Meeting Minutes 1-5-2016

Cromwell Community Toastmasters

Club 5908 ~ District 53

Tues January 5, 2015

Attendees:    Charlie Hubert, Danielle Payne, Hollie Rose, Donald Ostertag, Gaia McDermott, Andrew Watt, Crystal Storo, Cheryl Mason, Phil Mason, Bill Sullivan, Tom Alvord, Sheetal Patel


Guests: Jay, Maribel, Ed, Patrick

Business Meeting

Welcome to the new year.

The Contests is for Tall Tales and International Speeches and it will be held on March 1st.

The Jan Jam is to be held on Jan. 23 at the Manchester Church of Christ.

Toastmaster Tom Alvord

Invocation Hollie Rose

Neil Gaiman quote

“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.

Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.

So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.

Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it.

Make your mistakes, next year and forever.” 

Table Topics Cheryl Mason

Holidays

Holidays – are you glad they are over?
1:45 Patrick – My family and I had pre Christmas Eve, Christmas Eve, and post Christmas. I have a large tightknit family from all over the country.

Do you have a new year’s resolution? Do you believe in New Year’s resolutions?
1:12 Ed – Many people make but don’t keep resolutions- eat better, go to the gym. I stopped drinking coffee when I was in Florida visiting my mother in law. I have resolved to go back to drinking coffee at work.

Did you travel for the holidays? Do you have a travel dream or plan?
2:08 Andrew- Fourteen years ago my mother became a snow bird from January 1^st to March 1^st. Now its mid October to the end of May. I visited her recently. I didn’t get much done because Dad fed me her marmalade each morning. Later Mom looked for her marmalade for a special recipe and was appalled it was gone. It was special marmalade that had alcohol in it. No wonder I got nothing done.

What do you like most or least about this time of the year?
1:22 Gaia- My son is back from Southern where he is a freshman. He is going back early to run for the school. I bought him some nice pajama bottoms which he liked.

Speaker # 1:  Phil Mason:  6:23

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator # 5 – Your Body Speaks

Title: Let’s Go to the Dump

This Saturday I went to the dump. It has changed ecologically from dump to landfill. It is not good for the environment and now everything is separated. When I got there it was like a gated club. Some people don’t know what they are doing. They did not separate their materials ahead of time and cause a huge line. I wondered if the giant compactors were feeding it back to us like in Soylent Green.

Speaker # 2:  Charlie Hubert: 4:39

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator
Title: Use Your Courage

We all have it but we don’t think about it until we need it. I was surprised at the definition of courage. It is just an attitude. It’s something we can all face. If you make a mistake and are not afraid to make mistakes you grow.

Speaker # 3:  Crystal Storo: 28:04

Title: Virtual Meeting Discussion

This speech was to lead a discussion. Crystal led a discussion on if we, as a club, should have virtual attendance. Here are the key points.

Will virtual attendance be cold and impersonal?
Will it be difficult for shy people?
Where would we store the equipment?
Would we have a two way or one way camera?
Will people hide behind the camera?
Will some people only attend virtually?
Do virtual people have to be members?
Will this be the next generation?
Will this be a benefit or add confusion?
Will this decrease the number of people at meetings?
Will we have a limited number of virtual spots available?
What about technical difficulties?
Will people get the same vibe if they are not physically here?
Will this appeal to the younger crowd?
Will there be an allowance of how often you can attend virtually?

Andrew will write a potential policy and do his discussion speech on the topic next meeting.
We will look into a pilot program.
We voted and the majority want to try it.


 Speaker # 4:  Cheryl Mason: 6:29

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator #5 – Your Body Speaks
Title: The Right of Passage

I am required to travel to Indianapolis for my job. First, I left my phone in the car on the way to the airport. I had nothing to do. Everyone else was on their cell phones. I thought I would wear my pedometer to track how far I walked. This was a problem when I went through the security check. The only rental car available was a huge truck. I got in the truck and couldn’t figure out how to shut the four way flashers off. I couldn’t get the GPS to work because I was in the parking garage. When I finally got the hotel I couldn’t find my room. I’ve been doing this for a few months now and I’m a much better passenger now.

Evaluator # 1: Sheetal Patel 2:12

I never heard a speech about the dump. I liked your description and approach, comparing the dump to a snotty club. Your body movement was restricted to a small area. Your opening was not as powerful as it could have been. Overall fabulous. 

Evaluator # 2:  Andrew Watt 2:36

I like how you related your speech to the word of the day. When you give a speech you control the agenda. You also drew in Hollie’s invocation. You did not use all the space. Taking up all the space can also show courage. You were not forceful in using the space but showed strength nonetheless.

Evaluator # 4:  Ed 2:36

We can all relate. The project for this speech was your body speaks. You were able to relate your body language to the topic. You were prepared. You could make more eye contact. You did a lot of scanning but try to make more contact. Were all those hardships just one trip? You could drag it out by making it more than one trip building on your troubles and your learning to overcome them. Your speech was lighthearted, interesting and enjoyable.


Officials’ Reports:

WordMaster: Charlie Hubert

Resolution -
a firm decision to do or not to do something
the act, process, or capability of distinguishing between two separate but adjacent objects or sources of light or between two nearly equal wavelengths

Timer:  Donald Ostertag

Times given, See above.

Ah Counter:  Maribell

Phil Mason – 2 “you knows”-  2 “sos”
Charlie Hubert – 2 “ahs” -  a few “ands”
Crystal Storo – a few “ums” and “ands”
Tom Alvord – none
Hollie Rose – 1 “um”

Donald Ostertag – 1 “ah” - 1 “um”

Sheetal Patel – none
Cheryl Mason – 2 “finally”
Patrick – a few “ums”
Ed – 1 “ah”
Andrew- a few repeats
Gaia- 1 “um” – 2 “sos”

Grammarian:  Gaia McDermott

Ed – more coffee
Andrew – marmalade, twinkling palm trees
Phil – club at the dump, remember dump etiquette
Charlie – courage is an attitude
Crystal – I appreciate your feedback, to conclude
Cheryl – doofus
Andrew – if you give a speech make sure you control the agenda

General Evaluator: Hollie Rose

I liked how evaluators checked in to be more critical of experienced speakers.

Maybe we can have a cheat sheet for visitors and new members that explains roles.

Closing: Hollie Rose

Thank you to everyone.

Next meeting: January 19, 2016

Respectfully submitted by

Danielle Payne, Secretary

[Posted by Hollie Rose]

Liberation from One Right Way

You might think that a person comes to Toastmasters meeting to learn “the right way” to present oneself in public speaking.    Even though TM meetings follow a formal structure, my growth path with Cromwell Community Toastmasters has been an exercise in thinking outside the box.
The Toastmasters experience has liberated me from thinking that I have to respond to a question or a structure in a certain way.   It has helped me to be more flexible in problem solving and solutions creation at work.   I have learned to see meetings as opportunity for collaborative interaction – even when there’s a deadline driven agenda and a firm need to demonstrate progress.   This perspective is far more empowering than viewing a high-pressure meeting as an “audit”.  Such a meeting becomes an experience where you answer the questions exactly as asked and the value of your perspective is lost to the team because you allow the conversation to be driven entirely from another person’s point of view.

Perhaps the most obvious place that the Toastmasters meetings support individuality and freedom of expression is in the Table Topics portion of the agenda.   In our club, the room is given a topic and a person is offered an opportunity to speak extemporaneously on that topic – or on anything else they want to share instead.    The result when a person exercises that option the room comes alive in a special way.  Regardless of what they choose to say there’s something infinitely more interesting about hearing what a person brings of their own accord rather than the well-trodden call-and-response of question-and-answer.

I am convinced that this is a vital key to making the jump in your career from high-performing contributor to leader; the jump from following operations procedure to full participation in strategy.   Would I eventually have come to this realization on my own?  That’s likely.   Would I have been able to apply it immediately after understanding it without the Toastmasters model?  Not as likely.   And that’s where I find the value of that balance between structure and freedom that is a Toastmasters meeting.

— respectfully submitted by Jennifer Bourne
2014-15 Secretary, Cromwell Community Toastmasters, #5908

JOIN US NEXT TUESDAY, December 5, 2014

5:30 to 7:30 pm 

And every first and third Tuesday of the Month

CROMWELL COMMUNITY TOASTMASTERS

Cromwell Town Hall,

 41 West Street, 

Cromwell, CT 06416 (2nd floor,  follow the signs)

What I get from Toastmasters

by Heather Turner, club member and former VP of Public Relations

In the beginning…..

I attended my first Toastmasters meeting when I was 18, on the suggestion of my boss, as I was extremely shy and the description wallflower would have definitely applied to me. I believe I attended a grand total of 3 meetings. I never did give a speech (that I recall) and decided at the time it was not for me.  In hindsight I wished I had stuck with it, but realistically at that age you don’t know what you want or where you want to go in life.

A bit more than a decade ago I ventured forth once again to try Toastmasters. I found a club locally to me (at the time) in New London, NH. I attended one meeting and was somewhat interested, but I didn't think it was necessarily the place for me, for while everyone was very friendly, I was by the far the youngest person at the meeting (by about 40 years) and it struck me as being quite formal at the time. Everyone clapping, shaking hands and “Thank you Mr. Toastmaster!”

There was one woman there who was starting a third? fourth? career as a personal chef (not culinary trained just someone who liked to cook) and she gave her speech about making a dish, along with props of a whisk and a large bowl. For some reason that totally put me off — my former life as a professional chef rearing its ugly and egotistical head, or perhaps because her talk was making me cringe internally. It was a very good speech and well-presented; but in the same lines of how I thought the book and movie “Julie and Julia” went, when someone talks about cutting corners and having bad sanitation skills in the kitchen, it makes my hackles go up. Once a Chef always a Chef, as my husband likes to pick on me about.

Signing Up

About 4 years ago (August of 2010) my family had just moved back to Connecticut. I didn’t know a soul and I wanted to get out beyond my comfort zone. For the past few years prior I had been giving seminars to teach social media to groups. Talking to groups of 10 to 15 people didn't faze me, but I was being asked to go to conferences and speak in front of hundreds. The tipping point came for me when I went to a conference, and was asked to fill in for a keynote speaker who couldn't make it due to the weather.  People told me afterwards that everything went very well... but standing up there in front of almost five hundred people and drawing a complete blank on what I was going to talk about, for what was probably only a couple of minutes but seemed to me like an eternity, is something I remember well. I think if I was in a Toastmasters club at the time who fined members a penny for ums and ahs, the jar would have been overflowing as well.

What have I gotten out of Toastmasters? Confidence! I can now speak in front of hundreds of people and feel comfortable doing so. What else? The knowledge that I have become a better speaker and I can benchmark that through conference reviews that I have gotten back over the years. The best thing I have gotten from Toastmasters though by far is good friends. Since we have moved back here, my circle of people that I hang out with the most are other Toastmasters, some from the clubs I belong to, some from clubs all over the country that I have met over the last few years.  People join Toastmasters for all kinds of reasons, not just to gain more confidence or to become a better speaker, sometimes their bosses encourage them to come, sometimes because they have gotten a promotion and now need to give presentations to staff.

How to find a club to join?

Toastmasters is in itself a great organization in that everyone works at their own pace. There is no pressure to “do”.  People not familiar with Toastmasters just think it’s about public speaking, but don’t know about the leadership aspect. They don’t know that speeches are evaluated and your fellow club members will give you suggestions for improvement. 

I would suggest if someone is considering joining Toastmasters (and Toastmasters come from every walk of life and every profession under the Sun), visit a few clubs before joining. Every club has its own dynamics and its own strengths and challenges. If a club doesn't click for you, try a different one: each is unique.

Fall Contest: September 16, 2014

Hi all.  It's nice to be able to write again so soon. The blog stats show that we have readers who are returning slowly but surely. Welcome back!

I'm writing to announce the Fall Speech Contest for 2014.  Cromwell Community Toastmasters will be holding its Fall Speech Contest on September 16, 2014, from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. Our topics for the speeches fall into two categories:

1. Humorous Speeches: For this contest, our members have to be funny, they have to be original, and they have to tell stories — not just string together one-liners.  They also have to avoid objectionable language: not easy, but great practice, and a terrific challenge.
2. Table Topics: For our second contest, our members are going to be given a subject for a speech about 10 seconds before they have to speak on it. Table Topics are challenging — you never know what it is that you're going to be asked to speak on, whether the price of tea in China or your favorite movie ever or the best meal you've ever eaten.  Table Topics contests are a real high-wire act, and they test your mettle like no other.

The Toastmasters website has a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the subject of contests: who may be in them, who can compete and advance to the next level of competition, and what the requirements are for judges.  If you can, please familiarize yourself with the rules before Hollie Rose, our Contest Chairperson, requires you to get familiar!

If you'd like to be part of the Speech Contest, you need to be a member of Toastmasters in good standing, and a member of our club.  Which means you need to come to the meeting on August 19 at 5:30 pm and talk to our Vice President of Membership, Miroslav, about joining up.  Hope to see you then!

Meeting Minutes March 4th, 2014

Cromwell Community Toastmasters

3/4/2014

Theme:  No Supplies

Opening:  Charlie Hubert promptly opened the meeting at 5:30.  For an invocation Charlie read the Toastmasters mission and announced that we were going to run the meeting without supplies.  As Toastmasters we are put in positions where we have to improvise with what we have.   Charlie then introduced the Immediate Past President Rob Dalo to run the Business part of the meeting.

Business Items:  Rob welcomed the group and announced that the next meeting will be the Toastmasters Spring contest.  Rob introduced Tom to review for the group the speech contest and give his personal contest experience.    The speech contest will contain two segments the International Contest as well as Tall Tales.  Rob then challenged the group to “get out of the stands” and “get into the game”.   Currently 5 individuals volunteered to speak at the contest, more volunteers are needed. 

During the meeting Rob introduced the 2 guests in attendance Gaurav and Gloria, this was Gloria’s first meeting and Gaurav expressed interest in joining.

Rob then promptly introduced Brian Terry as Toastmaster of the Evening.

General Meeting:  Brian introduced the functionaries who gave a brief review of their roles.  John – Timer, Donald – ah counter, Charlie – Grammarian and the word of the day ebullience – extreme enthusiasm – was introduced by Carmen.

Table Topics:  Brian introduced Andrew as Table Topics Master who used thought challenging questions from Brian Eno, English musician and composer.  Andrew had the audience pull questions from a pile of index cards.

1.      Do something boring?  Mirslov (43 sec)

2.     Is something missing?  John (40 sec)

3.     Move toward the unimportant?   Heather (40 sec)

4.     Humanize something free of error?   Gaurav (38 sec)

5.     Your mistake was a hidden intention?  Carmen (20 sec)

6.     Only one element of each kind?  Rob (1:13)

7.     Revaluation a warm feeling?   Robino   (42 sec)

Speeches:  Brain Terry introduced the 4 speakers. 

1.     Elizabeth Landeen:  Your Body Speaks, All In or Fold -  6:30

2.     Sheetal Patel:  Persuade With Power, Skip the Bottled Water -  7:00

3.     Heather Turner:  The Persuasive Approach, The Importance of Networking for Business- 7:38

4.     Andrew Watt:  Vocal Variety, How I learned to Cook…Really Cook -  7:30

Evaluations:  Brian Terry introduced Heather Turner as General Evaluator who introduced the night’s evaluators.

1.      Carmen Jenkins - 1:00

2.     Bill Sullivan – 3:45

3.     Andrew Watt – 3:45

4.     Robin Thompson – 2:15

After the evaluations Heather asked for reports from the meeting functionaries.  She recapped the meeting and offered feedback to the group.  The meeting was handed over to Rob Dalo who asked for feedback from the guests in attendance, Gaurav said I’m want to join! and Gloria said It was great learning about Networking in the speech given by Heather.

The meeting adjourned at 7:15

Respectfully Submitted by William Sullivan

[posted by Hollie Rose CC, VPPR]

Meeting Minutes February 4th, 2014

Cromwell Community Toastmasters

Club 5908 ~ District 53

February 4, 2014

“Go Big or Go Home”

Attendees:    members attended: Tom Alvord ACB, ALB, Bo Bogart, Micheal Brillas, Robert Dalo, Miroslav Grajewski, Charlie Hubert, Carmen Jenkins, Donald Ostertag, Crystal Storo CC, CL, William Sullivan ACB, ALB, Brian Terry and Heather Turner ACS, CL

Guests:  Guaro Caromital

Business Meeting:

The meeting was called to order at 5:30 by Sergeant at Arms - Charlie Hubert. President Crystal Storo CC, CL mentioned that having meetings start and end on time is a club goal.  The Cromwell Community Toastmasters Club’s educational goal is to have at least two more CC awards, at least one AC award and a leadership award by June 30^th, 2014.  All present shared their educational goals:  Bill - ACS (completed 2/4/14); Rob – CC; Carmen – CC; Brian – CL; Crystal ALB; Bo – CC; Charlie – CC; Heather - ALB and 2^nd CC.  Later in February there will be a Toastmaster Leadership Education meeting led by Nathan, the area governor.  More details will be coming.  Crystal asked us to start thinking of what role we wanted for the Spring Contest.  Rob told us of an interesting quiz that can be found by googling - NY Times Dialect Quiz.                             

Meeting Roles:

Toastmaster: Heather Turner ACS, CL

Invocation: Carmen Jenkins – A quote from John Quincy Adams which said if you inspire people you are a leader.

Word Master:  Charlie Hubert

Word - of - the – Day: Bliss - great happiness 

Table Topics Master:  Donald Ostertag

Don had us choose a card, and he then read the question.  Rob told us the Seahawks blew their competition away because of their constant practice.  Bo wouldn’t be bothered by other people using cell phones in a movie theater because she’d be sleeping. When snowed in, Miroslav plans to celebrate Valentines Day early by; making frittatas with his sweetie, watching German movies and cooking a rack of lamb.  Carmen told us if her two aunts received each other’s flower arrangements she could tell the truth, tell them there had been a mix up, switch the flowers and tell them she loves them.  Mike thought he’d probably run away if he ran into an ex girlfriend in the store.  Charlie told about the first time he drove alone.  He drove as fast as he could on the highway; he was petrified and excited at the same time, and filled with bliss.

 Speaker # 1:  William Sullivan ACB, ALB

Manual/Project: Leadership Excellence Series

Theme:  Keeping the Commitment

 Speaker # 2:   Carmen Jenkins

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator/Project 2   Organize Your Speech

Title:  My Job

 Speaker # 3:  Heather Turner, ACS, CL

Manual/Project:  Competent Communicator/Project 8   Getting Comfortable w/ Visual Aids

Title:  What’s a Prepper?

The three speeches were evaluated by Round Robbin

General Evaluator: Tom Alvord ACB, ALB – Tom shared that he felt structure, efficiency and focus are important to a good meeting.

Distinguished Technicians:

Ah Counter:  Brian Terry 

Grammarian:  Rob Dalo

Timer:  Crystal Storo, CC, CL 

In closing, Crystal asked our guest Guaro his thoughts about the meeting.  He said he liked the meeting and liked the humor, but at the same time he was thinking “how would I do this, how would I do that?”

Give some thought to what role you’d like for the Spring Contest and now is the perfect time to sign up for roles for our next meeting.

Next meeting: February 18, 2014.

Respectfully submitted by

Bo Bogart, Secretary

[posted by Hollie Rose, CC]

Meeting Minutes for January 7, 2014

Cromwell Community Toastmasters

Club 5908 ~ District 53

January 7, 2014

“Go Big or Go Home”

Attendees:    members attended:  Bo Bogart, John Hart, Charlie Hubert, Carmen Jenkins, Elizabeth Landeen, Donald Ostertag, Catherine Rose, Crystal Storo CC, CL, William Sullivan ACB, ALB, Robin Thompson and Heather Turner ACS, CL

Business Meeting:

The meeting was called to order by Sergeant at Arms Charlie Hubert.  President Crystal Storo mentioned the January Jam taking place this Saturday (January 11.) Crystal also told us that Hollie Rose has been reporting on Toastmaster meetings that she visited during her travels. Hollie has been sharing her impressions on the Cromwell Community Toastmaster Facebook page.

Meeting Roles:

Toastmaster: Bo Bogart

Invocation: Charlie Hubert   - Toastmaster Promise

Word Master:  Robin Thompson

Word - of - the - Day:  ameliorate – to improve or make better

Table Topics Master:  Elizabeth Landeen

Theme:  New Year’s Resolutions   Elizabeth told us that New Years Resolutions were started by the Romans over 2000 years ago.  Bill Sullivan gave us his theory as to why this custom started and Catherine Rose reflected on whether 2014 will be better than 2013. Don Ostertag felt that a year was too long a time to give up chocolate, but he could give up potato chips.  Though the thought of a Bungee Cord Jump appealed to Heather’s sense of adventure, she also saw the down side.  When asked about changing something in the world Crystal talked about her trip to the UN and how it’s members change the world.

Speaker # 1:  Carmen Jenkins

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator/Project 1 Icebreaker

Title:  My Life 

Carmen told us she has four children and one grandchild. She is currently working towards a Masters Degree in Social Work.  Carmen is improving her life and wants to help other people improve their lives.

Speaker # 2:   Donald Ostertag

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator/Project 8   Getting Comfortable w/ Visual Aids

Title:  How Some Meetings are Conducted 

Don described how to conduct a detachment meeting.  He described the opening ceremony; who would be present; the various parts of the meeting and how correspondence and new business are handled. He discussed routines, reports and interesting facts.  He described the closing ceremony and then answered questions.

Speaker # 3:  John Hart

Manual/Project:  Competent Communicator/Project 1   Icebreaker

Title:  Looking back.  Looking forward.  

John told us about his New Year holiday and spending time with his girlfriend and family.  He also told us he works at a non-profit agency, The Hartford Defense League where he thinks public speaking skills would be useful.

Speaker # 4:  Heather Turner ACS, CL

Manual/Project:  Public Relations/Project Crisis Management Speech

Title:  Update on the Zombie Apocalypse 

Reporter Hollie Hobbie reported on the effects of the Zombie Apocalypse that had happened one year prior.  Electricity is a thing of the past; most people are either dead or zombified; food from aluminum cans has turned poisonous but on the bright side, the President has just starred in a new movie and a good use has been found for canned Spam.

General Evaluator: Crystal Storo CC

Evaluator # 1:  Elizabeth Landeen

Evaluator # 2:   Heather Turner ACS, CL

Evaluator # 3:  Charlie Hubert

Evaluator # 4:  William Sullivan ACB, ALB

Functionary Reports:

Ah Counter:  Carmen Jenkins

Grammarian:  William Sullivan ACB, ALB

Timer:  Charles Hubert

In closing Crystal thanked everyone for participating.  Both Carmen Jenkins and John Hart received Icebreaker Ribbons. It was another great meeting!  Now is the perfect time to sign up for roles for our next meeting.

Next meeting: January 21, 2014.

Respectfully submitted by

Bo Bogart, Secretary

[posted by Hollie Rose CC]

Meeting Minutes November 19, 2013

Cromwell Community Toastmasters

Club 5908 ~ District 53

November 5, 2013

“Go Big or Go Home”

Attendees:    members attended:  Bo Bogart, Micheal Brillas, Robert Dalo, Miroslav Grajewski, Cheryl Mason DTM, Phil Mason CC, Donald Ostertag, Sheetal Patel, Hollie Rose CC, Crystal Storo CC, CL, Heather Turner ACS, Andrew Watt and Carmen Jenkins.

Guest: John Hart

Business Meeting:

The meeting was called to order by Donald Ostertag.  New name tags were distributed to all members. President Crystal Storo CC, CL had all the club members introduce themselves and tell how long they’ve been members of Cromwell Community Toastmasters.  Crystal went over the Distinguished Club Program goals. Cheryl Mason DTM was presented with her 7^th (WOW) CC award.  Congratulations Cheryl!  John Hart told the club his reason for coming to Toastmasters and shared with us that he is joining tonight

.

Meeting Roles:

Toastmaster: Hollie Rose CC

Invocation: John Hart   -  Toastmaster Mission Statement.

Word Master:  Micheal Brillas

Word - of - the - Day:  Ubiquitous – to be found everywhere

Table Topics Master:  Cheryl Mason DTM

Theme:  Cheryl‘s questions came from a special deck of cards designed for asking Table Topics questions.  Phil told us of his dream house.  He builds houses and has seen all sizes and styles but his ideal would be on the Connecticut River.  It would have a boat house underneath filled with high powered boats.  When asked where, out of any place in the world he would like to spend New Year’s Eve Miroslav told us about last New Year’s Eve in Quebec City.  He described the big blizzard and all the snow and thought maybe this year warm sunny Florida would be a good choice.  The holiday that Micheal would like to celebrate every six months is the 4^th of July.  Simply put, he likes to blow things up. An exciting new ride at Disney that Rob would like to create had the rider getting a sensational manicure while riding past ubiquitous displays of shoes and having ghost shoes appear on their feet. When asked how he cheers himself up when having a bad day, John told us he is fortunate to have an office door, he closes that door and plays music and/or games.  Don shared that his ideal high temperature would be 75 degrees but thinks his wife would prefer 45 to 50 degrees.

Speaker # 1:  Crystal Storo CC

Manual/Project: Educational Leadership Series/Project 6 Building a Team

Title:  Team Spirit! 

Crystal defined team and differentiated between leaders and managers; leaders motivate and managers coordinate. She told us why teams are important and described some factors in building a team - being genuine, including everyone, and open communication.  Team building is important for moral, “Nothing great was ever achieved without motivation.”  Crystal hung up three foot wide sticky note showing the composition of TEAM –Together Everyone Achieves More.

 Speaker # 2:   Andrew Watt

Manual/Project: Competent Communicator/Project 4   How to Say It

Title:  Why I Love Sewing   

Teaching at a school where children can design and construct things to learn how the world works, Andrew noticed that mostly boys signed up for certain courses.  Wanting to know how to get more of the girls involved he paid attention to what interested them and he decided to learn to sew. After taking some lessons he constructed a lunch bag and pencil case.  He now has a 3:1 ratio of girls to boys in his sewing group.  As satisfying as that is he has also made his own Hallowe’en and Renaissance Fair Costumes and finds, to his surprise, that he loves sewing.

 Speaker # 3:  Sheetal Patel

Manual/Project:  Competent Communicator/Project 7   Research Your Topic

Title:  Corporate Social Responsibility   

Outsourcing and globalization started growing in the 1970’s; factories are ubiquitous in China and the United States.  Sheetal spoke of problems caused by outsourcing including slavery, transit and pollution. She spoke of social, health and environmental auditing.  After listing four reasons for Corporate Social Responsibility she stated there are now 7.125 billion people on this planet and everyone has a stake in Corporate Social Responsibility. 

General Evaluator: Heather Turner ACS

Evaluator # 1:  Rob Dalo

Evaluator # 2:   Phil Mason

Evaluator # 3:  Bo Bogart

Functionary Reports:

Ah Counter:  Miroslav Grajewski

Grammarian:  Andrew Watt

Timer:  Don Ostertag

In closing Crystal thanked everyone for coming.  John said he enjoyed the meeting and filled out a member application.  It was another great meeting!  Now is the perfect time to sign up for roles for our next meeting.

Next meeting: December 3, 2013.

Respectfully submitted by

Bo Bogart, Secretary

[Posted by Hollie Rose CC - VPPR]