District 33

WESTWORD
The official newsletter for District 33 Toastmasters
Kathy Choate, DTM District 33 Governor 2013 2014 Dear District 33,
Calendar of events Lt. Governor Reports Club Websites Division Governor Reports TM Club Spotlight District 33 Recognition Dues Notice Change Quick Reminders Reservation Directions Division Contest Photos 2013 Fall Conference Photos Distinguished Dance Mentor of Month Divisions C D & H TLI 2013-2014 Leaders District 33 Proxy

INSIDE THIS ISSUE November 2013

District Governor Message

Were you one of the lucky ones who attended our 40th Anniversary Fall Conference Celebration held this past weekend in Bakersfield, CA? If so, you shared special connections with your fellow Toastmasters, received multiple shots in the arm of inspiration and motivation, learned ways to take your own leadership skills to the next level, and witnessed some of the best speakers in our district compete in the evaluation and humorous speech contests. We were especially touched by two mystery guest appearances from Past International Presidents, DTM, Michael Notaro, and DTM, Alfred Herzing, who took the time to share in our joy. This was a conference to remember! We now turn to the task at hand to achieve our collectively sought after, Presidents Distinguished District goal. We need to focus on the three measurable goals that Toastmasters International will be judging our success, i.e., new clubs, membership payments, and distinguished clubs. Our District Mission is to build new clubs and support all clubs in achieving excellence, and we are! Each area governor has been asked to own the goal of one new club per area and to provide a viable new club lead, along with sponsors and mentors. Our Marketing Team of LGET, Katy Porter, LGM, Lorrie Dunford, and New Club Extension Chair, Debby Baker, will take it from there to create the number of clubs necessary to achieve our districts goal. Starting April 2014, all clubs will need a minimum of eight members to achieve active status. Lets schedule Open Houses now and participate in Toastmasters membership building campaign, Talk Up Toastmasters! As we strengthen our existing clubs, and build new ones, our membership goals will be met. Last year we boasted 93 distinguished clubs! Lets repeat that and grow a smidgeon to 96!!

CHECK OUT THE DISTRICT 33 WEBSITE!!! d33.toastmastersdistricts.org

Our District 33 history is unique in that we are the only district IN THE WORLD to have achieved distinguished or better for 16 years in a row! We have the talent, the desire to embrace excellence, and the passion to give the gift of Toastmasters. Join me in making your Toastmasters involvement a priority, not only for your own personal development, but for the benefit of others.

LINDA MANN, DTM

Happy Holidays to everyone in District 33!

Kathy Choate, DTM

District 33 Governor

Mission Statements
The mission statements succinctly express the function of each organizational unit. Toastmasters International We empower individuals to become more effective communicators and leaders. District We build new clubs and support all clubs in achieving excellence. Club We provide a supportive and positive learning experience in which members are empowered to develop communication and leadership skills, resulting in greater selfconfidence and personal growth. Toastmasters International Values

Calendar of Events Day Date

Friday & Saturday 8&9

Time Event November

District 33 Fall Conference in Bakersfield

Details

Link

December January Division B, F, 9:00AM

J TLI

Saturday Saturday

4, 18 8

Flyer

Division J

February
District Executive Council Meeting

March Saturday 15, 22, 29

Division B, C, F&J Contest

April Saturday 5 12 May Friday & Saturday 2&3

District 33 Spring Conference in Ventura Division D Contest Division H Contest

Reminder: Watch the District 33 calendar at http://d33.toastmastersdistricts.org/calendar.html for

details about these and other upcoming events. Is your club planning a special event? Please let us know so that we can help you advertise the event. Send your event information to: michonloyd@embarqmail.com

Integrity Respect Service Excellence

Toastmasters International Envisioned Future

2012-2013 District 33 Awards:

Division Governor of the Year - Carol Campbell, DTM (Division C) Area Governor of the Year - Tom Fanelli ACG, ALB (Area F-1) Lucille Lanham Award - Gene and Lorrie Dunford Behind the Scenes Award - Dana Wall-Oakley, DTM Mentor of the Year Award - Kay Collis DTM, PRA, PDG Milo Graham winner - Division A (Harvey Corbett - Division Governor)

To be the first-choice provider of dynamic, high-value, experiential Humorous Speech communication and leadership 1st Place Dave Sauer (Division A) skills development. 2nd Place Melanie Hope (Division H) 3rd Place Rose Davis (Division C) Evaluation 1st Place Becky Quinlan (Division F)
2nd Place Bill Parker (Division D)

3rd Place Patrick Raymond (Division E)

Katy Porter, DTM District 33 Lt. Governor Education and Training 2013 2014 Email: Katy_porter@ncci.com

*** HOT NEWS ***

Fall Conference Keynote Speaker Jana Barnhill, DTM, PIP, AS encouraged us to celebrate our successes, and not settle for mediocrity. We learn more, and grow more, by planning and going for the BEST. Jana was joined by her husband Robert Barnhill, DTM, PIP, AS, to provide two inspirational educationals. Robert captured the essence of an effective club, and emphasized that a high quality club experience is critical for our members to get the full benefit of Toastmasters. Together, they took it home with a wonderful characterization of the qualities of leadership and of leaders. Where are leaders made? In District 33 Toastmasters Clubs! Thank you all for bringing to life Dorothy and the good witch Glenda, by giving them a lot to celebrate at the Fall Conference. District Governor Kathy put on her new, sparkling red dancing shoes to celebrate our two new clubs, and all in attendance jumped up and danced with her! We want her to wear out her shoes this year! Update on Dues Renewals: 64 of our clubs reached the 85% renewal threshold, one sign of a healthy club. Certificates were celebrated on Friday for each of these clubs. One of the keys to success was the reaching out of many leaders to their graced (non-renewed) members. We are a family of Toastmasters, and we build lasting bridges when we reach out to each other. As of this writing, eight clubs have not yet renewed, but folks are working with these clubs to encourage them to bring value to new and current members. If you would like to help, let your Area Governor know. Congratulations to Division H, for winning a $25 gift certificate for having the highest percentage of their graced members renew (45%), and having the fewest graced members left (93). 16 Clubs won the Ballroom Dancing Award You didnt have to be a student of Arthur Murray to win this award. 16 clubs were awarded a certificate and $20 in Toastmasters International gift certificates, by achieving 4 goals, including #7 (4 new members!) by October 8th. Distinguished Dance Award be Distinguished or better by April 18th and your club wins a prize at the May Conference! Join in the fun in May! You can find details of this award in the Education and Training area of our website. http://d33.toastmastersclubs.org/Education_and_Training.html Tip work your DCP plan, then dance on the yellow brick road to success. Click your heels 3 times and repeat after me: Only manual speeches, only manual speeches, only manual speeches! If you need members, promote an open house in January maybe with the WIZ as the theme? Mentor of the Month The first four winners are in! Congratulations to Vivian Komori, Wayne Choate, Paul Smith and Heather McCloskey Beck for their contributions to their clubs and fellow members. See their stories on our website, in the Mentor of the Month section. Each mentor and their club win a $25 TI gift certificate as a thank you! http://d33.toastmastersclubs.org/Mentor_of_the_Month.html

District 33

(continued from above.)

If one of your club members does an excellent job as a mentor, let everyone know! Just send me a paragraph or two on mentor is exemplary (katy_porter@ncci.com). Include their name and the club name. Well draw one winner why the each month and post results on-line.
*** Whats Ahead ***

Semi-annual clubs - Officer lists due by December 31 to get credit on your DCP scorecard. Officer training for ALL officers will be coming soon to be completed by February 28, 2014. Where are leaders made? In officer training! Learn about your office, and learn about the teamwork and leadership tools available to you as a Toastmaster Club Officer. There is always more to learn about an office, and once you are experienced, always more you can share as a mentor to others. In each Division, many hands work together to provide members with memorable training. Please come! Save the Date Spring Conference Oxnard, CA (Division B) May 2 & 3 Clubs, Areas and Divisions are all dancing and speaking up a storm, as members participate in the International and Tall Tale Contests.

(More flyers at bottom of newsletter)

District 33 is Embracing Excellence and meeting our District Mission to build new clubs and assist all clubs in achieving excellence. We have chartered two clubs Linguistic Lynx #2100704 and Real Talk Toastmasters #3403680. Wayne Choate, DTM, PDG, AS led the launch team for Real Talk Toastmasters which chartered in less than 90 minutes on September 9, 2013! We have a great page on the District 33 website welcoming these new clubs to the District 33 family and the recognizing the teams that are the clubs Embrace Excellence. Several more clubs have held kick off meetings and are expected to charter very soon including Vanguard in Division B, Carrington College in Division C, Legally Speaking in Division D, Carpenteria and Montecito Expressionists in Division E, Winton Ireland in Division F, and Department of Water Resources in Division G. We look forward to welcoming these new clubs into District 33! Our fabulous District 33 team led by the Area and Division Governors are providing great club leads and names of people willing to be new club sponsors and mentors to ensure the future success of these new clubs. If you would like to help others experience the gift of Toastmasters by becoming a new club sponsor or mentor, please contact your Area Governor. It was incredible to recognize at the District Conference, the nine clubs who received the Smedley Award from Toastmasters International. These clubs added at least five new, dual, or reinstated members between August 1 and September 30, received a Smedley Award ribbon from Toastmasters International, recognition on the Toastmaster International and District 33 websites and 10% off the clubs next order from the TI store. Club # Division/Area Club Name # of New Members 1227591 7352 9847 9797 8479 878 2180 2302 9766032 A 03 B 01 C 02 E 01 E 04 E 06 D 03 G 04 D 04 Broads and Beaus Humor & Drama Club Toast of Sierra Toastmasters Club Speakeasy Toastmasters Club City Orators Club Goleta Valley Toastmasters Jackpot Speakers Downtown Toastmasters UNLV Toastmasters 5 5 5 5 5 5 6 8 9

Lorrie Linnert-Dunford, DTM Lt. Governor Marketing 2013 2014

The next membership campaign is Talk up Toastmasters which runs from February 1 through March 31, 2014. Look for the flyer on the District 33 website coming soon! Eight new club coaches have been appointed so far and Maria Azevedo, the District 33 Club Coach Coordinator is doing a wonderful job training our coaches. Our goal is to have club coaches trained and appointed to all clubs with 12 or fewer members who request a coach. If your club wishes to have a coach, please contact me. Membership renewals and retention have been our focus since our last DEC meeting. There are currently 8 clubs which have either not renewed or do not have their minimum of 6 members renewed to be in good standing. We are working with these clubs to bring them current or rebuilding them and we expect to have 5 of these in good standing by the end of November. Retention efforts by the club officers and district officers have been very well received and our renewals are increasing due to these efforts. Division H received the award for having the most graced members renew from October 8 through November 17, at an awesome 45%! Thank you for all your efforts!

(continued from above) Beginning with the April dues renewal, Toastmasters International is increasing the number of members to be in good standing from six (6) to eight (8). Now is the time to prepare for this change. Katy Porter has created the Make it Great with Eight flyer which gives great information for clubs to boost membership. Please see the flyer attached with this edition of the Westword.

We are Embracing Excellence in all that we do!

prospective mbers.

Make it Great with 8 flyer!

Gene Dunford District 33 Club Website Consultant

Thank you for the opportunity to work with you, customizing your club website. Prospective members are visiting clubs found online. The find a meeting tool is on http://www.toastmasters.org. It provides club information to prospective members to find a club website link and connect to the club website. The clubs website provides an opportunity to communicate directly with your future club member. The club website projects what makes your club an outstanding club; it is a beacon guiding prospective members to visit your club.

Currently there are forty-eight clubs without a club website in our district and fifteen clubs have website links that do not work. Create your club website and establish your presence on the internet. A club website is an essential component to market your club. Verify that your website link works by using the Toastmasters find a meeting tool. If your link does not connect to your club website, prospective members will not find your club. Ask a club officer to correct the link. Club members can provide feedback to the club officers about their website. Does the club link work? Is the content something that would make you visit the club? If you do not have a club website, I can help you; you need no special skills or website experience. Email me genedtm@hotmail.com or call/text me 702-677-1502 to discuss customizing your club website. A testimonial from club 8675, Tehachapi Toastmasters must also thank Gene for his assistance. He walked me through the process during the first session. The club used the previous ToastHost website builder but this one is a little different and I was lost trying to get it setup without his help. Betty

Division A

Harvey Corbett, ACG, ALB WE ARE FAMILY

We are family, I got all my fellow Toastmasters and me. Whether it is the traditional family that is thought of as a social construct consisting of a father, mother and children or the modern family that follows no strict construct but rather tends to be functionary, the objective of each concept is to achieve common goals. Such goals may include protection, a sense of belonging, guidance and support until maturity. Now, think about it, arent these the same intangible goals that we strive to achieve as Toastmasters? Actually, Toastmasters is a mixture of both the traditional and modern family. From a traditional perspective there is the family structure crest that we come to cherish as the Toastmasters brand or logo. Each club has a Patriarch figure that brings discipline, There is the Matriarch figure that we come to expect to greet members with warm sense of and guidance. smiles and a sincere are the brother/sister figures serving to mentor members their journey from infancy to mature caring. There new from From a modern perspective, aforementioned roles are not defined gender and the family atmosphere Toastmasters. the by helps achieve those intangible required for membership retention, growth and mission each club to successfully goals club accomplishment.

Division B Governor
Dan Murray, DTM
The Contest and a Growing Division
Division B had a barn burner of a Contest on the morning of October 26th Humorous honors went to Tuan Nguyen of Fair Winds first place, and Ross Falvo Ojai Valley second place.

..

A tough contest to judge. Dave Culton of Sandpipers and Wendee Smith of Au Jus can both be proud of the job they did. Evaluation honors? Taken by Dan Collier of Sandpipers, with second going to Martha Navarrete of A-C PowerPoint. Credible work was also done by Lydia Cruz-Machlitt of Los Amigos and Rachel Velez of Humor and Drama. Both Lydia and Rachel have been toastmastering for just over a year. OUR NEWEST CLUB It was a sunny summer day. Temperature in the mid-70s. An ideal day for a Kickoff Meeting. The location? Ventura County Coastal Association of Realtors in North Oxnard. The Meeting begins at noon. Attendance is right at 40 people. After preliminaries, Toastmaster Wayne Choate introduces Dave Culton, the Featured Speaker. Culton is impressive. At 12:25 we move on to Table Topics, and its a good session. Now it gets interesting. Toastmaster Choate asks, How many of you would want to be part of an organization like this? Most raise their hands. Immediately (and I mean immediately) membership Applications are passed out and instructions for their completion are shared. Applicants are helped. Result: 21 membership applications 17 of them paid. Toastmaster Choate says, Now we need to find Does anyone outthere work raises his Club Officers. for a Bank? A gentleman hand, and Wayne asks if he would be willing to serve as Treasurer. He agrees. The continues, Officer positions are Club has its first Officer. The process and as other beperfect for sought attendees begin suggesting names of those who would the job. A complete slate of Officers is set. Its now 1:20 p.m. 80 minutes after the Meeting begins. A new Club Real Talk Toastmasters is chartered. Amazing. Simply amazing.

Division C Governor

Monica Aiken, DTM

of Division C! Champions of Truth, FUN!!" "Courageous Communicators Education, and

sure does FUN!! Division a successful contest, thanks to all our wonderful Time fly when youre having C had members from Division C, D and H!! Thank you for coming out and helping and for being such a fabulous audience for our contestants! The contest would not have been a success without all of you!! Please help me congratulate our contestants that are moving on to the District Conference on November 9th in Bakersfield!! Evaluation Contestant: Philip Dahlheimer, from Northern Voices Toastmasters Humorous Contestant: Rose Davis, from Say Watt Toastmasters Now is the time to check in with members that are graced and past members to see if they will re-new. Sometimes all it takes is a phone call from the President, VPE, Area Governor, or Division Governor just to let our members know we care. Life has a way of getting in the way, so maybe they just need a gentle reminder or have other concerns, this will be a great way to find out. Keep up the good work!! Ive learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. ~ Maya Angelou

Division D Governor
Guy Dawson, ACS, ALB
Division D is Motivated and on the Move Toastmaster year is in full swing and I am so proud of the progress that Division D is making The toward the achievement of its membership and educational goals. Our Area Governors, Fresia Aguedelo, CC, Gene Puffer ACB, Verda Varner-Hoggan, ATMG and Bob Scoble, ACB, ALB successfully facilitated the first round of area contests. Now they are directing their focus toward productive club visits and building solid relationships with the leadership within their areas.

Division D currently has 295 members who make up 18 clubs. We have set an audacious goal of becoming a Presidents Distinguished Division in 2013/2014 and that vision seems to have had a motivating effect on our clubs so far. Our membership numbers have been growing exponentially and several of our clubs are nearly distinguished. We have also committed to chartering 5 clubs this year and we are only a few members short of completing the first one. Many of the leads that we have received for potential clubs have shown a strong interest in doing a kick off meeting and starting their Toastmaster journey. The leaders within Division D are doing some intense strategic planning so that we can build new clubs that will endure and thrive.

The first few months of the new Toastmaster year have been a thrilling adventure and I cant wait to see what twists and turns lay ahead. I appreciate all of the guidance and support that I have received from the seasoned leaders of Division D. Being a Division Governor has definitely reinforced my belief that the Toastmasters system is one of the greatest educational programs on the planet.

Division E Governor

Sandra Eacret, ACB, CL

Engaging Excellence In Everything We Do

Division E is Engaging Excellence in everything we do. There is excellence in everyone, and as we engage each other in what we are capable of doing, then we each feel (and team of Toastmasters who can accomplish are!) part of a dynamic more than we could by ourselves. This has been evidenced by our Fall Speech Contests. From the club level to the Division level, our Toastmasters took on new challenges and achieved success, often with the help of a more experienced Toastmaster. Each contest was a success, and many Toastmasters stretched themselves and achieved more than they ever had before. 55 Toastmasters attended (and most participated in) our Division which represents more than 10% of our member base in the contest, division. Club visits have been completed and several reports submitted; the be in by the end of November. rest will new clubs forming, updates include: As for

Space X at Vandenberg AFB: due to budget cuts, number of potential members was also cut sharply. However, sponsor and mentor Area E5 Gov., Patrick Hardy has a new lead to follow up on at the base. Carpinteria TM: continuing towards chartering with sponsors Grace Rachow and Ron Guilbault; mentor Area E3 Gov. Christine Campos LGBT (as yet unnamed): open to all and a safe place for LGBT Toastmasters to express themselves freely. It is important that all guests understand this special interest. Sponsor: Area E4 Gov. Cynthia Holm Not previously mentioned:

MontecitoExpressionists:MentorsSherry CampbellandTomPhelpsareworkingthisclub towardschartering;theybeganmeetingearlier thisyear GavelclubformingatUCSB:SponsorandAreaE6 Gov.NathanOhrenhasmetwithleadershiptwice. 20enthusiasticandengagedstudentsattend weeklyanddeliver4plannedspeechesanddo TableTopicsinwhicheachattendeeparticipates! TheyuseFacebooktogreatadvantage.Strategy meetingnextweektofocusongoals,quite possiblytoformagavelclubsomehowassociated withtheTM@UCSBclub.

Division F Governor
Tom Fanelli, ACG, ALB WE is KEY! Division F
We is still key in Division F! We are working together to Embrace Excellence. Quite a bit has happened since my last Westword article. Here are the latest updates:

NEW CLUB PROSPECTS

We are very excited for are new club prospects: Winning with Words has been working to get to charter strength for a year now and is very close to doing so. Contact either myself or Area F-2 Governor Ron Martorana for more details if you are interested in joining/helping. A Toastmasters demo meeting was held at WintonIreland in October.

AREA / DIVISION CONTESTS

Iam pleased to report that we had GREAT turnouts at both our area and division contests. In fact, our division contest had over 70 attendees! The result of the contests is that Becky Quinlan, CC, CL (Supper Club # 5353) and Dalton Rasmussen (Talk of the Town # 4295) will move on to the District level for the Evaluation and Humorous contests, respectively. Great job!

SEMI-ANNUAL CLUB OFFICER ELECTIONS

Next up for Division F: club elections. NOTE: this only applies to clubs that elect their officers semi-annually. These clubs are asked to plan & hold their elections soon. Club officer lists need to be submitted on toastmasters.org by 12/31! Here are the Division F clubs that need to elect officers/submit their officer list to toastmasters.org: Area F-1: Foster Farms Roasters Area F-2: Yosemite Area F-3: Daybreakers, Supper Club, Central Valley Communicators, and Smart Talkers Area F-4: Speak EZ

DUES RENEWALS
Dues renewals in September were challenging for our division. As 63% of toastmasters had renewed their memberships. of 11/5, This is much lower than the 70-80% that was expected. A call to action: please reach out to those members in your club that have not renewed and encourage them to continue. Your help is greatly appreciated!

Here's to a successful year in Division F where We is KEY!!

Division G Governor

Dale Mell, ACB Gravitating to Greatness in Division G

Division G Fall Humorous and Evaluation Speech Contest was a Success due in large to all of the wonderful and generous Toastmasters in the greater Fresno, Clovis, Tulare, Porterville and Visalia area; teamed up with two big contributors for our raffle prizes, our contest was the best attended and supported since I joined Toastmasters in 2001!

I would like to extend a special thanks to Mr. Roman Cota a member of CCHCC Toastmasters and General Managing Partner with Wedgewood Wedding and Banquets (a local Fresno caterer with venues in Southern and Northern California) for their generous donation of 10 lunches served at a location selected by the lucky winners; and to my good friend Mr. & Ms. Ray Krause who own and operate Westbrook Wine Farm Vineyard and Winery in ONeals, a foothill community in Madera County, for their generous donation of a bottle of private estate bottled wine and a private guided tour of their winery for a party of twelve. WOW! In addition to those fine prizes we had a donation of four seats at a Fresno State Bulldogs game (50 yard line, eighth row) killer! An authentic piece of Egyptian art on pompous grass. The Contestants from our four Areas were so good and skilled in their deliveries that it resulted in great anxiety for the judges to select the First and Second place winners, no easy task for those chosen to bear the burden. Division First place Humorous Speech went to Sam Wong with Wordmasters and First Place Evaluation went to Ms. Lori Dunagan with Speech Conductors; both will proudly representDivision G at the District Contest in Bakersfield on November 9, 2013. We are Proud, We are Grateful and We are Gravitating to Greatness in Division G! you all for your support and Best regards, Thank Dale G. Mell, Division G Governor

Division H Governor
Denise Dilsaver, ACS, ALS
Honor and Integrity! Our division theme is Honor and Integrity. We will continue to honor our club members with the

support to assist them to populate their club with new members through integrity.

The Division H contest went well and successful. Our first place winner in Humorous, Fred Shelton, could not attend the District contest. The second place competitor, Melanie Hope, will be in attendance for Division H Humorous competition. Melanie Hope won first place for Evaluation, and she will be representing both competitions for Division H.

Division H has had challenges in membership renewals, and saving charters from going over the edge. The team of accomplished Toastmasters has helped our division with exhausted collaborating efforts to bring back the memberships in the clubs needing more than 6 people to gain the DCP point. I am proud to hold all these people as my friends and mentors to assist to keep our division strong.

Division J Governor
Jamuna Ramnath, Strive ToExcel! DTM

As we celebrate our inaugural year, Division J comprising five areas and 23 clubs is striving to excel in every aspect of its endeavor and goal. Every club in Division J has one DCP goal achieved with 100 percent officers trained as well as submitting minimum of six members on time. We are at 76% membership renewal so far, and our efforts are on-going for renewing, retaining current members and following up with graced out members, we are achieving better results day by day. Six clubs are strong with over 20 members, eight clubs with 15 to 18 members, and nine clubs with 14 or members. Out of 6 clubs with fewer than 12 members, we have already appointed club coaches, setting the ground for fewer success. Five clubs have performed fantastic this quarter, already have attained 4 to 6 DCP goals, and seven clubs have reached 2 to 3 goals. All area club visit reports have been submitted. We have leads for starting two clubs in the Division; we are eagerly hoping to charter them soon. As a new division with many new clubs, we are constantly engaging in energizing and revitalizing members to accomplish their own goals, which eventually can be translated to our overall goals. All area governors did a fabulous job with their area contests showcasing their strength and talents. Division J celebrated its inaugural Fall Contest on Oct 19, 2013 with great success. It was an enjoyable, entertaining morning with excellent speeches and evaluations in a pleasant ambience with beautiful decorations. Rick Chandler, CTM winner of both Evaluation and Humorous Speech Contests represented Division J at the District Conference in Bakersfield on Nov 9, 2013. Watch and enjoy the photographs: Division J Contest Photos. During the course of this quarter, we have created an excellent Division J website http://www.divisionjd33.org/ and we were successful with our online registration and payment for the fall contest. We are conducting webinars on relevant topics to promote, educate and engross members,. We are striding strong achieving all our measurable goals for the first quarter of the term. As Thanksgiving is approaching, I thank the area governors, appointed officers, helpers, volunteers, and every member of the division that are supporting and riding along with me to help all clubs in embracing excellence. With a spirit of giving I am proud to serve and lead this Division to great success. The Division J TLI (Toastmasters Leadership Institute) / Officers Training is on Jan 4, 2014 in Thousand Oaks at the Baxter Building; 1 Baxter Way, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362. Our Program will be published soon. Once again, we will have an online registration for the TLI; check out our website at http://www.divisionjd33.org/tli. The Spring International and Tall Tales Contests will be on March 29, 2014. Stay tuned, and keep checking the Division J website for more information on location

Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

Jamuna Ramnath, DTM, The New Division J Governor

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DISTRICT 33 TOASTMASTERS IS ABOUT BUILDING LEADERS

Club Spotlight

Welcome to Curtain Call!

"Where the Stage is Yours!" looking to add a bit of drama to your next presentation? Do you live in Las Vegas? Come and check out Curtain Call Are you Toastmasters, Club No. 736, D-2. Members of Curtain Call can help you direct your next presentation. Our club follows a twist. We add the art of behind the scenes theatrical development. We work on character Toastmaster protocol but with development, staging or blocking, the use of dialog, and overall enhancement to all presentations. We educate our members and guests in the study of successful techniques used by theater directors and actors. Curtain Call members are currently working on a showcase utilizing the skills learned by the members by presenting monologues, 2 person scene work, and a comedic ensemble scene. The Showcase will be on Saturday, January 18, 2014. We welcome anyone to come and check out our club, and of course, join our fun and energetic club. Curtain Calls Mission Statement is: We provide an entertaining and positive experience in which members empower others to develop their flare for the dramatic with communication and directorial skills, resulting in a confident, self-assured performance. Curtain Call meets the 1st & 3rd Wednesday of the month from 6:30 8:00 p.m. at Denny's Restaurant, 3081 S Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, NV 89134. Check out our website at curtaincall.toastmastersclubs.org or contact President, Carolyn Pelletier at kkinnv@yahoo.com; VP Ed, Dana Wall Oakley at pngnlady@gmail.com or VP Membership, Jesse Oakely, III at joakley@dot.state.nv.us. We look forward to directing you in your next fabulous presentation!

New Clubs Forming

Looking for something a little different? Several new clubs are in the process of forming. Interested in learning more? Want to get involved? Please contact the new club sponsor for the club that you are interested in. Starting a new club is one way to earn leadership credit towards your Advanced Leader Silver (ALS) award. Do you have an idea for a new club? Contact the Lt. Governor Marketing, Lorrie Linnert-Dunnert at lorriedtm@hotmail.com to learn what steps are required to build a new club. New Club Sponsoring Sponsor Email Information Mentors Chartered: Club or Corporate Sponsor
Real Talk Toastmasters #3403680 September 9, 2013 Sand Piper Club #1224 & Ventura County Master Communicators Club #2299061 Corporate Sponsors: Ventura County Coastal Association of Realtors University of California, Merced Wayne Choate, DTM, PDG, AS Jose Luiz Morales, CC papachoate@gmail.com Division B District 33 Kathy Choate, DTM Martha Navarette, ACS, ALB

Linguistic Lynx Club #2100704 July 16, 2013

Maria Azevedo,
ACG, ALB
Carole Richard, ACB

Division F, Area F1

District 33

Carole Richard, ACB

Garland Barnes, CC

District 33 Recognitions

LETTER OF COMMENDATION
from Ashley Swearengin, Mayor of Fresno, CA, dated November 4, 2013

CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION
from James C. Ledford, Jr., Mayor of Palmdale, CA, dated November 9, 2013

COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES COMMENDATION

to District 33 from Supervisor, Fifth District, Michael D. Antonovich, dated Nov. 9, 2013

CITY OF LANCASTER FROM

R. Rex Parris, Mayor of Lancaster, CA., affixed with the city's seal, dated November 9, 2013

CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION
from California Legislature Assembly, Assembly member 36th District, Steve Fox, dated November 2013, affixed with seal

CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION from State Senator Steve Knight, 21st Senate District, dated November 9, 2013

The Following message is a reminder:

Dues renewals announcement: The "speed bump" just got bigger. Starting April 1 2014, the minimum number of membership dues renewals will be moved up to 8 members (instead of 6 members are renewed by the deadline.). This is mentioned in the 2012-2013 Board of Directors Meeting Minutes. For more info, check out page 10, Part 4, section D of this link below. http://www.toastmasters.org/August2013Minutes Treasurers can send in renewals as the members pay. Retention is very important to us! We want all our members to achieve their personal and professional goals in Toastmasters. All of our members are valued! You may still give your club dues to the club Treasurer, but there are two other methods to submit the Toastmasters International dues.
Regular mail: Toastmasters International PO Box 9052 Mission Viejo, CA 92690-9052

ONLINE - AVAILABLE: http://www.toastmasters.org

QUICK DISTRICT 33 REMINDERS

Spring 2014 District Conference
hosted by Division B

District 33 Our 40th Anniversary!

Residence Inn Oxnard River Ridge
2101 West Vineyard Ave. Oxnard, California 93036

When: May 2 3, 2014

Directions to Residence Inn Oxnard River Ridge

District 33 40th Anniversary! Spring Conference

 Photos of ALL Division Contests & District Conference on next few pages

Photos of the Division E Fall 2013 Humorous & Evaluation Contests

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Division A GIVING THANKS

recognition of an outstanding District Conference

Division A Toastmasters hosted the District Conference and as they transition from the focus of hosting the week-end Fall Conference and speech contest, there are many take-a-ways with respect to experience, highlights, memories and thank yous. 1. First, there is a thank you. Thanks goes out to out to Ann Hill and her team who worked diligently in making this event one of the best ever. The skit production, the use and participation of some of our Club's most talented members, the food, accommodations, and overall service was superb and memorable.

2. The experience of hearing the keynote addresses from Robert and Jana Barnhill was invaluable to all Toastmasters especially in their pursuit of excellence while achieving the Clubs and Toastmasters mission.

3. Highlighting and Honoring the outstanding contributions of Dr. Jackie L. Fisher, Sr. as an Educator was indeed memorable. 4. There were many highlights especially with respect to individual and club awards. a) For individual awards, Ron Lerma of
Downtown Toastmasters was recognized for receiving both Competent Communicator and Competent Leader awards. b) Kevin (Aera), Brenda Fenner (A-3 Governor) and Eleanor Smith (Gift of Gab) all received recognition as Competent Leaders. c) Peaker Roxie Patterson was recognized for receiving her ACB. d) Leona Byrne received the Community Super Star Award for completing both 3 educationals and sponsoring 3 new members.

5. Thank you also to Shonna Shearson of Area A-1, Straight Talk Toastmasters, for serving as Evaluation Toastmaster and Olaf Landsgaard of Area A-3, Sand Creek Orators for serving as Humorous Speech Toastmaster.

Guerrero-Lee, Janice Wallace, Judi Olsen and Flora Turner.

6. Of the 15 Toastmasters recognized for becoming Distinguished Toastmasters, four were from Division A. They are Malou

and recognition to Judy Harris and Harvey Corbett who served as Area A-1 and A-5 Governors 7. Memories respectively.

Award.

8. Lastly, in recognition of the attendance and participation of those members of our Division, who have received the Milo Graham For those who missed such an awesome conference, go to our Facebook page. Pictures are on next page!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/91276609102/10151781595129103/?notif_t=group_activity

Congratulations to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners of the Humorous & Evaluation Contests!

To view more photos of the District Humorous & Evaluation Conference, go to: photos

Are you interested in stepping up and becoming an Area Governor, Division Governor, Lt. Governor, or District Governor for the 2014-2015 Toastmaster year?

Now, you can!!! District 33 Toastmasters is looking for leaders to serve the community for the 2014-2015 Toastmaster year!!!
If you want to file as a candidate for District Governor, Lt. Governor, Division Governor, or Area Governor, please

Just go to the following link (http://d33.toastmastersdistricts.org/2014

2015_District_33_Leader_Nomination_Forms.html), fill out the required paperwork, and send to District 33 Nominations Chair Jesse Oakley III DTM, IPDG.

Paperwork is due February 1, 2014 You can make a difference and serve your community. Don't delay!!! File today!!