Thursday, February 17, 2011

Hello Toastmasters and Guests,

          This meeting was devoted entirely to the International Speech Contest at the club level. Contest Master was Nancy Hogg and Chief Judge was John Harman. The contest was held in two categories: Table Topics (2 minute impromptu speech) and International Speech (5-7 minutes long). We had five contestants in table topics, and three in international speech. Our attendance at the meeting was 16 Toastmasters and 2 guests, Nita and Sami.
          Table Topics contestants were Juan Martinez, Wade Miner, Magda Brugos, Linda Williams, and Michael Brugos. All contestants were given the same speech topic: "Good fences make good neighbors".
International Speech contestants were Wade Miner, Stan Dalziel, and Victor Lopez. Each contestant delivered a previously prepared speech.
         Wade Miner presented a speech titled "Be Thankful for the Handicap." Wade gave a personal account of his journey towards conquering a speech impediment. His stuttering seemed like a huge obstacle and a handicap when he first realized he had this challenge. However, it turned out that this handicap was sometimes a blessing in disguise. With courage, determination and a strong desire to win, Wade eventually conquered his stuttering. In his words, a stumbling block can become a stepping stone. Wade's question to us was "What is your "handicap" and what are you going to do about it?". He urged us to look for a seed of opportunity in every obstacle we face.
          Stan Dalziel's speech was titled "What are you going to do when you grow up?". Stan's message was that it's never too late to pursue our dreams and visions. Stan spoke about how the choices we make daily shape the life we live. We need to discover what it is that we truly want in life and go after it. Stan wants to become a farmer after he retires from a career in engineering.
          Victor Lopez delivered a speech titled "Me, through the pages of my life". Victor challenged us to conquer the biggest fear most people have, the fear of not truly living life. Our life is like a blank page and we're the authors who write on it. If you don't like your life, change it. You need to work towards change. Victor gave us this acronym to remind us:
W : be willing
O: be optimistic
R: be  ready
K: have knowledge

The speeches seemed to have a common thread. They all challenged us to conquer our handicaps, go after our dreams and work towards creating the life we want. All three speakers performed extremely well. Winners at the club level move to Area Contest held on March 15 at ODU Hampton Campus. 

The Winner of Table Topics Contest

WADE MINER

The Winner of International Speech Contest

VICTOR LOPEZ

CONGRATULATIONS AND GOOD LUCK AT NEXT LEVEL!

Thank you, 
Magda Brugos
OPS Club Secretary