Page 16 - voicesdec2014
P. 16
m “Heck No!” to “Heck YES!”: Club
Coach Reflections
By Jason Kent, ACS, ALB
Heck no! That was the first thought in my mind when asked by then-District 7
Lt. Governor Education/Training Phyllis Harmon if I would coach Rose City
Toasters, a club primarily consisting of inmates at Columbia River
Correctional Institution in Portland.
I had asked for a District 7 Club Coach assignment so I could meet the requirements of the Advanced
Leader Silver award. But my geographical and time restrictions left only the Rose City Toasters as a
viable coaching opportunity for the 2013-2014 year.
My initial reaction, Heck no!, was only due to a fear of the unknown, and it didn’t take long for my
mind to change when Prison Club Coordinator and then-Region 2 Advisor Allan Edinger filled me in
on the details of prison clubs. I began coaching Rose City Toasters in October 2013 and became a
club member in mid-2014. To this day I continue to be impressed, both by the men who are working
hard to turn their lives around, but also by the way my preconceptions about inmates are proven
wrong.
Like any Toastmasters club, Rose City Toasters is training leaders and communicators. The club officer
council gives inmates leadership opportunities they haven’t had
access to in the past, and they effectively lead the club with a focus
on serving the educational needs of the members while meeting
and exceeding the goals set for them in the Distinguished Club
Plan. The level of speaking ability is wide-ranging just like other
clubs. But some Rose City Toasters members are truly special
speakers and have unique and poignant life experiences that can
translate to powerful inspiration for others. And it is impressive to
me that most of these members would never have dreamed of
being Toastmasters just a few short months or years ago.
But to me, the most impressive thing is how many of the members bring fellow inmates – guests –
into the group. To say the least, some of the guests are less than sold on Toastmasters – some of them
are painfully shy or introverted and are petrified to speak in front of a group. But what Rose City
Toasters does so effectively is mentor and encourage these new members to come out of their shells.
For some of them, simply giving their first Table Topic Speech is a thrilling achievement. And most
impressively, the mentors are not always seasoned, experienced Toastmasters – some are only a few
months or a few speeches into their Competent Communicator Manual but believe so strongly in the
Toastmasters mission that they want to share their enthusiasm with others.
This story sums up the Rose City Toasters prison club in a nutshell. I asked the members which of the
Success/Leadership or Success/Communication projects they would like to hear in an upcoming
meeting. They overwhelmingly selected “How to Listen Effectively.” What maturity.
(Continued on page 17)
16
Coach Reflections
By Jason Kent, ACS, ALB
Heck no! That was the first thought in my mind when asked by then-District 7
Lt. Governor Education/Training Phyllis Harmon if I would coach Rose City
Toasters, a club primarily consisting of inmates at Columbia River
Correctional Institution in Portland.
I had asked for a District 7 Club Coach assignment so I could meet the requirements of the Advanced
Leader Silver award. But my geographical and time restrictions left only the Rose City Toasters as a
viable coaching opportunity for the 2013-2014 year.
My initial reaction, Heck no!, was only due to a fear of the unknown, and it didn’t take long for my
mind to change when Prison Club Coordinator and then-Region 2 Advisor Allan Edinger filled me in
on the details of prison clubs. I began coaching Rose City Toasters in October 2013 and became a
club member in mid-2014. To this day I continue to be impressed, both by the men who are working
hard to turn their lives around, but also by the way my preconceptions about inmates are proven
wrong.
Like any Toastmasters club, Rose City Toasters is training leaders and communicators. The club officer
council gives inmates leadership opportunities they haven’t had
access to in the past, and they effectively lead the club with a focus
on serving the educational needs of the members while meeting
and exceeding the goals set for them in the Distinguished Club
Plan. The level of speaking ability is wide-ranging just like other
clubs. But some Rose City Toasters members are truly special
speakers and have unique and poignant life experiences that can
translate to powerful inspiration for others. And it is impressive to
me that most of these members would never have dreamed of
being Toastmasters just a few short months or years ago.
But to me, the most impressive thing is how many of the members bring fellow inmates – guests –
into the group. To say the least, some of the guests are less than sold on Toastmasters – some of them
are painfully shy or introverted and are petrified to speak in front of a group. But what Rose City
Toasters does so effectively is mentor and encourage these new members to come out of their shells.
For some of them, simply giving their first Table Topic Speech is a thrilling achievement. And most
impressively, the mentors are not always seasoned, experienced Toastmasters – some are only a few
months or a few speeches into their Competent Communicator Manual but believe so strongly in the
Toastmasters mission that they want to share their enthusiasm with others.
This story sums up the Rose City Toasters prison club in a nutshell. I asked the members which of the
Success/Leadership or Success/Communication projects they would like to hear in an upcoming
meeting. They overwhelmingly selected “How to Listen Effectively.” What maturity.
(Continued on page 17)
16
