Following is Part 1 of a report submitted by Postprandial member Ed Oberhofer. Part 2 is here.
Hello my Fellow Postprandial Club Members,
I’m posting this from the District 65 Fall Conference being held at the Carrier Circle Holiday Inn in Syracuse, NY. At first, it seemed odd to be attending a conference with the theme “Toastmasters on Fire: A Flame that Can’t be Quenched” in the midst of a lake effect snow event. Nonetheless, clearly demonstrating that words do matter, the conference quickly began to live up to its name.
Perhaps the biggest story early on was the weather, which caused the delayed arrival of many participants. As a result, the start of the Table Topics Contest was officially delayed by a half hour (and started even later). The contestants were asked to respond to the question: “It is said that a person who has two friends is truly rich. What qualities do you look for in a friend?” The quality of the responses was very good, and this made for a very competitive contest. Personally, I was inspired to up my own Table Topics skills, though the highlight of the night may have been the impressive interviewing done by the Contest Master, Bill Spizuoco. He struck me as an eccentric personality directly fueled by life’s primal fire. He remained very present to the responses of the interviewees, which is a skill we would all do well to continuously practice in all aspects of our lives.
When the contest was over, a call was made for a break which, due to the lag in the schedule, spontaneously morphed into the evening’s buffet. Displaying the ultimate adaptability of Toastmasters world-wide, the conference organizers brought the keynote speaker, Craig Valentine, out to a stage near the buffet when it seemed unlikely that the hungry and thirsty Toastmasters could be brought back to the speaker in the ballroom. Craig is the 1999 World Champion of Public Speaking. He inspired the crowd as he recounted how he overcame the obstacles between where his professional life began and his current life as a professional speaker. Along the way, he developed a personal philosophy which he imparted to the assembled Toastmasters with clarity, humor and an upbeat, positive, can-do attitude.
The evening concluded, for me anyway, with an organized game-show activity. Contestants named TV theme songs, built pizzas with oven mitts, finished riddles, and found the common thread in recited lists of objects, among other challenges. They were amply rewarded with Mardi-Gras-style beaded bling and applause from fellow Toastmasters.
I’ll conclude with a special mention to our own Kate Olsen and Dave Pope. As I fishtailed into the parking lot, I saw Dave. He was just getting ready to head home to Rochester, after helping to set up, and was planning to return the next day. Dave, I hope your travel was safe. No sooner did I make my way to the hotel lobby, than I found Kate busy registering attendees and then rushing off to judge the Table Topics Contest. Go Kate, go!