contest by contacting Tom Snead the VP of Education. The prizes for the winners of the drive will be (1st place) $25.00 Gift Certificate to Outback Steakhouse; (2nd place) $20.00 Gift Certificate to Panera Bread; (3rd place) $15.00 Gift Certificate to Panera Bread

INTERNATIONAL SPEECH AND TABLE TOPICS CONTEST:
Our International Speech and Table Topics Contest will be held NEXT WEDNESDAY at the Prudential building on Jacksonville’s Southbank (701 San Marco Blvd); parking is available off San Marco Blvd., next to the JTA Skyway and Acosta Bridge overpass. Please try to arrive at Prudential early, due to security check in. We will all meet on the second floor by the security desk. If you are interested in participating in either the speech or table topics contest (or maybe both) please let Tom Snead (tom.snead@prudential.com) our VP of Education know as soon as possible so he can inform the Contest Master Wanda Brown. We are looking for contestants and a Chief Judge so please come forward – it is a great experience and learning tool.

Minutes recorded by:
Andrea Siracusa
Secretary
Top O' The Rock Toastmasters
ajsiracusa@yahoo.com

2.11.09 Meeting Minutes

Top O’ The Rock Toastmasters
Meeting Minutes (2.11.09)

Meeting Call to Order: 12:05PM

Attendance: Flor Lepervanche, Jose Lepervanche, Jacqueline Rudloff, Andrea Siracusa and Tom Snead

Invocation provided by Jose Lepervanche

Guests: Wayne Smith and Robert Garrett

- Wayne is back for the second time. Thank you for coming out again to visit our Club. We hope that these past two visits have help you in deciding to move forward with Top O’ The Rock Toastmasters.

- This was Robert’s first time as a guest. We were very happy to have you with us today, and we also help that you find Top O’ The Rock Toastmasters a great place for you to learn about public speaking and leadership.

Grammarian (Andrea Siracusa): Word of the day was bootless. The word means useless; unprofitable; without benefit. Example sentence: That was a bootless attempt by the salesperson.

Speakers
Speaker #1: Tom Snead (Impromptu Speech) – Tom provided us with an impromptu speech which was in regards to one of our Table Topics – “If you could bring any famous person back from the dead who would it be.” Tom’s speech talked about the people he would like to talk to and that included famous individuals like George Washington and people very close to his heart like his grandfather.

Evaluations
Master Evaluator was Andrea Siracusa.

Evaluator: Andrea Siracusa was the evaluator for Tom’s speech.

Table Topics
Jose Lepervanche provided the Table Topics. The topics dealt with the “Languages of Love.” Everyone, including the guests, had a chance to speak about topics of love.

Congratulations to our guest Wayne Smith who was voted best Table Topic Speaker.

Roles
Um and Ah Counter : Flor Lepervanche

Vote Counter: Wayne Smith

Timekeeper: Flor Lepervanche

Club Business:

- CLUB CONTEST: Our Club Contest for International Speech and Table Topics will be held on Wednesday, February 25, 2009 at Prudential. Wanda Brown has come forward to be our Contest Master. If you are interested in being a contestant please speak with Wanda Brown (dtmwandab@bellsouth.net) or Tom Snead (tom.snead@prudential.com) who can get you on the right direction.

NEXT WEEK’S TOASTMASTER: VOLUNTEER NEEDED

We do not have a Toastmaster for next week. If you are interested in signing up for the Toastmaster role or any role please contact Tom Snead (tom.snead@prudential.com) Remember: we started our membership and participation drive this week, so sign up for roles to get those points. We will announce next week the prizes and standings so far.

Minutes recorded by:
Andrea Siracusa
Secretary
Top O' The Rock Toastmasters
ajsiracusa@yahoo.com

Happy Valentine's Day from Toastmasters District 84!

Happy Valentine's Day from Toastmasters District 84!

Here's the link to the February Edition of our District 84 Sun Talker newsletterhttp://www.toastmastersd84.org/news/020809.pdf  We hope you enjoy it and look forward to your feedback!    Linda Deshauteurs, DTM District 84 PRO

Our Weekly meeting in Jacksonville.com

This is the link to the event submitted to Jacksonville.com, the website of the Times-Union.

http://events.jacksonville.com/jacksonville-fl/events/show/86184888-top-o-the-rock-toastmasters

Share with your friends and invite them to come to our meetings.

INTERNATIONAL SPEECH & TABLE TOPICS CONTESTS (Area 12 and Division)

PLEASE ADD THESE DATES TO YOUR CALENDAR.

INTERNATIONAL SPEECH & TABLE TOPICS CONTEST

• INDIVIDUAL CLUB CONTESTS MUST BE SCHEDULED IN FEBRUARY. PLEASE QUICKLY

SCHEDULE YOUR CLUB DATE and CONFIRM DATE WITH ME. Note: I would like to attend as many of these as I can fit into my calendar. The earlier I hear back from you -

the more flexibility I will have to work with my calendar.

• AREA 12 CONTEST - SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2009

10 AM

JACKSONVILLE AVIATION AUTHORITY

14201 PECAN PARK ROAD (32218)

Same location as last year - complete details to follow.

• DIVISION CONTEST - SATURDAY, APRIL 11, 2009

TOWERS ACROSS FROM UF & SHANDS - 9 AM

Banquet Room (same location as Officer Training)

More details will be forthcoming.

• SPRING CONFERENCE AND DISTRICT CONTEST

MAY 15 - 17, 2009 - LOCATION AND OTHER DETAILS WILL BE FORTHCOMING. HOWEVER, BEGIN PLANNING NOW TO ATTEND THIS

EXCITING EVENT AND SUPPORT OUR DIVISION CONTEST WINNERS WHO WILL BE IN COMPETITION WITH FELLOW TOASTMASTERS FROM OTHER CLUBS WITHIN DISTRICT 84.

Leadership Excellence Series: Working in the Team Environment

Leadership Excellence Series: Working in the Team Environment

Building a Team is one of the modules of the Leadership Excellence Series of Toastmasters International that Dr. Jose Lepervanche presented during the last monthly meeting of the First Coast Chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals. This module reviews how to create and lead a team. Previous modules included the Characteristics of Effective Leaders presented by Willie Clower, and Developing Your Leadership Skills presented by Judith Chapple. Willie Clowers has a long and proud history with the US Air force having served with honor in both the Vietnam War and Desert Storm. Judith Chapple is a seasoned presenter who has delivered keynote speeches and facilitated professional workshops nationally. The three presenters are active Toastmasters in their communities.

The International Association of Administrative Professionals is a professional association for administrative assistants, office coordinators, executive secretaries, office managers, business analysts and all administrative professionals. The mission of the First Coast Chapter is to be a resource channel for our chapter members and members-at-large within our area for information, leadership and advancement.

Meeting Minutes (2.4.09)

Top O’ The Rock Toastmasters

Meeting Minutes (2.4.09)

• Meeting Call to Order: 12:00PM
• Attendance: Catalina Agustin, Flor Lepervanche, Jose Lepervanche, Steve Nguyen, Jacqueline Rudloff, Andrea Siracusa, Tom Snead, Sue Stack.

Invocation provided by Flor Lepervanche

Guests: Wayne Smith was a guest at this week’s meeting. Wayne is with Lender Process Service, a branch of Fidelity. He is looking to join Toastmasters to build confidence in speaking.

Grammarian (Catalina Agustin): Word of the day was derelict. The word means to run down or be negligent.

• Speakers

Speaker #1: Jose Lepervanche (Impromptu Speech) – Jose provided an impromptu speech today about impromptu speaking. His speech looked into the form of impromptu speaking and how to be prepared to give that type of speech.

• Evaluations

Master Evaluator was Tom Snead, who provided a great evaluation on how the meeting was handled.

Evaluator for Jose’s speech was Sue Stack who provided great feedback and constructive criticism.

• Table Topics

Steve Nguyen provided the Table Topics. The topics dealt with various issues and discussions. Everyone at the meeting had a chance to speak twice, including our guest. The topics included: first crush; favorite comfort food; greatest accomplishment; love or money; brains or beauty; dream job – just to name a few.

Congratulations to Tom Snead who was voted best Table Topic Speaker.

• Roles

Um and Ah Counter : Catalina Agustin

Vote Counter: Flor Lepervanche

Timekeeper: Jacqueline Rudloff

CLUB BUSSINESS - Club Contest

Our Club Contest for International Speech and Table Topics will be held on Wednesday, February 25, 2009 at Prudential. We are in need of a contest master to help in planning the contest. If you are working towards your Competent Leadership certification then the role will be counted towards it. If you are interested please speak with Tom Snead (tom.snead@prudential.com) who can get you on the right direction.

NEXT WEEK’S TOASTMASTER: - Sue Stack

If you have not yet signed up for a role next week please contact the Toastmaster

(sue.stack@jax.ufl.edu ). Remember: we started our membership and participation drive this week, so sign up for roles to get those points.

Message from Area 12 Governor

YOU’RE NUMBER 1 IN MY BOOK!

January 31, 2009

Greetings and a special THANK YOU to all Club Officers who were able to attend the Club Officer Training Sessions today!

The investment of a portion of your valuable Saturday for this training is exemplary. From my observations, I believe we all gained some superb knowledge that will continue to pay rich dividends for our individual clubs. It is great to enjoy first hand the camaraderie that exists among Toastmasters from all walks of life and experience levels.
We are fortunate to be able to receive top quality Officer Training, as well as the opportunity to participate in several other elective presentations.

As club officers, taking these extra steps will not only make your role assignments easier, but also to provide the motivation to keep moving forward in the "Toastmaster Journey".

I would encourage you to organize the materials you received and any notes that you took while in the various sessions. In overhearing some of your comments, you each
shared a lot of enthusiasm and motivation that should be capitalized on very quickly to
preserve the momentum and to help "grow" your clubs. (Remember those valuable DCP points that we need to earn before June 30)?

Within your club environment, there exists specific strengths and skill sets that can sustain the vitality of your club, and prepare each of you to serve in even greater leadership roles. Be sure to capitalize on these skills, the energy of new members and
the knowledge gained today.

You will shortly be receiving a posting on the upcoming contest dates for the area, district, and beyond so that you can make plans to participate and/or assist with the many details involved in successful contests. Special Note: You need to promptly establish your club date for February and post me as I would like to schedule these on my calendar and attend, if at all possible.

Thanks again - and let's continue to work together to keep up the good work!

Lisa Hethington,
Area 12 Governor

P.S. Please share your newfound knowledge with club officers who could not attend AND
your other club members, as appropriate.

When You Are the Treasurer

We attended the Kollege of Knowledge of Division F & A. Top O' The Rock President Jose Lepervanche was presenter in the Treasurer's Officer Training. Using the Guide to Effective Club Leadership for Treasurers the following points were covered:

1. a brief outline of the standards for the treasurer
2. detailed explanations of how to meet these standards
3. leadership techniques you can use to meet these standards
4. the tools and resources available
5. sharing of best practices and challenges