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Pumpkin spice and everything nice -- and spooky!

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We are excited to formally announce a Townsend Toastmasters story contest! The contest will take place instead of our usual Monday meeting on October 30 . The theme is "Pumpkin spice and everything nice -- and spooky. "   Feel free to use the theme just to get you thinking - we welcome your creativity and unique approach to whatever story you would like to share. If you would like to participate, please prepare a story on the theme that is five minutes or less and sign up at our quarterly schedule, or email  tt-membership@googlegroups.com as a guest speaker.   If you need any inspiration, this   playlist  of themed stories from The Moth is a great place to start. This is a contest, so we will vote for a winner! And there may even be prizes :)

New Club Member - Ana Guillén

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We are very excited to have  Ana Guillén  formally join our club recently! Ana also delivered her inspiring ice-breaker speech titled 'Mile 25' today! In her speech, she vividly shared the unique experience of training for and completing The San Francisco Marathon. She expressed how such an experience has influenced her professional life by challenging herself and preparing for the unplanned. She inspired us by asking: "What mile 25 moment is on the horizon for you? And what will you do to train for it?"   About Ana Ana is a marketing executive at the intersection of technology and content. Beyond marketing, she is passionate about youth culture, the creator economy, and emerging technologies. Off the clock, you’ll find her on a yoga mat, out for a run, or listening to an audiobook. Why I joined the club: "One of my objectives for 2023 is to improve my verbal communication. How clear and concise can I become? I joined Townsend Toastmasters to find out. " We

Announcing Townsend Toastmasters New Officer Team

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As we reflect on the past year, we are thrilled to share the highlights of our successful journey from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023. Under the inspiring leadership of President Scott Hendrickson, we welcomed new members, transitioned to self-pay dues, and successfully introduced hybrid meetings at our stunning Adobe building headquarters. Our achievements would not have been possible without the dedication of our club officers from the previous term. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to each of them. At the same time, we warmly welcome the new and returning officers who will lead us for the next twelve months. Title 7/1/22 - 6/30/23 7/1/23 - 6/30/24 President  Scott Hendrickson Anne McCarthy VP of Education Jennifer Kuang Akshay Gangam VP of Membership Jane McKean Jane McKean VP of Public Relations Anne McCarthy Feifei Feng Treasurer Scott Hendrickson Scott Hendrickson Secretary Jenny Jongjan Peter Goodlin Sergeant at Arms Akshay Gangam Akshay Gangam VP Mentorship Peter Goodlin Peter
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 Hybrid Meetings in session Our club has switched to Hybrid Meetings where we support both in person and virtual meetings at the same time. This will give the members flexibility to attend in the way that's convenient for them.
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 Townsend Toastmasters Club Contest 2022 Be there to support Anne and Malcolm. Give them your applause and cheer for them. Both of them will represent our club to compete for the next level - Area speech contests.

2021 Toastmasters World Champion of Public Speaking

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2021 Toastmasters International Convention World Champion of Public Speaking   Winner: Verity Price " A Great Read " 2nd place: Nitay-Yair Levi " Advice for Life" 3rd place Roger Caesar " Is It in You? "

National Book Lovers Day

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Happy National Book Lovers Day! Another wonderful meeting with an excellent theme of National Book Lovers Day. Here is a list of books recommended by our members in the meeting today. How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk by Adele Faber How to Talk So Teens Will Listen & Listen So Teens Will Talk by Adele Faber Together by Vivek H Murthy (The healing power of human connection in a sometimes lonely world) Barack Obama Speeches by Barack Obama (There are 85 speeches which would be a great reference for the Pathways level 5 project) Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson Artemis by Andy Weir Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis (Stop believing the lies about who you are so you can become who you were meant to be) Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis Dollars and Sense by Dan Ariely (How we misthink money and how to spend smarter) Becoming by Michelle Obama Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life by William Finnegan (Winner of 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Autobiog

Tough times never last, but tough people do

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The theme for our second story slam was GOOD TIMES, BAD TIMES and featured six storytellers from our club  ( Jenny, Raj, Anne, Jennifer, Bernice, and Kathleen ) . We heard stories about saving a stranger's life while on a kayak, the challenges of parenthood, and even a story about a fire incident.   Anne won best story and storyteller with her  impassioned and harrowing  story about her encounter with a wild bear in nature. Congrats Anne!

Virtual Story Slam: Good Times, Bad Times

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  We are thrilled to announce that we are hosting a second virtual story slam! Members will compete to tell the best story around the theme “Good Times, Bad Times.” Think of it as extended table topics where you tell us a happy story marred by a tragedy or a tragic story with a redemptive ending.  Storytellers: You have 5 minutes to take the *virtual* stage and share your story. We have 6-7 participants competing to win over the audience with their tale. External club sign ups are closed for this round. Audience: You'll be one of the judges! At the end of the meeting you will all get to vote on your favorite story. You will be sent a google form link during the meeting. To Attend: There is no charge to register or attend. You must register to attend . Once you register, we'll send you a confirmation email that includes the link to tune in on November 30. We will begin promptly at a 12:05 pm that afternoon. You are welcome to bring your lunch. It's sure to be an entertaining

Quarterly Special Event: Tips & Tricks

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Hello Townsend Toastmasters club! Join us for a special meeting this Monday where club alumni will be leading a workshop on how to take your speech evaluations and table topics to the next level. See you there!  

Table Topics Session Recap

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As someone whose job is all about public speaking, one thing I love about our club is that it’s a great place to experiment. I was able to take advantage of this when I served as Toastmaster on Feb. 1 and led a meeting that was dedicated to Table Topics.  I had the club utilize the Zoom “Annotate” feature. You can use to allow attendees to mark up images with various tools. You can add specific shapes, draw lines, select different colors etc. I had been interested in how such tools could be used with a map to talk about our experiences with different places.  I used Zoom’s screen sharing feature to display a map of San Francisco. Our Table Topics started with me picking a particular SF location and asking the speaker to give a hypothetical tour of the site. They were welcome to provide factual or fictitious information. At the end of each Table Topic, we then used Zoom’s poll feature to vote on whether we thought the speaker was telling the truth or not.  Each Table Topic spea

Special Table Topics Session

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Wish you could speak up in meetings with more confidence? Do you hold back and not say much because you’re worried you’ll say the wrong thing or be judged?  Join Townsend Toastmasters for this special fun event where we'll get to practice speaking on the spot, off the cuff and impromptu! It’s a safe, friendly environment to play around with answers to a topic. Come to participate, or come to watch and enjoy (and perhaps participate next time!) Here’s how to register for this no-cost event: email us at  tt-membership@googlegroups.com  or fill out this form

Our club’s 2019-2020 accomplishments

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Just as each individual Toastmaster member has goals, so too does each club. Here’s what you helped Townsend nail this past year. President’s Distinguished Club This is Toastmasters International’s highest recognition. We've achieved the award two years in a row. The criteria, or “club goals” to attaining this award: a mix of members completing Pathways levels, membership stats, officers trained, and administrative items completed. March Madness Clubs renewing at least 75% of their base membership by April 15 receive $50 in District 4 credit (our club is in District 4). Smedley Award and Smedley Stretch Award Clubs adding 5 or more new, reinstated, or dual members between August 1 and September 30 receive the “Smedley Award” from Toastmasters International. Clubs that add 7 or more new, reinstated, or dual members during that time also receive the “Smedley Stretch” and earn $50 in District credit. Plan 4 Success  Clubs that send a copy of their completed  Club Success Plan  signed

Virtual Story Slam Winners

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The votes and feedback are in and our first ever Story Slam was a smashing success!  We had 6 speakers (Rodney, Akshay, Jenny, Bernice, Roberta, Kathleen) who all did an excellent job telling really interesting and informative stories in very engaging ways. The virtual story slam brought in 5 guests and 2 from out of the country!  One from Toronto and another  from Holland. Best Story: After the vote tally the winner is Kathleen !  Amazing achievement considering she delivered her first ever speech today which was a captivating story about her recent work and the challenges of a census enumerator. Best Storyteller: Jenny !  Who told us an impassioned and harrowing backpacking story.

Townsend Toastmasters Club

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Looking to improve your speaking and leadership skills? Ignite your career? Win that job interview?   We are a part of Toastmasters International , which has helped people all over the world with their communication and leadership skills. Ours is an open club that provides a warm welcoming environment to improve your speaking skills. We have members from companies around the area and everyone is welcome to join us. How Does It Work? A Toastmasters meeting is a learn-by-doing workshop in which participants hone their speaking and leadership skills in a no-pressure atmosphere. Guests are welcome - Please email us! (We're meeting virtually due to COVID-19) Questions?  Drop us a note .