home

This is an archived story from the July 1, 2006- June 30, 2007 period of the HealthToasters Toastmaster Club

Spring Speech Contests

Club Contests in March,

Host for Central Division Contest in April,

Just another Speech Contest in June

Last update: June 2007

We were host club for April 13 Central Division Speech Contest!

On Friday the 13th, we were lucky to be the host club as winners from the 6 Areas in our Division competed for the spring season at our building.

There are two different contests for this 2007 spring season. Each Toastmaster club has their own contest or selection process to choose a representative from the club. Our club speech contest was March 12. Ed Burke is our winner in the International Speech Contest (5-7 minutes) and John Zimmerman is our winner in the Tall Tales Contest (3-5 minutes). Winners could compete again at the Area 1 contest on March 27. Ed Burke did compete and delivered an excellent speech but was nudged out of the winner circle. HealthToasters is in Area 1 that groups five clubs. We had four contestants in each of the two contests at our area level.

Winners from the six areas within the Central Division then competed at the division level contest April 13. We were the host club as the successful contest was held in the HealthPartners building.

Contestants for Tall Tales were Steve Pickett, Michael Lust, Laurance Anderson, Craig Partridge, William Douglas, and Maria Di Iorio. Contestants for the International Speech contest were Kent Hawks, Dennis Carney, Michael Lust, and Bonnie Laabs.

It was a marvelous contest with an appreciative audience.

Kathy Neumiller, Central Division Governor, organized the contest with the help of our member Randy Haukom as Contest Chair. Our club Sergeant-at-Arms, Ryan Hove had the room prepared very well. Other HealthToaster members helping out in various roles such as judges, greeters, and timers were Becky Osland, Paul Jackson, Shelly Kramer, Ed Burke, and Duane Noto. Of course there was plenty of help from the other Central Division clubs too, as well as District 6 dignitaries.

The ten divisions within Toastmaster District 6 will send the winners on to the contests at the District Spring Convention on April 26-27. See the District 6 web site for complete information on the Spring Convention and the other contests. The District Convention is in our Bloomington, MN neighborhood too as it is across the street from our building at the Holiday Inn Select Minneapolis/St Paul International Airport Hotel, 3 Appletree Square, I-494 & 34th Avenue South.

International Speech Contest (5-7 minutes)

It is called the International Speech Contest because is it the one contest where the contestants can advance past the District level going to the Regional level and on to the Toastmaster International platform.

Tall Tales Contest (3-5 minutes)

Tall Tales provides participants with the opportunity to create an original, highly improbable, humorous tale.

Speech Contest Purpose

To provide an opportunity for speakers to improve their speaking abilities.
To provide an opportunity to learn by observing the more proficient speakers who have benefited from their Toastmasters training.

Congrats to Shelly and to Randy at Just Another Speech Contest - June 5

Shelly Kramer wins Tall Tales contest at "Just Another Speech Contest" held June 5, 2007 in a special event that combined three Toastmaster clubs. Randy Haukom took second place in an International Speech competition. We also enjoyed entries in a Humorous Speech contest. HealthToasters Eileen Bendtsen, Ed Burke, and Duane Noto also participated in the event. With her speech, "Oregon Berries and Bees", Shelly completed Project #5 - Your Body Speaks toward her Competent Communicator award. Randy completed Project #4 The Touching Story in the Storytelling manual.

This final speech contest of the season was held on the same campus as our usual venue and hosted by the Dynamic Speakers Club that meets in a neighboring building to ours in Bloomington. A parent employer, General Dynamics, provides the relationship for them to our third club, Generally Speaking, which meets in another part of Bloomington.
In all, eight finely crafted speeches were delivered in the three categories and were very much enjoyed by the audience that included guests from the employees of the General Dynamics building. Our congratulations go to the other contestants and winners. Gerard Drewek won the International Speech contest. Andy Johnson won the Humorous Speech Contest. Each of the three clubs brought home a winner. Rick Zieman was our Toastmaster for the event.

{pictured: Shelly Kramer. Photographer: Randy Haukom}