Happy Holidays

December 1, 2008 Double Dozen Newsletter

District 24

With all the rush of the holiday season, we decided to cover just the basics this month. Pulling together a newsletter takes a great deal of time and coordination so this month, knowing how busy everyone gets at the end of the year, we trimmed down the size but not the value of the newsletter.

Join Us for Toastmasters Leadership Institute

By Elden Plettner

December 6, 2008 is your opportunity to network with fellow District 24 Toastmasters. A forth track has been added to our agenda for those new club officers who have never attended officer training.

Agenda:

• Location: Bank of the West, 13550 California Street, Omaha, NE (Enter from the south side)
• Sign-in begins at 8:00 a.m.
• Introductions and remarks at 8:30 a.m.
• Opening remarks and upcoming activities begin at 8:30 a.m.
• Breakout sessions begin at 9:20 a.m.

Track	District Success	Club Success	Contest Success	New Officer Training
Opening Remarks 8:30 – 9:10
Session 1	Leadership	Moments of Truth	Judge's Training	New officer training *
9:20-10:00	Rick Meyer-2008 District 24 International Speech winner  & George Volz-LGM	Kim Spicka, Area Governor	LuAnn Anglo, Division D Governor	Randy Prier, Past International Director
Session 2	Sponsoring & Mentoring New Clubs	Charting a Course for Club Success	Successful Contests	New officer training* continues if needed Randy Prier, Past International Director
10:10-10:50	Floy Westermeier-PID; PDG; DTM; Out-Reach Chairperson		Sheri Wells-Chesley Area Governor
Session 3	Coaching Existing Clubs	Speech Craft	High Performance Leadership	New officer training* continues if needed Randy Prier, Past International Director
11:00-Close	Melinda Haag, PDG; Bonner Bowden, DTM	Elden Plettner, LGET	David DeFord, Area Governor

* The length of the new officer training will be determined by the number of members attending.

Light refreshments will be served but can not be taken into the conference room. Remember this isn’t breakfast, just snacks. This event will feel more like a conference than the normal stand-by officer training and it isn’t just for officers!

Pre-registration is not required but is encouraged. Register on-line at http://www.district24toastmasters.com/members/RegisterTLI.cfm. The first 50 members to register and attend the TLI will be eligible for a very nice door prize. If you are unable to attend the Omaha TLI, another session will be conducted in Lincoln January Saturday Jan. 17, 2009. Those attending the Lincoln TLI should also register now to be eligible for the door prize in Lincoln.

At least 4 club officers need to attend TLI to get credit towards the Distinguished Club Program. For more information about Toastmasters Leadership Institute, contact Elden at lget@district24toastmasters.com.

Four Critical Success Factors

By Pat Hannan

Districts are measured on four success factors. Here is how we are doing.

Clubs	Membership Payments	Competent Communicator Awards	Advanced Communicator Awards
Total by July 1: 63	Base: 2354	To Date: 36	To Date: 21
Active Clubs to Date: 65	Payments to Date: 1249
Paid Clubs to Date: 62
Goals for June 30: 64	Goal for June 30: 2401	Goal for June 30: 82	Goal for June 30: 23
Behind: 2	Behind: 1152	Behind: 46	Behind: 2

What does this all mean? We have 2 clubs that have not paid their dues yet. We are more than ½ way to our membership dues goals. We need to work on those CC’s but are almost ½ way to that goal and it looks like we will exceed our advanced communicator goals.

Overall, District 24 is “looking good”.

New Clubs on the Horizon

By Pat Hannan

Members across the district have been working hard to build new clubs in District 24. District 24 is at risk of being merged into another district if we can not re-grow our district and extend the number of clubs that we have. Additional clubs mean additional members and additional members are the spice that helps each of us grow in our own skills.

Many of us are aware that Werner’s “On-Time Delivery” is trucking! Sonya Reynolds and George Madsen, Club Mentors, report that members are doing a great job and they certainly look to be a very strong club.

Our most recent charter is Con Agra Foods in Omaha. Con Agra chartered with more than 30 members and mentors, Brenda Carlos and Sheri Wells-Chesley report that this club promises to serve up tasty presentations.

There are three clubs that are working towards charter strength. Covenant Presbyterian Church at 150^th and West Maple, Omaha, is an open community club and currently has about 10 folks ready to sign up but they need to get the word out about this possible new club. Meetings are held Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. If you know someone who would like to join a West Omaha evening club, contact Evelyn LaBode, elabode1@hotmail.com; Bonner Bowden, tribee@excite.com; or George Volz, lgm@district24toastmasters.com.

The Omaha Advanced Club is still short about 5 members to charter. The Advanced Club only meets one evening per month and their focus is on effective detailed evaluations. This club offers an opportunity to give those longer speeches that you do not have time to give in your home club. Members need to have a CC to join but if you are close to earning your CC and interested, contact George Madsen, gmadsenvoyagesextra@cox.net; or Sheila Nelson, Sheila.A.Nelson@blackhillscorp.com; or better yet, come for a visit on the 2^nd Monday of each month at Perkins, 108^th and L Street, Omaha at 6 p.m. Supper is on your own but if you are a guest and Pat Hannan is there, she just might offer to buy you a slice of pie!

The third club that we are working to charter is Lincoln Benefit Life or Club Sandwich. As a corporate club “Club Sandwich” has completed a couple of demo meetings and hopes to charter with 22 members this month. Mentors and sponsors include: Jolene Allen, Connie Zimmerman, Jean Kolar, and Jean Dier.

Several Toastmasters are working towards building clubs in Grand Island, Albion and other locations across the district. Watch the Double Dozen for more information about new clubs.

If you have a lead or suggestion for a new club, contact George Volz at lgm@district24toastmasters.com.

Governor’s Quill

Five Months

Pat Hannan, District Governor

Wow! It has been five months since this trio team officially took over the reigns from IPDG Chris. A great deal has been accomplished and there is a great deal to do.

With all the work to grow new clubs, it is important not to overlook existing clubs. I set a personal goal to visit at least 1/3 of the clubs in our district during the year and I have almost completed that task. I will start setting appointments to visit additional clubs after the start of the New Year. Why wait? The answer is an easy one. I am out of vacation time! Like most Toastmasters, I have a full time job and a family that expects to see me from time to time. My vacation time restarts on the 1^st of January and that will give me the opportunity to get out and visit more clubs.

The great thing about our membership is the welcoming attitude of everyone. Members are friendly and fun! The job of District Governor requires a great deal of time, energy and enthusiasm! And while some parts of the job, like the budget, are something of a time and energy drain, visiting clubs and meeting enthusiastic members refills that void.

I have a great deal to be thankful about this holiday season. My family is safe and secure. My son, Air Force SSgt Kenny Scheele and his family will return to the US soil in January with his wife and children. My daughter and her family are local and I get lots of fun grandma time with them. I have a great job and I am surrounded by Toastmasters who continue to support each other grow their leadership and communication skills.

I wish each of you a wonderful holiday season filled with joy.

Education Time

Toastmasters Leadership Institute
Elden Plettner, LGET

TLI training is coming your way December 6^th in Omaha with Club Fed hosting the event at Bank of the West in west Omaha.  Registration is at 8:00 a.m. with activities starting at 8:30 a.m.

January 17 is the TLI in Lincoln at the Southeast Community College Building at 301 South 68^th Street.  January 24 or February 7 are the proposed dates for the TLI in Grand Island with the location to be determined.  Keep an eye on the District 24 calendar for the latest updates.   

The agenda is set with nine different venues to choose from plus club officer training for the new club officers.  Sign up on the District 24 web site and if you are among the first 50 to register you will be eligible for a nice door prize.  Hope to see you there!

To date District 24 is ahead of schedule in meeting its educational goals for the 2008 to 2009 year.  My congratulations to all who have achieved an educational goal and I want to encourage all those who are working on a educational goal to push to complete the goal before June 30, 2009.

Marketing Minutes

George Volz, LGM

Are you ready to join a Comedy Club?

Why would you want to join a comedy club?? You already belong to a great club, you are already too busy, you do NOT like having fun. I am sure that the first two are true, but knowing Toastmasters as I do, I am positive that the latter is not. Here is an opportunity to have great fun. Let me list some reasons:

1. Gives you an opportunity to expand your impromptu and prepared humor. For example, instead of Table Topics, we will do Improv. The Improv master selects a topic or scenario and 2 - 3 members and guests act them out for a maximum of 3 - 5 minutes. They are evaluated on humor and the other standards we normally use
2. Instead of an "Ah" counter, we will have a "Hah" counter - who counts the number of laughs each person gets and reports on at the end of the meeting. It's a great role for someone in the club you're visiting.
3. There is also a Humor Tip - this is where a member will talk about one aspect of humor (rule of 3, timing, etc) for a minute or two at each meeting
4. Manual Speeches are done demonstrating how to add humor to the presentation.
5. There are no business meetings to speak of, although an Executive group will need to meet a few times a year for planning purposes, etc
6. The big advantage to having a comedy club is what you can give to other clubs. The premise of the club is fun, so the club actually meets at another clubs location and time. The group will encourage them to invite outsiders for a laughter-filled meeting. Clubs that want to change up their meeting to add some variety can invite the comedy club.
7. To make this work it would be good to get many members who would be available at different times as we will get a lot of morning and noon meeting requests as well as evening gigs. Each gig would require 4 Comedy Club members and the host club takes on the other roles.
8. One rule (got to have some rules—it can’t be all fun—or can it)is that you must belong to another club and be a TM in good standing.

If you are interested please contact George Volz (402-306-4595) lgm@district24toastmasters.com.

Give the gift of Toastmasters

By George Volz

Still hunting for a last-minute gift for that special person? Have someone who is really hard to buy for? Looking for that unique gift? Look no further, we have the gift that keeps on giving. What is it? It is a gift membership to Toastmasters!!

How? It is simple!!

1. Send me an email (lgm@district24toastmasters.com) or call me at (402) 306-4595.

2. Be ready to supply me with essential info such as Name, Address, Phone number, email address of the recipient.

3. I will send you a certificate suitable for giving to present—as long as the request comes to me before 12/20/2008—after that I will email a certificate to you up to 6 PM on 12/24/2008. After that, it will be a post-Christmas gift.

So how much for this fantastic gift? For just $33.50, you will be able to give 3 months of valuable Toastmaster membership. More details available upon request.

Development Action Plan (DAP)

By Pat Hannan

Maybe you have heard the term before, DAP. Many workplaces use this phrase or something similar as a standard business practice to help employees attain goals or improve. In my own place of employment, each year, we are required by our Division Manager to complete a DAP. Items on the plan might include things like what training we would like to participate in or what we are going to work on to improve our skills. All employees in our division complete a DAP and it is considered to be a very posititve method of setting our goals.

District 24 is participating in a Development Action Plan. But instead of our employer leading the charge, the trio, has developed a plan of action that has been reviewed and accepted by Toastmasters International. This plan of action has some lofty goals:

Goals:

1.) Develop 20 solid club prospects this year

2.) Build at least 6 new clubs

Current results -

• Werner chartered
• Con Agra chartered

Strong Chance of Chartering

• Club Sandwich – Lincoln Benefit Life 22 potential members, successful demo meetings
• Advanced Omaha Club – continue to try to grow to 20 members, currently meeting with 15 members paid

3.) Increase the number of clubs in the district at 20 or more members by 8 clubs in addition to the new clubs.

What does this mean for our members? We will continue to look towards each of you for additional club leads to grow new clubs. We also need low-member clubs to send up the flag and ask for help. (Read the article on High Performance Leadership to find out how to get guest speakers.)

Acceptance in the program has opened up a doorway to allow the district access to materials that we would normally have to purchase. If you are interested in learning more about the DAP, check out the district website at http://www.district24toastmasters.com.

Prison Clubs and Membership Dues

By Pat Hannan

District 24 has two prison clubs, one in Lincoln and the other in Tecumseh. In the past, some membership dues were funded in part by our educational fund. Recently, it came to our attention that educational funds could not be used in that method.

What does this mean for our members in those clubs? First of all, many of the members are self-supporting. They have jobs that allow them to earn a small amount of money and pay their dues. Some members have benefactors that help underwrite the cost of their membership. These other “quiet” members take pride in helping buy paying dues for someone who can not otherwise afford them.

No one in either club is looking for a hand-out but if you are interested in helping support members in either prison club, contact Anita at: anita.lewandowski.brown@gmail.com. Anita can provide additional details about how you can help.

The district can not officially support individual members or dues. Anita’s work is as a public servant helping others in need.

High Performance Leadership

By Pat Hannan

There are a couple of High Performance Leadership Projects underway by members of District 24 that you might be interested in.

Nebraska Academic Decathlon: David Hayden will start a High Performance Leadership Program to develop a committee to recruit speech judges for the Nebraska Academic Decathlon.  David has recruited judges for this event for the past decade, but it has outgrown his ability to handle all the duties himself.  Also, in 2010 the National Academic Decathlon will be held in Omaha, requiring even more recruiting efforts.  The overall goal of the HPL is to make the recruiting efforts sustainable in the long-term.  Short-term goals include creating a committee for recruiting, delegating / dispersing recruiting duties, and creating a repository for information. If you are interested in serving as a judge or would like to know more about the Academic Decathlon, contact Dave Hayden dhayden@oppd.com.

Want Ads: Louis Lester wants to help low member clubs partner with Toastmasters who would like to speak in front of another group. As Division E Governor, Louis has found that there is an interest from some people to speak at other clubs. His goal is to create a “Want Ads” section on the D24 webpage for the clubs and speakers to use. Clubs looking for guest speakers could post their needs as a want ad and those who would like to speak could contact the clubs for additional details and information. Contact Louis for more information about the want ads at DivEGov@district24toastmaters.com.

Contest Season

By Elden Plettner

Contests are always great fun. This spring we are serving up Tall Tales in addition to our Spring International Contests. Sharpen up your presentation skills and step up to participate in the contest season. Remember only one winner per contest from clubs move to area contests. One winner per contest moves up to division from area and one winner per contest moves up to district from each division.

Updates

By Pat Hannan

There are a number of things to keep everyone updated on!

• Our webmaster, Brad Finch, is suffering from a chronic health issue. Please keep him in your thoughts and send well wishes his way!
• Leo Allen has been appointed as our nomination chair and district nomination forms will be available online soon. If you would like to nominate someone for a district office, elections will be held at the spring conference. E-mail Leo for more information at nominations@district24toastmasters.com .
• David DeFord is our speaker’s bureau chairman. David is working to establish the criteria to be a member of the District 24 speaker’s bureau. E-mail: David@DavidDeFord.com.
• Patt Harper is looking for members who would like to present educational sessions at the Region IV Conference in June 2009, Winnipeg, Canada. Patt has an application and complete details. Contact Patthaha@aol.com for more information.

Taking Care of Business - Spring Conference May 8 and 9, 2009

By Sheila Hoffert

Join us at the spring district conference May 8^th and 9^th, 2009 at the Howard Johnson Motel. You’ll enjoy Tall Tales and the International Speech Contest, a visit from our International Director, Judy Southwick, terrific educational sessions and of course, district elections.

Early Bird Full Registration:

· $60 until Jan. 1, 2009;

· $65 until April 30, 2009;

· $70 full conference registration

Where: Howard Johnson

3650 S. 72^nd Street (I-80 and 72^nd) Omaha, Nebraska

Planning to stay at the Howard Johnson?

Members may secure a room for an affordable cost of $59 per night through April 30, 2009. Call the hotel directly at: 402-397-3700. Conference registration does not include hotel rooms.

The Conference includes: Visit by International Director Judy Southwick; Friday night activity and Tall Tales contest with light refreshments; Saturday continental breakfast; Opening Ceremony; Lunch Buffet; Dinner Buffet; International Speech Contest; Educational Sessions, Business Meeting with Officer Elections. Hotel costs and registration is separate and at the discretion of the member.

Breakout Prices Early Bird Registration:

FREE Business Meeting

$15 Registration fee for Contests and Educational Sessions

Friday:

$10 Tall Tales, Activity, hors d’oeuvres

Saturday:

$10 Breakfast Buffet (Continental, fresh fruit, bagels, muffins, sweet rolls, orange juice & coffee)

$15 Lunch Pasta Bar (Fettuccine, Penne with Alfredo & Meat Sauces; chicken topping, cookies)

$20 Dinner Buffet (Turkey Breast & Dressing, Rotisserie Porkloin, veggies, salad, and dessert)

Make checks payable to: District 24 Spring Conference

Mail checks to: District 24 Spring Conference, c/o Sheila Hoffert, DTM

2204 Coventry Drive, Bellevue, NE 68123

Please cut along dotted line and mail to registration contact listed above.

Registration for Toastmasters District 24 Spring Conference May 8 and 9, 2009

Name: ____________________________________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________________________

City, State and Zip Code: ______________________________________________________________

Phone: ____________________________ E-mail: _________________________________________

Club Name and Number _______________________________________________________________

Toastmaster Designation: ______________________________________________________________

Club, Area, or District Office(s) currently held: _____________________________________________

First time to attend Toastmaster Conference? Circle Yes or No