Big things are happening at Sunrise Toastmasters! As we approach the end of our current officers’ terms at the end of June, we are already qualified to be recognized as a nationally SELECT DISTINGUISHED club (completing 7 of 10 predefined goals), and are on track for the highest level, PRESIDENTIAL DISTINGUISHED (achieving 9/10 predefined goals). While we as members have all contributed to this amazing achievement, the lead architect of our club success has been our President, Angela Ligon. Her vision for what we could be a year ago, and dedication to the work that would follow with herself, members and officers, has gotten us to where we are now.
Our meeting on June 5th was a fine example of the level of meeting we have all been aspiring toward. The proof in the pudding was not limited to our first time guest James Hunt standing up at the end of the meeting saying, “How do I become a member of this club right now!” But what also made this meeting exceptional was what was said and done immediately prior to, and immediately after the meeting. Before: Our guest, James, arrived 15 minutes prior to the meeting, and was welcomed by the club president (already there) and other officers who were setting up the room, displaying signage, and distributing pre-printed agendas and evaluation sheets for a full, productive meeting. After: One of our newer members, Jenna Willingham, requested a few minutes to recognize the impact of the presentation by member Lolita Henley at the recent Cone Health employee recognition ceremony. When you can clearly identify the impact of Toastmasters (and the hard work we do) goes so far beyond the 7am meeting, it gives an inspiring feeling of being a team member contributing to something much greater than yourself.
The Meeting: Opened by our President, right on time as usual, and turned over to our Toastmaster and VP of Education, Summer Murphy. Her theme of Improving Competencies: Why We Are All Here tied into her word of the day, Competence. Both of our individual speeches were clearly well crafted, researched, and presented within the allotted time frames. Lolita Henley’s speech, “If You Could Change The World, What Would You Do?” gave the stories of slavery survivor, Harriett Tubman, who dedicated her life to helping others escape slavery, and Ann Frank who’s writings are still inspiring young readers to question the persecution of anyone from a particular religion, race, or other disparaged group. Jenna Willingham’s speech, “Tales of a Transplant” gave us insights into her move from her home town of Memphis, Tennessee, to Greensboro (our fair city), North Carolina. While highlighting the “pet-friendliness” and other positive attributes of the area, it offered the listeners a personal connection to Jenna and things such as her love of her black lab and watching her favorite college basketball team (which inquiring minds learned during her evaluation to be the University of Memphis Tigers). Table Topics was lead by Esther Khoury, and was themed around an NPR report that she recently heard on the health threats of too much sitting, claiming that sitting is the new smoking. To add emphasis, Esther had us all stand during the table topics section of the meeting. The evaluation portion of the meeting was run by Angela Ligon, and included her team of Mike, Dustin, and Walt. The meeting was adjourned on time at 8am.
Our line-up for our meeting on June 12th is as follows:
Toastmaster: Dramaine
Speaker #1: Cinthia
Speaker #2: Angela (confirmed at 6/5 meeting)
Table Topics: Summer (confirmed at 6/5 meeting)
General Evaluator: Robert (confirmed at 6/5 meeting)
Evaluator #1: Tim (confirmed at 6/5 meeting)
Evaluator #2: Walt (confirmed at 6/5 meeting)
Grammarian/Timer: Lolita (confirmed at 6/5 meeting)
Be sure to contact Dramaine with your speech title, topics theme, introductions, or announcements as needed.
As always, guest are encouraged to attend, and will we will make them feel right at home!
Respectfully,
Tim Murphy – VP of Public Relations
Sunrise Toastmasters
