Meeting Nov. 8, 2007

Wow – what an amazing meeting we had last night! Before the meeting we had 9 (yes NINE!) speakers signed up for this speechathon! But due to last-minute cancellations, we ended up with three speakers.

However, they were all excellent! And we had a great meeting! The evening turned out to be a great success, illustrating what can happen when you have a team that steps up to the plate when plans go awry. Our VP of Ed Rob Schaff and Sreeni Voleti, who was serving as Toastmaster of the evening for the first time, teamed up, took all the changes in stride and guided us through a highly valuable experience !

They re-inserted Table Topics of which Rob was truly the "Table Topics Master". And the three speeches were outstanding!

Meshva gave an outstanding Ice Breaker about growing up in India and developing her interest in mechanical engineering from all things mechanical like fixing her bike. She enjoyed it so much one day she took it completely apart! This woman is certainly going to be an excellent speaker.
It was a pleasure to experience her presentation!

Rob's Speech Project #8 (his 9th speech – he'll complete his CC with # 10 soon) brought together several very interesting stories about work, gmail, being motivated by love of his family and other stuff, all of which was well integrated and highlighted by excellent visual aids – which was the objective of this project.

Rose Rita shared a wonderful lesson she learned about adjusting to unforeseen circumstances: She had to attend a meeting she was not looking forward to which turned into a wonderfully positive experience in part because she kept an open mind. This was only her third speech and her content and delivery showed that she is definitely on her way to becoming a truly Competent Communicator!

Nancy put the finishing touches on as GE and the evaluators John, Nancy, and Tom helped complete a fine meeting.

Nancy has also designed some wonderful and professional looking business cards for all Club Members to have! Nancy also volunteered to take on part of the VP Membership job! Thank you Nancy!

We also received reports on the outstanding District 53 Fall Conference November 3rd in Fishkill NY which was attended by six of our members: Fred, Eliot L., Rob, Chris, Tom, and Mark Lacatena! And we learned that the Spring Conference will be held in Holyoke on May 17th. You are urged to mark your calendars now because you don't want to miss what promises to be an exhilarating, highly educational and fun experience!

Great news! Jeff Lagasse has joined our club! Jeff so enjoyed his first visit on October 18 that he turned in his completed membership application to John last night! Jeff also served as Ah Counter and gave an excellent Table Topics speech! Welcome Jeff!