February 2018 Newsletter - District 35 Toastmasters

Home » All Posts » February 2018 Newsletter

In this issue…

District Leadership Team attends Toastmasters midyear training

Every year, Toastmaster district leaders are sent to a two-day training event in January. Your first thought might be “So what? How does that affect me”? My answer to that is “quite a bit,” because as District leaders, we exist to serve you, the member.

First, we learn and practice leadership skills such as conflict resolution, managing district finances and finally establishing, analyzing and updating goals. Having these skills insures that the district works toward fulfilling the mission to “build new clubs and support all clubs in achieving excellence.” In short, we’re learning how to help you become excellent.

Second, we network with other District leaders. This year our Region 5 was paired with Region 8 leaders (southeast United States and Caribbean). While we all operate with the same Toastmasters core values and education program, implementation varies from district to district. A tremendous amount of learning comes from sharing best practices (and failures) with other district leaders. We bring back and implement the best ideas from around the Toastmasters world.

Finally, for me as a District Director, special attention was spent on Succession Planning and District Elections. This is intended to insure we continue to have competent leaders into future, elected in a fair and ethical manner.

This year we also received updates on Pathways, Fall Conference replacement options, Fall District Business Meeting changes and District International Speech contest finals. As we get more details, we will share them with you here in the District newsletter, on social media, the district website and through the district leadership team of area and division directors.

We left Atlanta better equipped to serve you, the Toastmaster member of District 35.

Keith Cumiskey, DTM

District 35 Director

Regional Networking: Sharing best practices

The District 35 Trio headed down to sunnier and warmer Atlanta, Georgia for two days of training in January. This year was even better than my first mid-year training last year.

The mid-year training tends to be more enjoyable than the training at the International Convention for a few reasons. First of all, we are six months into our roles and therefore have some idea of the expectations for our roles and what we should be doing. We are paired with just one other region, Region 8 (southeastern United States and the Caribbean) which allows us to interact with more of our counterparts.

We were provided a Pathways update. We heard testimonials about how members currently using Pathways are enjoying the wider variety of choices within the program and that they feel you are able to tailor the educational program to better suit your own needs than with the traditional educational program. Toastmasters COO Sally Newell Cohen also presented statistics including how few people are using the print version of Pathways. World Headquarters staff keeping their eye on was people completing activities within such a timeframe that it would appear they were just “checking the box” and not taking full advantage of the opportunities available.

A personal highlight was being invited to share all of our efforts within District 35 with respect to Pathways along with three other Districts. It was clear from these presentations that we are providing the best service to our members for all the items we have undertaken to meet the February launch of Pathways. This was helpful learning for Region 8 as they are in the last rollout currently scheduled for May and a great chance for networking just as we all enjoy at TLIs.

Another session that was important to me as the potential next District Director of District 35 was a session on succession planning. I have had many conversations with District Director Keith Cumiskey on this item. We were to identify not only potential leaders for the upcoming Toastmaster year, but those we thought might be ready in the next year, two years or beyond. It was a reminder to me to continue working to meet more District Toastmasters and determine what potential they might have in the future. I also call anyone who is interested in being a District Leader at some point in the future to contact me to ask questions, assess what might work out well based upon your schedule and available opportunities and help us start a file on who we can reach out to in filling positions from year to year.

The District 35 team has come back from the training energized and ready to tackle the remainder of the year with vigor and enthusiasm. We will be looking to all of you to help set some of the plans in motion as we continue to support the mission of a Toastmasters Club, the District mission and the mission of Toastmasters International.

Ed Thelen, DTM

Program Quality Director

Club Growth Update

Welcome to the new year with new possibilities. I am happy and excited to report to District 35 the growth and excitement in our District so far this toastmaster year. Regarding new club Growth in the District: So far two new clubs have chartered and are a dynamic contribution to District 35. They are Sales Masters in Brookfield and Sabre Speakers in Fond du Lac.

Currently, we have 13 new club possibilities in various stages of becoming new clubs. Of these 13, seven demonstration meetings have occurred and three organization meetings — when they pick officers — are completed. Four more demonstration meetings are scheduled in February and the remaining five are corporate contacts that my extension team and I have scheduled meetings already.

Regarding current club membership growth: 27 club coaches have been assigned to various clubs throughout the District.

Remember dues are due into Toastmasters International by March 31, 2018. Toastmasters International will not allow a Pathways member access to their Base Camp unless their dues are paid.

To help grow in membership, I want to share with you this awesome manual from TI called “Let the World Know”. This manual will help with promotion and publicity ideas to market your club. You can download it here.

The Trio had a great mid-year training and are excited to share great ideas for helping the member – one of them is to create a district Club Coach kit which our Club Coach Chair is diligently working on. We also have a new forum on our district website for club coaches as well as creating a district new club kit.

Let’s continue to share the Toastmasters experience and let’s continue to be a positive influence in our communities and our work places.

We as Toastmasters can be assured that even though our educational program is changing, even though the way we document our progress is changing, even though our District titles have changed, the time-honored Core Values of Toastmasters have not changed. Integrity, Respect, Service and Excellence are the key values that remain ever present. Here’s to an amazing year District 35!

Rozaline Janci, DTM

Club Growth Director

Pathways Q & A

Our team of Pathways Guides and Ambassadors are fielding many questions about Pathways during their club visits. We’re grateful for your curiosity! A few are worth repeating.

I’ve already given an Ice Breaker. Do I have to give it again?

It depends! Are you a new member? If you have already given your Ice Breaker speech to fulfill project #1 from the Competent Communication manual, and received a written evaluation, you may apply the Ice Breaker toward the completion of the Ice Breaker if you choose to do so. This assumes, of course, you have not already completed the other 9 projects and submitted the application for your Competent Communicator award. No double dipping!

Why wouldn’t someone choose to do so? The Ice Breaker in Pathways is considerably more comprehensive in nature, as is the evaluation resource. It not only encourages the member to consider more platform skills (including timing, pacing, and organization), it also focuses on five competencies.

Recognize the elements of a basic speech structure.
Balance preparation and spontaneity when delivering your speech.
Demonstrate self-confidence when speaking in front of an audience.
Identify your communication and leadership skills.
Define communication and leadership goals.

The Ice Breaker in Pathways also gives members an experience navigating within this new platform for learning. Go ahead! Experiment!

Remember: every time you get up in front of the audience, it is a learning experience and assists in helping you gain confidence. I’ll be giving my 25th Ice Breaker very soon. Each one has been different — and some day I hope to get it right!

Can I do projects in any order?

Level 1 and Level 5 both have projects that must be completed at a specific time. In Level 1, the Ice Breaker must be completed first. In Level 5, Reflect on Your Path must be completed last. All other projects can be completed in any order, as soon as the level becomes available.

Some of our members have a habit of paying renewal dues late. Does this impact their access to Pathways?

Members who do not pay their dues renewals on time are considered unpaid. As soon as a member is unpaid, they no longer have access to their Pathways education on Base Camp. If Toastmasters International has not received payment for a member’s dues by April 2, the member will be unable to access Pathways. Base Camp will retain the member’s progress so that once dues are renewed, they will regain access to the system and can continue working where they left off in their educational curriculum.

SUGGESTION: Inform your members of this renewal policy. Begin collecting dues for the spring renewal period throughout February and early March. Submit your club dues by March 20th. Be proactive. Submit dues payment online via Club Central. In the past, District 35 has offered incentives for early payment!

What’s the difference between our Toastmaster profile and our base camp profile?

The most significant difference is the Toastmaster profile contains personal information that is not shared with other members. The Base Camp profile allows you to enter information that you want to share with other members of your club. For a more detailed response, view the mini-orientation session on this topic found here.

Where can I get a copy of the Pathways projects?

Videos, links, and downloadable resources are available from two websites. Toastmasters International is the primary website for members and officers: https://www.toastmasters.org/pathways-overview

Supplemental resources, including the list of projects, catalog, and items developed by Pathways Guides are available at http://creamcity.toastmastersclubs.org/Pathways.html

Kathy Shine, DTM

Pathways Chief Ambassador

Another communication opportunity – D35 Forum

Toastmaster members have asked for a way to discuss topics of interest so the District 35 technology team developed a Forum on the website. For now, there are three discussion threads to talk about:

General Toastmasters Topics
Pathways
Club Coaching

Go to the website link here to learn about the page or go directly to the forum page. When posting to the discussion board, keep in mind the basic rules of etiquette here.

Anyone can read the posts on the Forum page, but if you would like to post a comment you will need to register for access to the District35.org website. For instructions on creating an account click on this job aid. To register for access go to this link District website registration. Once you have created your account you can login to the website to post on the forum District website login.

Jackie Breezer

District Public Relations Manager

Shake the Winter Blues

Winter in the Upper Midwest can sometimes be a little depressing. Snow, ice, bone chilling cold, flu season and very little daylight. It may be difficult to stay motivated, but doctors recommend the best cure for the winter blues is physical activity. When we consciously move, become more active — stretch, walk, run, swim (indoors please), lift weights, ride a stationary bike — our bodies create natural stimulants that are released to the brain and take the edge off the doldrums.

Do you ever feel like your personal growth and development are in the “winter blues”? Many of us do at some point in time. Fortunately, we have a cure for that: consciously move, become more active! Mix up your Toastmaster routine and try something different. Here are some suggestions.

Compete, volunteer or attend a speech contest
Attend leadership training (we offer numerous opportunities around the district)
Attend the District Spring Convention in Milwaukee May 4-5
Take on a different role in your club, for example, mentor a new member
Befriend a guest at a meeting
Visit another club
Offer to mentor a new club or coach a club looking for help
Bring a friend, family member or colleague to a club meeting

Toastmasters offers numerous opportunities break the personal development blues. If you want more information about any of these ideas, please talk to a club or district officer.

Keith Cumiskey, DTM

District 35 Director

Prostmasters celebrate charter

The Prostmasters of Schlitz Park in Milwaukee celebrated their charter in early January. The evening included cake, appetizers, toasts and charter certificates.

Club sponsor Theresa Flynn, DTM, scheduled the celebration at the Brown Bottle restaurant in the Schlitz Park office park; club president Denis Mikhailenko welcomed guests to the celebration, giving his second speech as a Toastmaster.

Since the club meets during lunch and members come from multiple businesses, generous breaks for socialization were scheduled into the event. Maria Lara, vice president education, offered a table topics session, and Velma Jones, master host, led members and guests in a series of toasts to celebrate the new club’s goals and enthusiasm.

District Director Keith Cumiskey, DTM presented the club charter to Mikhailenko and charter member certificates were also distributed.

The club chartered last June; charter parties are usually held within six months, but year-end workflows shifted the celebration to January. The club has emphasized officer attendance at TLIs, fielded area speech competitors, and plans two open houses in the next two months.

Cherishing the past to brighten the future

Club history is one way to give members an even greater appreciation for club quality and member tenacity; many clubs use anniversaries as one opportunity to celebrate history and traditions of successful club habits.

“The anniversary celebration has been an excellent way for me to learn more about our club’s early history. I tend to think of our club in terms of who we are today. But learning about our clubs founding has caused me to rethink my commitment to the success of our club into the future,” said Mike Wade of Stevens Point Toastmasters. They’re planning an event for their 70th anniversary.

Corporate clubs may have an advantage in storing club documentation and mementos; Milwaukee’s Rockwell A-B club shared photos and display items both as part of their 50th anniversary as well as at last Fall’s conference on the District 65th Birthday display tables.

Sentry Toastmasters have collected photos and mementos as part of their display shared last year. “For our 35th, we made up a booklet with our club history and asked all our members to contribute a favorite memory (or two) from their time with the club. The booklet was then distributed at the reception following the club meeting,” said Sentry Toastmasters President Heidi Slowinski.

Corporate and local dignitaries garner additional publicity for anniversaries as Kohler’s Speakez Club learned: A corporate vice president touted communication benefits in local news coverage, and the club’s anniversary celebration in December included the Mayor of Sheboygan as keynote speaker.

Community clubs have the challenge of no professional archivists or corporate document storage spaces, but enthusiasm and bursts of newspaper coverage can unearth some great club history.

Cindy Algiers of Racine Toastmasters is working on collecting articles from past newspapers; Laurie Baker, DTM, of Waukesha Toastmasters has an advantage since she’s been with the club for over 20 years and can reach out to members who were active before then.

Will Vertz with Bay de Noc Toastmasters became curious about his club’s history and he just dug in: “If there was a legacy of saving stuff it was long ago and has since been lost. I didn’t know anything about our club and was curious so I went into mega research mode for a while,” he said.

“I found it on websites such as newspapers.com and newspaperarchives.com. I also used microfilm at the local library which is really tedious so I’m going to wait until they digitize the rest of the papers before looking some more,” he said.

Before springing for a subscription, researchers may want to check if local libraries offer on-site or even remote access to many of these databases. Milwaukee County Federated Libraries offers remote access to at least one newspaper database, and it has offered on-site access to other web-based data providers as well.

Finding original documents can be tricky but very worthwhile.

“I was surprised to see the agenda for the club’s original charter dinner,” said Wade. “The roles and speakers were so similar to how we structure a Toastmaster’s meeting today. It’s a formula for success that has worked for 70 years.”

“Celebrating 70 years is testament to the positive impact Toastmasters truly has on this community and us as members in both our careers & personal lives,” said Tammy Jankowski, Stevens Point Toastmasters vice president education.

The Stevens Point event has additional information here.

Show us your Public Relations quality!

Compete against other clubs in the annual Public Relations Contest. Get your club newsletter, website, or social media presence to be top notch and enter to win the District 35 Public Relations Contest. This fun and friendly competition will give your club some exposure and the opportunity to win awards in the categories of:

Best club website
Best social media
Best club newsletter

The deadline for submission into the contest is April 21, 2018. A panel of contest judges will determine the winners with first and second place awards being presented at the Spring District Convention in May. If you have any questions about the contest contact Jackie Breezer, District 35 PR Manager at Jackie.breezer@outlook.com.

Maybe Cupid could use a timer and ah counter

“Communication is the basis of all relationships.” It must be true; it nets almost 600 million returns from Google. So if communication is important in business relationships, platonic relationships, work relationships, surely it’s also important in love.

District 35 is the home of a couple thousand Toastmasters, and a few of them are married to each other. Some of them were asked how Toastmasters affected this important relationship.

Mike Dill, DTM and Yvonne Lumsen-Dill, DTM have been married about 26 years; Mike joined Toastmasters shortly after. It took about 10 more years for Yvonne to join him. They cooperate and support each other encouraging Wisconsin Club and Menominee Falls Toastmasters, and a few years ago, they worked together on the tasks of Area Directing.

“We don’t compete officially,” said Yvonne. “We support each other by providing ideas and typing and proof-reading each other’s speeches and practice and time each other.”

Toastmasters, she said, has improved communication for them. “Because of Toastmasters, we are conscious of our vocabulary and speech. We challenge each other’s use and meaning of certain words, making sure our words don’t hurt. We love Shakespeare and are quite nerdy with English literature.”

John Scott, DTM and Jackie Scott, CC, ALB, have been together a few decades. “John and I have been married for 31 years, which came way before Toastmasters. We originally joined Oconomowoc Toastmasters when our children were young, but it just wasn’t the right time for us, so almost 6 years ago, we joined Love of Laughter, and the rest, they say, is history.”

“I wish I could say that Toastmasters has made us better communicators in our marriage, but John and I have always understood the need for great communication in marriage,” Jackie said. Pre-marriage classes and effort throughout meant communication has always been important. “However, Toastmasters has helped us as individuals to enhance our speaking skills and yes, to be funnier and add that humor to our speeches. So, we continue to make each other laugh and that always helps our marriage!”

“One thing both John and I love to do is compete,” she said. John has been District Humorous Speech champion and Jackie took second place last year in Table Topics. John took last year off from competition to serve as a District leader. “Who knows, maybe we’ll be competing against each other? That would be awesome!”

Other Toastmasters have balanced not only Toastmasters education and marriage but various levels of District service.

Jerry and Jan Ward of Reedsburg and Rolling Hills clubs have been Toastmasters for over 30 years; most recently they supported the District by serving as registration co-chairs for last fall’s Conference. They shared responsibilities and split duties, and when the time came, they worked side-by-side at the Registration desk in Madison.

With over 20 years of Toastmasters experience each, Charlie (ATM,CL) and Rae Stevens (CC,CL) of Stevens Point provided nonverbal artistry on the dance floor at last spring’s Convention in Marshfield.

Sharing experiences, improving communication and having a great time: Cupid as General Evaluator would say Toastmasters and marriage can work well together!