Okefenokee Toastmasters

Club #8269, Area 74, Volume 9 Issue 6 June 2017 Chartered Club since 1991
Division G, District 14.

Lunch Hour Meetings: Okefenokee Toastmasters meet at Okefenokee Toastmasters Club

South Georgia State College, Waycross Campus, James Dye Officers 2016-2017
Student Services Building in Room 108 on Wednesdays at President: Wayne Caffarel
noon.
VP Education: Debi Pearce
Mission: We provide a supportive and positive learning ex-
VP Membership: Steve Pearce
perience in which members are empowered to develop com-
munication and leadership skills, resulting in greater self- VP Public Relations: Janice Williams
confidence and personal growth. Treasurer: Linda Zechmann
Secretary: Jason Strickland

Retweets @Oketoast Sergeant at Arms: Bud Montero

Event Coming Up
@Toastmasters
A speech without a
specific purpose is like
a journey without a
Who is planning on attend-
destination. Ralph ing Toastmasters Interna-
Smedley. tional Convention: August
@SemaTMClub
23-26, Vancouver, Canada?
Through speech we can
inspire others to great-
ness. Join Toastmas- Word Power
ters to learn more The role of the Grammarian at a
about public speaking. Toastmasters meeting is to
Quote of the Month
bring a Word of the Week and
@SemaTMClub You cant learn to become the best
Dont give in and dont
listen for its usage. Here are
leader all by yourself...you need to get
let up in your quest to connected. You need those connec- some words we have used at our
improve yourself. Learn tions to be strong and close. You need club meetings:
more about public them to be personal, not just transac- constrain (verb) = limit, re-
speaking, join Toast- tional. Connections open doors and strict
masters today. give you an opportunity to observe
exemplary leadership up close and in feisty (adj.) = spirited, gutsy
@ThinkTankTM action. Often youre going to have to
innocuous (adj.) = not harmful
The personal story you take the initiative to create and sus-
share will help estab- tain these relationships. Learning ruminate (verb) = contemplate
lish a connection and Leadership by James M. Kouzes
build rapport with lis- and Barry Z. Posner, p. 139.
teners.
 Photo: Club President Wayne Caffarel welcomes new club member Sarah
Braswell to Okefenokee Toastmasters Club.
Sarah is a former member of the Jinan Toastmasters club in Chi-
na where she lived as a visiting exchange student. Joining a
Toastmasters club in China was a great opportunity to acquire a
core group of friends. Club members were professionals and col-
lege students, most under 30 years old, all highly motivated to
master the English language and achieve success in the workplace
with the help of their Toastmasters training.
The format of the two clubs is similarprepared speeches, table
topics, and speech evaluations. Sarah loves table topics because it
challenges her to think quickly and plan for diverse What if sce-
narios. Membership in Okefenokee Toastmasters is yet another
opportunity for Sarah to build new friendships and facilitate her
professional development as the new STEM Coordinator at South
Georgia State College, Waycross Campus.

Photo: Mark Gelhardt, District 14 leader (right), having

fun with Toastmaster Michael-Angelo (left).
Okefenokee Toastmasters club has a champion Table
Topics speaker. Toastmaster Michael-Angelo James was
one of 8 contestants competing in the Table Topics con-
test on Friday, May 19th and he won the second place
trophy. He was also one of 156 first timers attending
the Georgia Toastmasters District 14 Spring Conference
at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Atlanta. His conference ex-
perience was wonderful. He was encouraged by the posi-
tive feedback and inspired by the exceptional leadership
and communication skills of his fellow Toastmasters.
Toastmaster Michael-Angelo not only represented Okefe-
nokee Toastmasters club at the contest, he represented
Georgia Toastmasters in Area 74 and Division G having
won club, area, and division contests prior to the District
conference. Well done!

Recruit, recruit, recruit. Members are the lifeblood of the club.

Michael Lum, DTM, Toastmaster magazine, April 2017, p.18

CHARTER MEMBERS: John Penland 1926-2015 (Sponsor), Andrew Slocum, Joe Gant,
Harry D. Dixon, Jr., Carolyn Morton (Akins), Phil Wysong, C.J. Broome, Paul OCain, James
C. Bunch, W.F. Stephens, Jeanette Stipe, Tom Strickland, Fred Barber, John Karew, Reuben
Flanders, E. Nash Williams, Jerri Davis, Doris Germano, Andy Spivey, Audrey West, and
Margaret Park. Compiled by Janice Williams. Edited by Sarah Braswell and Michael-Angelo James. Email
contact: oketoast8269@gmail.com