District 83 – Page 6 – Toastmasters District 83

Meet the Area Directors: George Bertele

Name: George Bertele, CC ALB

Position: 2017-2018 Area 41 Director

Club(s): State Street Princeton Toastmasters

Other positions: 2015-2016 VP Membership, 2016-2017 President and, 2017-2018 VP Membership – all with State Street Princeton Toastmasters

How long have you been in Toastmasters? Since June, 2014 when our club was chartered

What are your plans for the district/area/division?

For Area 41, I look forward to getting to know the clubs more (I have previously been a visitor to a couple of them). Then, I want to see how the motivation level is for each club, and find out how I can help and what advice I can share. And of course, I am hoping to have a Distinguished Area this year.

Why did you join Toastmasters?

I always knew I was “OK” at doing presentations at work, but also realized there was definitely room for improvement. Also, I thought learning about leadership would help longer term with my career, as I had previously supervised a few individuals in my team, and again did “OK”, but also realized, as with my speaking, I could always improve. Plus, the founder of our club, Laura Lee, really bugged me a lot about joining.

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Anne Gilson Talks About the Fall Conference

Past District Governor Anne Gilson, DTM, shares some of the events which will take place at the District 83 Fall Conference, Saturday, November 18 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Somerset, NJ. Register on the District 83 website.

Sherri Rase Invites You To the Fall Conference

DTM Sherri Rase wants to see you at the Fall Conference on November 18. If you haven’t registered yet, click here to do so. Currently, the price for early registration is 65 dollars, but act fast because the price goes up 5 dollars on September 1st.

Club Spotlight: Toastmasters of Westfield

Club: Toastmasters of Westfield

Charter Date: March 1, 1961

Club Members In Their Own Words:

“I joined the Toastmasters of Westfield to help me advance my career. At that time, my direct supervisor at NBA Properties informed me that in order to get promoted to the Director level I needed to feel more comfortable speaking at staff meetings and doing presentations to large audiences. I developed the skills I needed and earned the Director position. Toastmasters has helped me in many aspects of my life professionally and personally. 20 years later I’m still an active participant and mentor.”- Anne Goldman Swartz, DTM

“Toastmasters ‘Keeps Me Coming Back’ – Our Westfield Group had been consistently supportive, warm and dear to me for over 23 years. I joined to become more confident, go after a higher level position in the Auto Industry and later to become a Motivational Speaker for a Major Weight Loss Company. Communication is the key – never stop!”- Noel Crawford, DTM

“I joined Toastmasters so I can learn to craft my message and deliver it in a meaningful way. The aspects of leadership development were not even something on my radar until I realized they were available to me. Using the communications track as well as the leadership track, I am more confident in personal and business situations. The fact that I have met so many great people who are now my friends is just the icing on the cake.” –Lou Bonanno

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Meet the District Officers: Willie Markert

Name: William Markert

Willie’s always busy. Here he is setting up timing lights for a district conference.

Position: Finance Manager

Club(s): Open Door Toastmasters, #681602

Other positions: Treasurer (4X), Area Governor, Division Director, Sergeant-at-Arms, and Club extension chair

How long have you been in Toastmasters? About 13 years

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Meet the Division H Team: Tonia, Bruce, Monica & Alton

Vision: To inspire all Toastmasters of Division H to attain their educational and leadership goals for 2017-2018, through mentoring, recognition and training. Division H will be a distinguished division.

Mission: To ensure every club knows how to create and implement a club success plan. Members will create clearly outlined and goals to earn their communication (CC, ACB, ACS, ACG) and leadership goals (CL, ALB, ALS, DTM).

Objective 1: We will achieve success by providing the training for VPEs to track member goals using a “VPE notebook” for members who may not have their manuals at club meetings.

Objective 2: We will expand mentoring opportunities both (member to member within clubs) and (member to member from other clubs) within the Division.

Objective 3: We will maintain a base 20 members for each club.

Objective 4: We will add four new clubs to the Division.

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Register for the Fall Conference

Are you ready for the Fall Conference? If you haven’t registered yet, click here to do so. Currently, the price for early registration is 65 dollars, but act fast because the price goes up 5 dollars on September 1st.

From Challenge to Opportunity: A Rebrand Gives a Club New Life

In every challenge there is something to be learned and if you can make it out to the other side there are rewards to reap. Rockland Toastmasters is an example of that.

Rockland Toastmasters of Rockland County NY was founded in 2010. At that time it was called Nyack Toastmasters, after the small town the club met in. Throughout the years as the club changed and evolved, the constant was the location, a local library, a favorite to those who walked through the doors as it boasted year round views of the Hudson River and it’s charm reflected the villages vibe of art and community. In 2016, after much thought and consideration, it was decided the club would be changing locations.

Rockland Toastmasters’ officers at training.

As Toastmasters is a non profit organization, members pay a minimal yearly fee to cover costs and take pride in volunteering their time as officers and filling other various roles within their chapter to ensure the success of their club and personal progression in public speaking. Yearly fees are used for a variety of things- materials for marketing, resources for members, contests, and open houses are typical and needed to make clubs feel well resourced. In the case of Nyack Toastmasters, starting in 2015, these fees were going solely to paying rent for the bi-monthly meetings. With only a small bank account balance, soon it became apparent that the fee was no longer maintainable.

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Club Spotlight: Rockland Toastmasters

Club: Rockland Toastmasters

Charter Date: May 5, 2011 (Formally Nyack Toastmasters)

Distinguished Awards: 2016-2017 Distinguished Club Award

Club Members In Their Own Words:

“I joined Toastmasters because I wanted to improve my public speaking skills and my confidence. I have found the members and leaders very friendly and welcoming for which I’m grateful!” – Isabel Ebrahimi

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