Spring Contest 2010
Vapor Trails Toastmasters club held its International Speech Contest and Evaluation Contest on March 8, 2010. Jim Wilson won the speech contest with Sundar Karthikeyan as the runner up. Veronica Haynes won the evaluation contest with Matt Spindler as the runner up. Jim and Veronica will compete in the International Speech Contest and Evaluation Contest for Area 26 on April 15. Curtis Carlson provided the showcase speech for Veronica and Matt's evaluation and Jim Bedinger was the Toastmaster and Emcee for the evening. Pictured are from left to right, Veronica Haynes, Matt Spindler, Jim Bedinger, Jim Wilson, Sundar Karthikeyan, and Curtis Carlson.
Holiday Party 2009
On December 14, 2009, Vapor Trails Toastmasters celebrated the holidays and installed their new slate of officers for the 2009-2010 term at the 94th Aero Squadron. Area Governor Tom Koppel was on hand to install the officers. He also presented Veronica Haynes with her badge to signify her having attained Advanced Communicator Silver. Veronica presented Jim Bedinger with his badge for having also attained Advanced Communicator Silver. Jim's was a long time in the making as several events interfered with his award having been recorded. It was great to finally honor him for a job well done and well-deserved award. A good time was had by all.
Halloween Spooktacular
On October 26, 2009, Vapor Trails Toastmasters scared up a Halloween Spooktacular with members wearing costumes and enjoying Halloween-themed snacks. Table Topics participants gave their spooky speeches with a flashlight perched under their chin. One formal speech was presented -- Project 4 from the Specialty Speeches manual: Read Out Loud. Veronica Haynes gave the audience chills while reading Edgar Allen Poe's Tell-Tale Heart by flashlight with the lights out.
Fall 2009 Open House
Vapor Trails Toastmasters club held a free "All About Toastmasters" open house on October 19 and
we had a great time! There were plenty of chocolate snacks and people were still in a chocolate coma the next day. Jim McLaughlin entertained us with an improptu speech entitled "Help, I Forgot My Speech" which encouraged lots of audience participation and Connie conquered her nervousness while teaching us about amateur radio.
Area 26 Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest
On September 17, 2009, Jim Wilson competed in the Area 26 Humorous Speech Contest where he earned first place
for his speech entitled, "Letting the Cat Out of the Bag." Pictured are Wilson, at right, along with the Central Division Governor Yan Gao.
Spring Open House
Vapor Trails Toastmasters club held a free "All About Toastmasters" open house on April 20 and
a good time was had by all! Jim Bedinger entertained and informed us with a speech
about the science and nature of Torrey Pines. Jerry Nelson inspired us to speak more articulately with his speech inspired by the book
Remember the Ice by Bob Nicoll.
Watch Jerry inspire you to speak more articulately.
Area 26 Evaluation Contest
On February 26, 2009, Curtis Carlson competed in the Area 26 Evaluation Contest where he earned first place
for his evaluation of the showcase speaker. Pictured are Carlson, at left, along with the Toastmaster Doug Kinnear
and the Area 25 winner Anna Holmes.
Area 26 Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest
On October 2, 2008, Curtis Carlson competed in the Area 26 Table Topics Contest where he earned second place.
Also that evening, Veronica Haynes won first place for her humorous speech entitled, "Don't Spectate - Recreate" in which
she described how she broke her finger the first time she ever threw a football. She went on to compete in the Central
Division Humorous Speech Contest on October 25.
Watch Veronica compete at the Central Division Contest
Vapor Trails Toastmasters Helps Girl Scouts Learn Public Speaking
Last summer number of Girl Scouts from across San Diego County completed an eight-week Youth Leadership
Program, a public speaking and leadership course for young people sponsored by the Vapor Trails Toasmtasters
club. The program, coordinated by Tierrasanta resident and Vapor Trails member Roxanne Ruzic, was designed to
give middle school and high school aged scouts experience with public speaking and leadership in a friendly
and supportive environment.
The program consisted of a series of weekly meetings focused on public speaking and communication, led by the
girls themselves. Participants wrote and delivered prepared speeches on topics of their choosing, participated
in debates and group discussions, evaluated each other, gave impromptu speeches, and practiced meeting and
socializing with each other and with a steady stream of visiting Toastmasters.
Pictured are :
Girl Scouts: Front row, left to right: Alicia, Maria, Michaelin, Kim, and Natalie.
Vapor Trails Toastmasters: Back row, left to right:
Paul, Charmain, Veronica, Curtis, and Roxanne.