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Mark your calendar for the Spring Conference

Hosted by Division I, Friday and Saturday, May 30 + 31, 2008 in San Antonio.

May Newsletter

Stan See, DTM, Lieutenant Governor Education and Training, lget@tmd55.org

I remember the first district conference I attended. I had only been a Toastmaster for a couple of years and thought the conferences were mainly for club leaders and district officials. However this time, none of the club officers could attend and since the conference was going to be at South Padre Island, I decided I would go and represent the club. I carefully packed the club proxy because I was told I would need it in order to vote. I was not sure what to expect but thanks to the 1st timers meeting on Friday evening I was informed of what to expect and already was feeling involved. The top district leaders stepped into our 1st timers meeting and introduced themselves. They were very genuine and I became even more excited as they shared with me some of the things I could expect the next couple of days. I can honestly say I was not disappointed at all. The educational sessions were very informative and the speakers were great. I collected the handouts and took good notes, especially about membership building, and brought them back to my home club who was really struggling for members at the time. Also, in between the events, I was continuing to meet other Toastmasters from the district. There were people there from other parts of Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and of course the Rio Grande Valley area. Many, like me, were just plain old Toastmasters who were there for different reasons. We networked and I picked up some other great ideas to really spice up our club meetings and make them even more enjoyable. I was amazed at the caliber of talent at the speech contests and I was glad I was not a judge because it just seemed like they were all good enough to be the winner.

Fellow Toastmasters, it has been several years now since I attended that first conference and I have not missed one since. We have these twice a year and any Toastmaster can attend. You do not need to be a club officer or a district official to have a great time and walk away with lots of great information for your personal development as well as your club. If you have never attended a district conference before, and maybe you have attended one but not returned…please consider this my personal invite to you…come to the District 55 spring conference at the Omni Colonnade hotel in beautiful San Antonio. The dates are May 30-31 and the registration forms and schedule can be found on the district web site. If you can not attend the full conference, you can choose the events you are most interested in. You can register by check or online by credit card. If you are a 1st timer, please come and introduce yourself and feel free to ask any questions you may have.