August 2, 2017 minutes

The August 2nd meeting of T-Toasters of Vinings was held in Building 1 as our regular meeting room was unavailable.  Despite this challenge, Sergeant at Arms Josue managed to start the meeting promptly at 6:00,  Kudos Josue!  Mitzi served as Toastmaster with a theme of Superstitions.  Mitzi's mom was very superstitious, and she and her siblings grew up thinking "everyone was going to die!"  Mitzi explained that superstitions exist because people sought an explanation for all of the things that happen in life.

Theresa served as General Evaluator and led a team including Greg as Grammarian, Jasmine as Ah-Counter, Jim as Timer, and Justin as Ballot Counter.  Greg's word of the day was "shenanigans", which was used by both Jasmine and Theresa.

Devin was the first speaker of the evening with his Icebreaker speech entitled "Life Thus Far".  Devin has had a long career in avionics and electronics.  He was born in St. Paul, Minnesota and has learned to identify his strengths which include his analytical abilities, his adaptability, and his public speaking ability.  Devin's Evaluator, Christian, complimented him on his calm demeanor, and how easy it was to listen to him.  Congratulations on completing your first speech, Devin!

Best Speaker Winner Carin used her magic wand to inspire the audience with her tenth CC speech "It's Magic... Wait No It Isn't".  Balancing her serious message about taking responsibility for one's life with humor and humility, Carin shared some of the struggles she has experienced and the lessons she has learned about one's ability to change their circumstances.  Carin's Evaluator, Kristina, commented on the "emotional rollercoaster" of a speech Carin gave, and complimented her ability to take listeners on that journey with vulnerability and emotion.  

Beverly was our thired speaker with "Finding Success".  In her signature style, Beverly immediately grabbed the audience's attention with her visual aid, Mr. Procrastination who was hanging over her head.  Andrea, Beverly's Evaluator complimented her powerful call to action along with her talent for creating moving and entertaining speeches at a moment's notice.

Tiffini presented "What's the Skinny: How a Bill Becomes a Law".  Tiffini gave us a "high school civics" style refresher on this key element of our lawmaking process, detailing the steps with the addition of some interesting stories and entertaining examples.  Best Evaluator Suzanne said that Tiffini is a "born, natural speaker.  You take command as soon as you step up." 

Building upon the evening's theme, Table Topics Master George called upon MCG to tell us thee role her parents played in the development of her superstitious beliefs, Lori to tell whether or not she was afraid of the dark, Josue to share about a Hispanic superstition, and guest Yashika who spoke about her Southern superstitions.

General Evaluator Theresa reminded the 19 members and 2 guests in attendance of the Toastmaster's Mission as well as the importance of watching our meeting timing, and President Jim closed out the meeting with his thoughts.