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District 84 January Announcements

14 Jan 23 - Train the Trainer

10 Jan 23 and 15 Jan 23 - PathwayTraining 

Now Open - Conference Registration

Jan. and Feb. - Area Contests begin

February - TLI (Club Officer Training)

 

Registration for D84 Annual Conference - Now Open

 

Check your email that arrived in your inbox on 28 Dec 22 for District 84's - 'What's Happening in January?' update.  The JOT form to register for the conference is embedded in that notification. The Full conference rate is $169 and the VIP conference rate is $195.  Space is limited so register early: the last day to register is 12 Apr 23. 

Save the Date

If you have never attended District 84's Annual Conference then you have missed out.  This year's conference theme is "Under the Big Top". Be on the lookout for more information about the biggest event of the year.  More information from the district should come to you by email and tickets will be on sale soon!  If your email gets bogged down like mine, then be sure to follow this blog for up-to-date details, other great information, and topics of interest.

Behind His Spectacles

There are many reasons I love being a Toastmaster, but one unassuming benefit is meeting others and learning about their life experiences. Behind his spectacles, is a man whose journey, in part, is much different than many of us have ever experienced.

In September 2022, Charles Beauregard joined Early Bird Ocala, but Toastmasters was not his intended target. Charles went to the social media platform ‘Meet-Up’ in search of a meditation group; looking for more social interactions.  But, instead, he found Early Bird Ocala Toastmasters.  He told me “he liked the picture, [the] description and figured [he’d] give it a try.” It didn't take long before Charles joined the rest of us birds; since Charles is not much of a morning person he must be getting up for our club's morning call, 'Caw, Caw - Caw, Caw"!  Kidding aside, Charles finds Toastmasters cool and knows it will "only help [him] be more comfortable with new people, events and speaking".

Charles has lived abroad for the majority of his life primarily in Melbourne, Australia, and Auckland, New Zealand,  One of the perks of living in that region of the world is being close to Asia. This gave him the opportunity to make trips to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Korea. Moreover, Charles hopes to visit the Philippines, England, France, Ireland, and Scotland during his lifetime. I asked Charles if he had any life or cultural lessons, he would like to share from his time overseas? He said, “if you can, don’t bring up where you are from or how it is different”.  “People will judge your actions for being a foreigner, and accuse you of your country’s decisions”.  Charles went on to say that we should “accentuate the positive and don’t focus on what irks you. There is good in whatever place you find yourself; you just have to choose to see it.”  This is good advice right here folks; whether you are overseas or not – grow where you are planted.

When Charles is not dreaming about traveling you may find him engulfed in a favorite movie such as A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi, to name a few.  He is also an avid reader and has a few authors he is particularly fond of:  Phillip K. Dick, Neil Gaiman, Yasmine Galenorn, Lilith Saintcore, Chloe Neill, and more.  His favorite book is Idoru by William Gibson.

There is so much more I want to share with you about Charles, but let me leave you with two more interesting tidbits.  First, Charles is married to his wife Lucy of 24 years.  They have two children – Julian who is 19 and James who is 15.  They have no fur babies of their own, but he is known to “spoil, borrow and pay attention to everyone else’s pets when [he] visits”. Second, if there is one thing Charles would like to cross off his bucket list it would be getting his motorcycle endorsement. He would like to purchase a “Royal Enfield Himalayan 450 (not yet released), and bike around Florida and maybe even try some motorbike camping”.  Well, Charles, you are in the right state to make that happen. May next year bring you this joy.

It was a week before Christmas Eve 2022

It was a week before Christmas Eve when the birdies of Early Bird Ocala Toastmasters gathered together outside the nest.  This year our Christmas party was chaired by Carmen Cruz. A big thank you to Carmen for putting together a wonderfully organized party, but also a huge thank you to Mac Nicdergeses and her grandma for opening up their house for us to gather.  Each Toastmaster brought a side dish and true to fashion there was more food to eat than our stomachs could endure. After dinner, we sat in a circle and played 'Sue the Santa' (exchanged gifts) and then learned a new murder mystery game brought to us by our very own Mac, Morgan, and Tyler.  It was a good night!
 

Meet Colette 'Colly' Smith - Current EBOT President

When EBOT chartered, the club was mostly made up of married couples.  Over the last five years though, the club has morphed from married couples to an international flare with members from all over the world. Today, I would like to introduce to you our current club president, Colette Smith. 

Colette is originally from Calgary Alberto Canada.  She lived in Colorado and most recently, moved to Florida where she joined EBOT.  Colette is married to her husband Doug, aka Doodles, and they are celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary this year in December.  When I asked Colette to share something about her main squeeze she said that "Doodles has more patience than [she has] ever seen in anyone else - lucky [her]!" 

Doodles and Colette moved to Florida because they wanted the opportunity to scuba dive more, which is one of her passions.  She is also passionate about her family and friends.  Moreover, Colette is a published author and hopes to finish writing the children's book she has been working on. 

Traveling to England, Scotland and Ireland is something she would like to do in the future with Doug. Perhaps this journey can become a reality within five years since she hopes to retire or go into semi-retirement.

When asked how she would describe herself Colette exclaimed, "I am high energy and like to keep busy.  [She] is a doer and [is] service-oriented by nature. [She] is also known to talk A LOT which can get [her] into a bit of trouble." She sounds like the perfect Toastmaster!

Speaking about Toastmasters, Colette originally joined Toastmasters because she found herself shy and tongue-tied, which made it difficult for her to meet new people. Toastmasters has given her the confidence she needed and has taught her about servant leadership.  She continues to be a member of Toastmasters because she likes the new educational track and she loves EBOT and watching new members learn and grow.  Her goal moving forward is to continue to serve and enjoy her club.  In addition, she would like the opportunity to continue competing in speech contests and to step up her ability in delivering great content in an impactful and memorable way.  If you have not seen Colette compete, then you need to make it a point to do so. She shares some of the most amazing Tall Tales, is a competent Evaluator and her true-life experiences take on a whole story of their own.