District 106

Newsletter

April 2024

From the Desk of the District Director

Renew, renewals, and refresh! March 31 has come and gone, but it isn’t too late to renew your Toastmasters club dues! Member numbers in District 106 have been growing throughout the program year. Take advantage of this cost-effective communication and leadership opportunity! Remind those who have not renewed and continue to invite others. I continue to receive good news from clubs which have been intentional about open house meetings. They are gaining new members! Join us and let’s continue to grow together!

Spring speech competition season is in full swing! Congratulations to our club, area, and division contest winners! Your preparation and creative energy are much appreciated! Please continue to volunteer to assist as a contest official whenever possible. Many hands make light work, and it is rewarding work.

Speech contests culminate at our District 106 Conference. Program Quality Director Katy Hursh, DTM, and her team are hard at work preparing what will be an outstanding – AMAZING! – event. It is close to home: Brooklyn Park, MN. Register today and prepare to come out to interact with your fellow Toastmasters and to meet new friends. Toastmasters International First Vice President Aletta Rochat is our keynote speaker and will conduct a workshop as well. We plan to reserve presentation of many awards until a summer TLI on 27 July, but DTMs and some other awards will be presented at conference and we will engage Aletta to help present those awards!

We continue to get leads on prospective clubs. We have a proven product which people want to experience! Engage Matt Villella, DTM, with your new club ideas today!

District 106 Council will meet on 27 April at noon central time for a candidates showcase, to consider district business, and to elect our District 106 leadership team for the Toastmasters program year 01 JUL 2024 to 30 JUN 2025. The District Executive Committee and each club’s President and VP Education are voting members of the District Council. Register today and plan to participate. Your club deserves a voice! Registration CLOSES at 5pm central time on 26 April. Don’t be shut out! Meeting Registration - Zoom

Speaking of awards! Each club should be actively engaged in nominating a club member as Outstanding Toastmaster for the 2023-24 program year. Complete your nomination form and send it to your Area Director (Division Director if your area doesn’t have an Area Director). Outstanding individuals may be recognized as Outstanding Toastmaster for your Area. Area Directors will forward the names of those individuals and Division Directors will have the difficult job of selecting the most Outstanding Toastmaster from their Division. Those individuals will be considered by the District Director, Program Quality Director, and Club Growth Director for the honor of being named District 106 Toastmaster of the Year 2023-2024.

District 106 has the distinct honor of hosting First Vice President Rochat for a few special events during the week leading up to D106 conference. Here is an opportunity to have lunch with Aletta while having a conversation about how Toastmasters leadership skills are transferable and can benefit you both in and out of Toastmasters. Attendance is limited, but if you are interested in being part of this conversation, then register now!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lunch-learn-lead-a-conversation-

with-aletta-rochat-tickets-879557930447

See you at a Division speech contest, an event with Aletta prior to conference, and especially at D106 Conference!

Edward Aylward, DTM

District Director, District 106

From the Desk of the Program Quality Director

Register today for the D106 Conference! You don't want to miss this. Meal ticket sales end on April 19. Full details are available on the D106 website, or you can register directly with this link.

Katy Hursh

Program Quality Director, District 106

Look Who's 40!

Have you heard? The Land O'Lakes Buttermasters are turning 40! We'll have cupcakes! We'll have butter balls! We'll have photos and stories from Toastmasters in the 1980s! Will we have you?

Join us to reminisce and help chart the future for this storied club.

Register now!

Date: Wednesday April 17, 2024

Time: 4:30pm-6:00pm

Venue: Land O'Lakes Corporate HQ, Arden Hills, MN

From the Desk of the Club Growth Director

The question I get asked often, what is Toastmasters and why do you do it?

I joined Toastmasters as I had a real uncomfortable feeling every time I had to speak in public. I wanted to be the best I can be, and Toastmasters has allowed me to be better. I am not perfect, and I have a lot of work to do, which is why I stay. Also, I stay because of the great people I have met on the way. Toastmasters is my mandatory Professional Development - the one thing I do to make sure I am growing and challenging myself.

What is your why? Sharing your experiences with other people is the best form of recommendation we can get as an organization. It’s important to figure out your why and really sell this. Toastmasters has done so much for so many, and we have welcomed over 250 brand new members to our district. We have repurposed two clubs, including the Grand Marais Club and Next Gen Toastmasters. We have opened the door for new Toastmasters to grow and develop their skills. Toastmasters is much more than Public Speaking - it’s about leadership, friendship, growth, self discovery, and being the best you can be. Do us a favor and bring someone to a club to help grow our district. Having a strong club not only helps everybody in your club, but it helps your Area, Division, and District.

Just a reminder, we have incentives for clubs that have open houses and bring in two new members; please reach out and let me know how you are attracting guests to your club.

Let’s finish the next four months strong!

Matthew Villela, DTM

Club Growth Director, District 106

Email: tm.matthew.villella@gmail.com

From the Desk of the Public Relations Manager

Fellow Toastmasters and VP-PR’s!

Greetings to you all from the Office of the District PRM. Hope you all are doing well.

District 106 PRM has been hosting the PR Club contest for the last few years and we would like to continue this tradition of recognizing clubs that are doing the work for their club growth and sharing your success will help other clubs in the district. It’s an incredible opportunity to develop some new skills and help the district at the same time.

Reminder! The last date to submit your entries for our Public Relations Club Contest is April 30, 2024. Submit at: https://d106tm.org/club-pr-contests-submission-2024/

Our Public Relations Club contest includes:

• Best Website
• Best Press Release/ News Article
• Best Social Media
• Best Club Event Promotion
• Best Corporate Club Promotion
• Best Video of sharing success story of the Club

Since we are getting close to the end of the current term, I hereby call upon fellow Toastmasters who are interested in serving District 106 for the year 2024-2025 as a Chief Web Editor or Social Media Enthusiast. My experience serving the district has been fun and rewarding - the experience you gain here is tremendous and the skills can be applied to growth in many careers. Don't let this great opportunity pass you by! I look forward to hearing from you.

PRM Team [Ashok, Jason]

Ashok Sunkavalli

2023-2024 District 106 Public Relations Manager

ashoksunkavalli@gmail.com

Cell: (319) 431-2415

Follow us on D106 Website, Facebook, X, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok for exciting updates, inspiration, and more.

District 106 Social channel presence by the Numbers:

Facebook: 477 X (Formerly Twitter): 209 LinkedIn: 219 Instagram: 311 YouTube: 161 TikTok: 52

From the Desk of the Club Growth Chair

Did you know that creating new clubs is part of every Toastmasters District's goals? However, the District needs you to assist with this goal. In return for serving as a new club mentor or sponsor, you get an important credit towards earning the Distinguished Toastmaster designation. 

How does this work? First, contact me to say you are interested in serving as a new club mentor or sponsor at Yprevost123@gmail.com.  I will add you to the list of candidates, and I will send you materials you will need to be successful. You should also be familiar with the Distinguished Club Program, the Club Success Plan, and Pathways. You will become the expert on helping the new club and its members to navigate Toastmasters programs work and ultimately succeed.

Second, I will have a chat with you to know what your goals are and how I can help you succeed at being a new club mentor or sponsor.  

Third, when a call for help with demo meetings comes up, if you are available to attend to help, it would go a long way to assigning you to that club. Finding a new club to serve is not easy. By becoming part of the new club mentor/sponsor team, this obstacle is removed and you will be on your way to earning your DTM.

Fourth, you will serve as a new club mentor/sponsor for at least six months, attending at least 90% of their meetings. You do not need to become a club member. You will help them define their club protocol and to understand what is expected of a Toastmasters meeting. You will be their guru.

The process is easy, the rewards are great! If this sounds like something you want to immerse yourself in, please sign up now to help establish new clubs in D106. You will strengthen your knowledge of Toastmasters, and further develop your leadership and communication skills. What are you waiting for? This is your opportunity to shine.

Yves Prévost DTM

Club Growth Chair

Yprevost123@gmail.com

From the Desk of the District Leadership Committee Chair

I'm excited to tell you about the awesome people who want to be our new leaders. We, the District Leadership committee, looked at their info and talked to them on Jan 17 & 18, 2024.

We're happy because all the candidates want to help the members of our districts and are ready to learn some advanced leadership skills.

Here are the candidates for 2024-25:

- Katy Hursh for District Director

- Matt Villella for Program Quality Director

- Anna Gaichas, Brian Perry, and Ashok Sunkavalli for Club Growth Director

- Lesley Harding for Division A Director

- Chengtao Wang for Division B Director

- Seth Baetzold for Division C Director

- Beth Plamondon for Division D Director

- Christa Walter for Division E Director

You'll get to know them better when they're introduced by Trio members in the Division Spring Contest. At the same time, you'll get some emails from contested positions like Club Growth Director.

Please join the Business Meeting on April 27, 2024. There will be a special part where candidates share their vision. After that, there will be an election. Make sure your Club President and VP of Education sign up and vote for the best candidate. You'll find the link on the D106 Calendar.

Yours in Toastmasters,

Gopu Shrestha, DTM

Chair, District Leadership Committee 2024-25

Toastmasters International District 106