Toastmasters Set Tri-State Meeting
by September 22, 2008 12:00 am 71 views
Toastmasters, a nonprofit organization dedicated to developing better public speakers, will hold a tri-state district conference Oct. 10-11 in Bentonville at the Clarion Inn on Walton Boulevard.
The conference, held twice annually, will be in Northwest Arkansas for the first time in eight years. Cost for the day-and-a-half conference is $175, said Carrie Perrien Smith, a Toastmaster herself and the owner of professional speakers bureau Soar With Eagles.
The Friday session begins at 1 p.m. and continues all day Saturday with business education sessions and three keynote speakers.
David Brooks, the 1990 world champion of public speaking, Scott Huse, chief inspirational speaker for Schools & Families Engaged, and local humorist/author Grady Jim Robinson will all make presentations.
The Toastmasters After Dark portion of the conference will feature an “open mic” coffee house night on Friday and a “Party Like it’s 1968” theme on Saturday.
The organization now has nearly 235,000 members in 11,700 clubs in 92 countries, offering a way to practice and hone communication and leadership skills.
Most Toastmasters meetings are comprised of about 20 people who meet weekly for an hour or two. Participants practice and learn skills by filling a meeting role, ranging from giving a prepared speech or an impromptu one to serving as timer, evaluator or grammarian.
According to its Web site, Toastmasters alumni include Pete Coors and Debbi Fields of the respective beer and cookie companies that bear their names.