July 2010

Grillin'
Summer in Seattle was recently celebrated at Chamber Club, with a meeting theme dedicated to "grilling" led by the evening's Toastmaster Alli. Also in the spirit of the evening was General Evaluator Peter who was fully prepared for grilling with cooking utensils, apron, and of course a chef's hat!




June 2010

Once... Twice... Sold!
The club's annual fundraising auction showed that bargains can't be resisted even in an economic slowdown. Along with the coveted pies and personal/professional services ("What do I hear as a starting bid for golf lessons?") were many...odd...things...

New Officers Elected
Soon to appear on the Welcome page, here's the club's new officers for 2010-2011:

Lani Dearmin, President; Veronica Truong, VP Education; Alli Coffin, VP Membership; Michelle Mazur, VP Public Relations; Rachel Herbert, Secretary; Tuquynh Tran, Treasurer; Scott Remillard, Sergeant-at-Arms.

Thank you to all of our 2009-2010 officers for leading us through a year of continued success and growth!

Derby Girls
After Laura's fun "Roller Derby"-themed meeting, some members decided to use their new-found knowledge of the sport to go cheer on the Rat City Rollergirls. (Practical information is shared at every CC540 meeting!)




April 2010

Spring Showers Bring ... Puddles?
Congrats to Alli and Laura for representing our club so ably! Laura was awarded second place in Int'l Speech at the Area 23 contest on April 3, very impressive for her first try. Alli again showed her quick and insightful Evaluation skills, winning first place and continuing on to the Division B contest, where she placed second.

Late Breaking News: Due to another contestant's illness, Alli was asked to represent Division B at the District 2 speech contest on May 8, where she delivered another excellent evaluation and placed second! Congrats again!

Meanwhile, the steady drizzle of visitors has collected into a puddle of bright new faces for Chamber Club 540's membership. Who knows who may be competing for us next year?


February 2010

Contest Results Are In
It's that time of year – the Spring contest season. It begins at the club level, and Chamber Club's talent is blooming as early as the flowers this year!

We had five great speeches for the International Speech contest. Cynthia talked about her recent car accident and her newfound belief in guardian angels. Next Alli shared some thoughts about growing up. Mario talked about his recent STP bike ride (200 miles!) and encouraged us to overcome obstacles and negative thinking. Then Dave shared a glimpse into his daily life as a school bus driver. Laura rounded out the contest with her speech about going above and beyond to create memories for other people. The judges recognized the quality of her speech and awarded her first prize. Alli and Cynthia were the runners-up.

Guest speaker Phillip delivered a novel take on "Is the pen mightier than the sword?", and four club members (Michael, Lee, Dave, and Alli) took turns offering feedback during the Evaluation contest. Alli came away with the first place nod, with Lee taking second.

Mardi Gras!
Chamber Club 540 celebrated Mardi Gras in style, led by the evening's Toastmaster, Lani O., who passed out beads to everyone who spoke at the meeting. She explained the history of Mardi Gras (did you know it started in Mobile, Alabama?) as well as the important dates surrounding it. Chamber Club's own Cynthia and Michael were crowned the evening's Queen and King, for being voted Best Evaluator and Best Speaker, respectively.

 


November 2009

Happy Birthday, Chamber Club and Toastmasters International!
Chamber Club celebrated its 62nd anniversary, and Toastmasters International's 85th anniversary, with a birthday party. We were joined by area officials, former officials and former members, and spouses; and together we learned lots about the history of the club and Toastmasters. An appropriately dual-themed birthday cake was supplied by Encore Bakery, containing enough fudgy chocolate to satisfy even the chocoholics in this club!


October 2009

It's Disco-vu All Over Again
The fall meetings are continuing the pattern of off-beat topics (or in this case, on-beat) with plenty of audience participation as Eden dragged us down Memory Lane to relive the Disco Era. Though only half the members had seen the movie "Saturday Night Fever", a few jumped at the opportunity to demonstrate classic dances like "The Hustle" and the meeting ended with everyone joining in on "YMCA"!



Fall Contests Wrap Up
Dave stepped up on Ana's and Laura's behalf to compete in the Table Topics contest for Area 23 on October 3, coming up with an impromptu answer to "It's now or never...". Michael again won first place with his Humorous Speech! He moved on to the Division B contest, held two weeks later, and faced tough competition from the other area speakers – all were very good, very funny. (But a former long-term member and friend of the club, Ardi, won Table Topics and is moving on to the final, District competition.)

Congrats to all our club contestants!


September 2009

Fall Speech Contests Begin
Chamber Club 540 held its Humorous Speech and Table Topics contests on September 15. Collectively, the titles of the humorous speeches almost walked away with the prize! Michael later won first place; Kathy and Peter came in second and third respectively. Ana won the Table Topics contest, with her impromptu response to a question ripped from the week's headlines, and Laura came in second. The two winners will next compete in the Area 23 contest in early October.

A big THANK YOU to all of the people who helped with this competition, including members of other clubs who served as judges, the contest team led by Lee, Toastmaster (and amusing time-filler) Brian T., and especially the other club members who competed.




August 2009

Just Another Toastmasters Meeting with Funny Hats
Anything can happen at one of our club meetings, including the Toastmaster bestowing party hats on attendees in celebration of their upcoming birthdays!

(Thanks to Nicole for the photos.)


June 2009

Members Awarded for Accomplishments
A number of club members completed Toastmasters communication and leadership projects in the first half of this year. They are:

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