|
Renew your membership dues this week!
Why Renew? Because You Matter. đź’™
Renewing your membership isn’t just paying dues—it’s
choosing yourself. It’s saying yes to your growth, your voice, and your
dreams. It's being able to bring all parts of yourself to your pursuits, including showcasing your Finnish heritage at the annual convention!
When you renew, you:
✨Stay connected to a community that believes in you.
✨Keep the safe space where you can take risks, stumble, and soar.
✨Continue a journey that transforms not just how you speak—but how you lead, connect, and live.
Renewing is more than a transaction—it’s a commitment to your
future self. đź’«
If your club offers self-pay, it takes just a minute to renew! Don't delay! Do it today!
Special note: Your club has the chance to receive the Great
Start Program incentive ($75 D2 Dollars!) if the following is completed by
September 15th!
· 8 member payments
· 4 club officers trained
· Club Success Plan submitted
o And when your club completes its Club Success Plan, it ensures that every member has the support, structure, and
encouragement to reach new heights together!
o Click here to view the 74 clubs that have submitted their club success plans.
District 2 Director, Anu Jokinen
| | | | D2 IS DOING 'THE PUYALLUP' FAIR, AGAIN, THURSDAY 9/11/25! | |
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED. FREE ENTRY AND PARKING.
CONTACT DEBRA HARTMANN AT (253) 355-8196
| | TOASTMASTERS INTERNATIONAL NEWS | |
World Champion of Public Speaking RESULTS!
- 1st Place - Sabyasachi Sengupta from Netherlands,
District 59, Region 10
Just Nod
- 2nd Place - Mas Mahathir Bin Mohd from Malaysia,
District 51, Region 13
Raindrops
- 3rd Place - Allen Ang Boon Kiat from Brunei,
District 87, Region 9
Keep Dreaming
| |  |
Key Renewal Information
- Dues amount: $60 USD per member
- Submission deadline: October 1, 2025
- Minimum requirement: 8 members (including at least 3 renewing members)
- Speech contest eligibility: Contestants must have submitted their dues payment before the start of the contest to be eligible
- District Council Meeting eligibility: Your club must be in good standing for your club’s President and Vice President Education to be eligible to vote
Need help? Check out the Renewal Dues FAQ or email renewals@toastmasters.org.
| | | | | |
Club Success Plans Are The Roadmap to Distinguished
District 2 is Smedley Bound!
We have four weeks before the window of opportunity closes for timely submission of your Club's Success Plan. Visit this week's Distinguished Office Hour to answer questions and/or work on your Club's Success Plan?
Join us on Wednesday, September 10th, 2025 , for the next Distinguished Office Hour
Time: 7:00 – 8:00 PM Pacific Time, 6:00 – 7:00 PM Alaska Time
| | |
Would you like to help your Club grow, be more productive, and improve your Members engagement?
One of the tools that Toastmasters offers is the Moments of Truth (MoT) process.
The process is designed to help Clubs take an introspective look at how they work, how they believe they are perceived, and what they could do to improve.
To start a MoT process for your Club, please have a Club Officer send an email with your Club name, Club number, and contact name and email to the MoT Chair, Richard Ripley (Richard.Ripley@comcast.net).
Please use a subject line of “MoT process request, club name and number”
| |
Your Voice Matters
Let’s Shape District 2 2Gether!
What’s on your mind? What fuels your growth? What do you want more of in your Toastmasters journey?
Every week, we share one short survey to help us get to know you better — your goals, your challenges, your ideas. It’s our way of listening so we can build stronger clubs, better opportunities, and an experience that truly fits what you need.
Your feedback isn’t just data — it’s a spark for positive change. Take a minute this week to share your thoughts and help us keep Toastmasters member-focused and future-ready.
One survey. One minute. One stronger community.
Take the Survey of the Week!
We’ll be featuring a different survey each week and sharing the link on the District website. Your voice helps us grow together, one response at a time.
Please reach out to Roberta Craig, PQD, if you have any questions.
| |
Joining the Smedley Challenge
The Smedley Award program runs from August 1 to September 30. Toastmasters International provides details on eligibility and how to participate. To qualify, clubs need to add five new, dual, or reinstated members with a join date within the specified period. The addition of transfer and charter members does not count towards Smedley Award credit. Applications and payments for new members must be received by Toastmasters International or submitted online no later than September 30.
How to grow your club and earn the award?
- Host an open house
- Leverage social media
- Engage with potential members
By actively participating in the Smedley Award challenge, clubs can boost their membership, strengthen their programs, and earn well-deserved recognition for their achievements. This fosters a thriving and supportive environment that benefits all members.
Our District Club Growth Director, Joanna Tavera is ready to help you get started!
| | |
Our Public Relations Committee will have it's launch soon!. Ready to unleash your creativity? Ready to try something new? Ready to make an impact?
Reach out to our Public Relations Committee, today—there is still time to make some magic happen together!
| | |
🎥 Frame by Frame: Your Toastmasters Guide to Video Mastery – No. 8
10 Tips to Look Great on Video and Online Meetings
In today’s professional world, video is your stage. Looking good on camera is not about vanity—it’s about responsibility to your audience.
I created a short training that shares my Top 10 Tips for showing up strong on video and in online meetings. These strategies will help you project confidence, clarity, and credibility—whether you’re delivering a Toastmasters speech, leading a team meeting, or presenting a training.
https://youtu.be/RsnjqEmLgRY
Let’s keep raising the standard for how we show up virtually.
Sparkle & Shine, Friends!
Got questions or a topic you would love covered?
Email me at: k@kellyafallucca.com
Subject: Starburst Request
I would love to hear from you!
Let’s create the kind of presence that draws people
in and grows our clubs.
WATCH REPLAY
Connect with me on LinkedIn
Public Speaking Northwest Toastmasters Website
Public Speaking Northwest Toastmasters YouTube Channel
Sparkle & Shine, Friends!
Kelly Fallucca
VPPR, Public Speaking Northwest Toastmasters
D2 Area Director, C35
| |
|
September. Time flies. We’re starting to get darker at night, and the chill is in the air. There’s a sense of urgency about fitting in all the summer things before the year settles back into the hustle and bustle of back-to-school. There’s no time for a writing project.
Right?
What if I told you, you are still a writer even if you only write for five minutes a day?
And what if I told you that this five minute practice could make you better and more focused at work and more present for home life?
Well, let’s try it.
Grab your phone. (No, not for scrolling!!) Pull up your alarms, and set a timer for five minutes. Grab something to write on. If you don’t have a notebook handy, grab some paper out of the printer or even the back of some junk mail.
Before you start writing, I want you to close your eyes for just a second, and let yourself come into the moment. What are the top five things on your mind right now? No judgments, no desire to “write” them in any coherent manner, just what are your top five things?
Hit the timer to start and go. Make a list, write a narrative, heck, write yourself an email. “The top five things on my mind right now are…” and go.
Try it, and see how the rest of your day goes. Try it again tomorrow. I’d love to know how the experience goes for you.
Write on!
| | | | |
The Confidence You Can't Measure
by Vincent Tang
When you do something good for yourself, you often want to see instant results. For me, Toastmasters is like meditation—unfortunately, the results aren’t always something we can visibly see or measure.
As someone who craves instant feedback—and who wanted to share the joy of these activities—I found it difficult to convince guests or friends of the benefits of something that has no obvious metric. How do you measure calm? How do you measure confidence?
After a meditation session, my instructor once mentioned that it was important to take our practice off the mat. During those moments when emotions threaten to spiral out of control, we should remind ourselves to return to the basics: breathing in and breathing out. That’s one way to know you’ve truly become calmer.
Can we relate this same principle to confidence? Why not take our Toastmasters practice outside the meeting room (or virtual room) as well?
This perspective helped me realize that Toastmasters skills can and should be carried into daily life. For me, it wasn’t about counting every “uh” and “um,” but about improving the way I connected in everyday conversations.
As someone who has wrestled with social anxiety, I often reflect on Table Topics. That exercise reminds me that speaking is about sharing openly, giving others space to do the same, and being ready for open-ended questions.
I was surprised at how natural it felt when I reframed it this way—like simply doing what I always practice, but beyond a Toastmasters meeting. Perhaps that’s the secret to confidence: carrying the reminder into real life.
The more we practice, the more we step into a new identity—and the harder it becomes to deny it. For example, if you speak every week, it becomes harder to say you are not a speaker, or that you are shy, timid, or any other self-deprecating label.
Just as meditation isn’t about what happens on the mat but about how you breathe through life, Toastmasters isn’t only about what happens in the meeting—it’s about who you become outside of it. And perhaps it’s in that daily practice, carried quietly into the world, that true confidence takes root.
| | |
Amy McFarlane
Amy is serving as Area 92 Director for 2025-26, having served two times in the former District 32. Amy always goes above and beyond in everything she does. She's been a pleasure to work with on a multi-Area speech contest. She was well organized, knowledgeable and a joy to work with. She is friendly, and remains calm under pressure. (envision attempting to herd cats-- aka Toastmasters--while running a multi-Area speech contest!) Amy has served her home club as a club officer nearly every year (Top of the World Toastmasters in Anchorage, AK), and she is engaged and pro-active as an Area Director. Amy recently held an Area Council meeting, she listened attentively to what those in attendance had to say, and then produced minutes and the draft of the Area Success Plan document. Thank you Amy for your friendly, supportive, engaged, encouraging, poised, and professional leadership!
| | | |
|
Contest Confidential:
From Wannabe to Winner
Presented by Leading Edge Toastmasters
Announcing the “Contest Confidential”, the Contest Prep Series by Leading Edge Toastmasters!
Thinking about competing in upcoming Toastmasters speech contests? Leading Edge Toastmasters invites you to join us for our regular club meetings through the end of December to hear from advanced Toastmasters to help you prepare to compete.
What to Expect
Now through the end of December, each of Leading Edge’s monthly club meetings will feature a keynote presentation to help you prepare to compete in the upcoming Contest Season. And who better to kick off the series on Saturday, September 20th than our very own Winner of the 2025 District 2 International Speech Contest, Benny Mobley!!
With his speech titled, “Contest Speech Preparation: “The Power of Character and Dialogue in Storytelling”, Benny will teach you the 5 distinct types of dialog that can take your speech to the next level.
How to Attend
To join the Leading Edge Club meeting, please log on to Zoom on September 20th by 8:30 AM Pacific.
Series Dates
Intrigued? Interested? To get the most from the experience, plan now and block out all of the dates for this exciting series!
-
Saturday, September 20th at 8:30 AM Pacific on Zoom
-
Saturday, October 18 at 8:30 AM Pacific on Zoom
-
Saturday, November 15 at 8:30 AM Pacific on Zoom
-
Saturday, November 29 at 8:30 AM Pacific on Zoom or in-person at St. John’s Episcopal Church (105 State St, Kirkland, WA)
-
Saturday, December 20 at 8:30 AM Pacific on Zoom
Get Ready to Take your Contest Experience to the Next Level!
Don’t miss out on this unique experience to hear from some of District 2’s most-celebrated speakers and leaders as we present key concepts that will raise the bar on your contest readiness.
Contest Season is just around the corner, and now is the time to hone the skills that will take your contest speech all the way!
| | | |
|
Palmer Toastmasters Celebrates Our 15th Club Anniversary!
Thursday, September 25th, 2025
Palmer Toastmasters is located in the small, rural, historic community of Palmer, Alaska. We are a club of ROCK stars, & will soon celebrate our 15th anniversary!
We are rural--the nearest TM club to the south is 38 miles away, or 330 miles to the north.
Our youngest and one of our newest members is planning a special celebration, and we invite you to join us as we celebrate this milestone and create new milestone memories!
Join us in person or via Zoom, Thursday, September 25th, 5:30 PM AK Time/6:30 PM Pacific time. Our website provides the address/Zoom link.
| | | | |
Is your club holding a special event? Celebrating a milestone? Or want people to know of a significant upcoming meeting they should join? Want to include your post here for next week's newsletter?
Fill out this form to submit your post request
| |
2025/2026 Starburst Submission Guidelines
We're excited to share our guidelines for submitting articles to Starburst, our official District 2 newsletter. Your club's special activities deserve the spotlight, and we're here to help you shine!
Guidelines for Article Submissions:
-
Topic: Focus on club special events.
-
Word Limit: Try to limit posts to 200 words or less.
-
Images: You may include one image with your article. Ensure it follows the Toastmasters Brand Manual (You may have to login to the Toastmasters main Site to access) and contains minimal text. We're happy to help create one if needed. If the image doesn't meet TM guidelines, we'll work with you or recreate it if we don't hear back.
-
Contact Information: All articles must include your club website and/or a contact email for more information.
-
Event Posts: Submit up to three consecutive posts for a single event.
-
Deadline to Submit: 5:00 PM on the Friday before the upcoming Monday Starburst release.
Submission Process:
- Use the submission form to send us your article requests.
- We look forward to showcasing your amazing events in Starburst!
If you have any questions or need more clarity, feel free to reach out to Marty Varela
| |
Starburst Suggestion Box
Have a Starburst suggestion? Please check out our Starburst Suggestion Box (only 5 questions), to help us improve the Starburst Newsletter!
| | How did you like this week's Starburst? | | | | This newsletter was edited by - Marty Varela, Disclaimer: The information in this newsletter is for the sole use of Toastmasters members for Toastmasters business only. It is not to be used for solicitation and distribution of non-Toastmasters materials or information. | | | | |
