Page 18 - 2016 July voices

SUCCESSFUL CLUB
Fun in the Morning With Yaquina Toastmasters
By Marisa N.C. Litz, CC, Secretary, Yaquina Toastmasters
Members of Yaquina for “Word of the Day,” and information on
Toastmasters in Newport, Oregon, get up early on
Tuesday mornings for their weekly 7 a.m. break-
fast meetings at the Pig ’N Pancake restaurant
on Highway 101. By 8 a.m., when most people
are just beginning their day, club members have
already achieved a sense of accomplishment.
Yaquina Toastmasters was founded over 50
years ago and continues to attract new members
despite meeting at such an early hour. Our
club consists of long-standing members, many
of whom are retired and have been attending
meetings for over 20 years, and new recruits
from a cross-section of the community: students,
scientists, professionals, small-business owners, a
writer and a city councilor.Yaquina Toastmasters
value positive attitudes, respect, support and
growth, but above all we strive to create a fun
and safe learning environment. The experienced
old-timers draw upon their collective decades
of experience to gently mentor and guide the
newcomers. One of our long-standing members
and Vice President of Education, Dave Coffman,
made it all the way to the World Championship
of Public Speaking in Las Vegas in 2012. Dave is
a gifted speaker and an inspiration to us all. Each
week, we hear one or two manual speeches and
Table Topics. The goals of our speech evalua-
tions are to highlight positive attributes of the
speech and provide constructive feedback for
future growth. After the speech evaluations, we
eagerly await to hear who won the coveted Table
Topics trophy, an esteemed honor. The victors
are encouraged to take the trophy home for the
week and proudly display it to his or her friends,
family and co-workers.
One of the best examples of effective
cross-generational communication at Yaquina
Toastmasters is our use of social media in
promoting our club. We encourage readers
to check out and “like” our Facebook page,
“Newport Toastmasters,” where we post photos
of the Table Topics winners along with helpful
information on public speaking, suggestions
18 Volume 3 Issue 1 - JULY 2016
where we meet for potential newcomers. Our
youngest member, recent high-school grad-
uate, and Vice President of Public Relations,
Lauralee Norris, has exciting plans for elevating
our status on social media this year, so stay
tuned! She is supported by her father, Brian
Norris, who is also our club President.
Yaquina Toastmasters achieved
Distinguished Status in May 2016. We did this
by supporting one another and by making
our meetings a welcoming and fun space for
ourselves and the community in general.
We track our progress on poster boards and
encourage guests to join us for a delicious
breakfast. We even celebrate the holidays with
appropriately themed speeches and activities.
Each year, we host the Newport Loyalty
Days Court as members of the Court prepare
public speeches. The Loyalty Days Court
consists of bright and talented young women
nominated for their public service to repre-
sent Newport during a parade that recognizes
the heritage of American freedom. Yaquina
Toastmasters helps these young women polish
their public personas and to exemplify the
cross-generational community spirit that we
wish to convey.
Join us every Tuesday morning from 7–7:50
a.m. at the Pig ’N Pancake restaurant in
Newport.