Gem City Forum Toastmaster Club Local Winners Place 3rd at Division Competition!
On Saturday October 17th several members of the Gem City Forum Toastmasters Club # 296 from Franklin, NC attended the Division A ‘Humorous Speech’ and ‘Evaluation’ competitions in Hendersonville, NC. It was a cool rainy morning drive over the mountains for the participants and support members who made the pilgrimage.
This competition was the culmination of Gem City Forum’s first sponsored Humorous Speech and Evaluation Competition in recent years. Both of our qualified winning members John “BaldHead” Becker for the Speech Competition, and Barbara Cook for the Evaluation Competition showed up in Hendersonville at 9:30AM with support staff in tow, to give the rest of Division A the best we had to offer.
John and Barbara were masterful in their execution and when the smoke had cleared they had secured Third Place Wins in both categories! That’s very impressive considering it was the first competition for both of them outside the local club, and they were up against highly skilled competitors with many years of experience and seasoning under their belts. The level of competition was amazingly intense and extremely close for all participants in both categories and the effects of Toastmaster’s training was clearly evident in all the presenters.
CONGRATULATIONS John and Barbara for proudly facing the fierce competition and coming out in the Top 3!! We’re extremely proud of you and your accomplishments.
I’d also like to thank our Division A Governor, Michael Beach and the Hendersonville and Asheville Toastmaster’s Clubs for hosting the competitions and to the “Lake Point Landing Senior Community Center” for the fabulous accommodations and hospitality they provided.
Special thanks to Kathy Clifton, our own VP of Membership and Public Relations who was one of the 2 Timers for the events and Jim Alvord our club President who was one of the 5 judges for the competitions. I’d also like to extend a “thank you” to our Franklin Area support group who made the trip to cheer for our participants including John’s wife, Elise Becker, Barbara’s husband, Chuck Cook, and Barbara’s parents, Mike and Rita Houston whose support is very much appreciated.
In closing, We at Gem City Forum Toastmasters want to Congratulate our Division Winners; Karen Strange who won the Speech Contest, and Keith Challenger who won the Evaluation Contest. We feel very confident in our representation to the District 37 Competitions next month in Asheville and wish both Karen and Keith “Good Luck” to win at the District Level.
Jim Alvord | President
Gem City Forum Toastmasters Club # 296
Franklin, NC 28734