The document discusses an open house event held by the Alpharetta Toastmasters club that was well attended. It highlights some of the club members who have achieved communication awards in the past few months. The president of the club discusses in an interview the welcoming environment members can expect and goals for the remainder of the year to continue helping members improve their speaking skills.

1. It’s 2016 already! Okay, folks so
I’m late in the game by a long
shot, I know. But if you started
the year with us at Alpharetta
Toastmasters and are now read-
ing this, kudos to you! You’ve
shown an inspiring ability to
stick with what ‘s hard. All of us
at Alpharetta Toastmasters are an in-
spiring bunch, as you’re about to see in
the next few pages of this issue.
I’ve compiled in this special issue our
most recent happenings over the past
few months, in hopes of broadcasting to
the world the great work we do here in
inspiring people to become better pub-
lic speakers. In the words of the great
Maya Angelou:
“I’ve learned that people will forget
what you said, people will forget what
you did, but people will never forget
how you made them feel.”
I think it’s safe to say we’ve left a lot of
people feeling good about themselves at
this club. And I don’t know of a greater
measure of success than this.
At Alpharetta Toastmasters you feel
nothing but an overwhelming level of
support in standing behind that lectern
to speak. We certainly hope you con-
sider becoming part of our club. Flip
though our pages and consider giving
us a try!
Stop by our club with your questions,
or you can email the newsletter editor
(chenthewriter@gmail.com) which of
course is me, with questions about this
most recent issue.
Happy reading folks, & we hope to see
you all at a future meeting.
Best,
Chen Okafor
Editor, The Alpharetta Toast Post
Editor: Chen Okafor
Issue No. 6
April 2016
The Alpharetta
Toast Post Toastmasters Club 4941
I’m sure many of you have
long since seen the YouTube
video that went viral of Miss
Teen USA from South Caro-
lina stumbling through a
question of why 1/5 Ameri-
cans cannot locate the Unit-
ed States on a world map. A
lot of people thought the
video was quite funny, and I
can see why. Though I can
also relate to being nervous
and not quite putting out
the message I intend some-
times in front of large groups.
Maybe not on that large of a
stage, but you get the point.
Now I am likely in the minori-
ty, but I do believe Miss Teen
USA was only nervous and
given another setting would
have answered the question in
a more coherent fashion. She
in fact did in a later interview
with Matt Lauer on NBC. But
I try to imagine how much
better she would have done
on that live stage if she regu-
larly attended Toastmasters.
Chances are high she’s never
been to one of the many clubs
that exist around the country.
She certainly hasn’t been to
ours, I’m betting. While Miss
Teen USA ‘07 remains a laugh-
ing stock still to many people,
just take our regular meeting
size every Wednesday, multiply
it into the millions and you
may be her. There is really no
substitute for the Toastmasters
experience, because we are all
human and we
fall short sometimes, whether
celebrity or just the average joe.
Here at Alpharetta Toastmas-
ters we don’t care for your title
or prestige, for the most part.
All we care about is your will-
ingness to improve and grow as
a public speaker. Because we’re
all on this journey together, and
we’ll all get there at some point,
however long it takes.

2. The Alpharetta Toast PostPage 2
On January 27th, 2016, our club hosted an international speech and table topics contest which turned out to be a huge suc-
cess! President Diane Koskey first opened the meeting and related the contest to the necessary skills needed for the Olym-
pics. Contest Master Lakshmi Potluri displayed her extraordinary leadership skills by pulling together the necessary parts to
make our contest run smoothly. Chief Judge and right hand person Ana Maria Marin put into practice her delegation skills.
Everyone had an important role to fill on this special night— from the timers, to the ballot counters. Let’s not forget our Ser-
geant at Arms (formerly Steven Guo), and of course last but certainly not least— our contestants!
Thanks to all the guests who showed up. Two of our guests, Dick and Keith Baumgartner, were once members of our club.
Dick, now 90 years old, was a former Area and District Governor. Perhaps most notably, he helped establish 17 new clubs in
the Toastmasters organization. His own son Keith was even our club president at a point in time!
The night began with the international speech competition. An effective international speech falls within the range of 5-7
minutes, is original and appeals to a wide audience. Congratulations to 1st Place Winner Alice Henry, who pulled at our
heartstrings as she delivered her speech entitled “The Power of the Spoken Word.” Our 2nd place winner was Craig Hill with
his speech named after the cliché phrase “Talk is Cheap.”
In the Table Topics segment where Toastmasters contestants practice their impromptu speaking, Jim Wiederhold took home
the gold while Eric Glover won silver. Both contestants addressed the topic of “How do you cover up or apologize to your
partner when you’re late to dinner at a classy restaurant?” We had a variety of responses from seven contestants in total,
offering some very logical excuses with sincerest heartfelt apologies. Some even told of real life experiences, causing the room
to erupt in laughter. All in all, it was a wonderful evening. And there’s another speech contest coming up soon, so stay tuned!
(Left to right back) Jim Wiederhold, Alice Henry, Dick Baumgartner, Keith
Baumgartner, Eric Glover; (Left to right front) Kaitlyn Klucznik, Yanti Sutarno

3. Interviewer: President Koskey, I do
appreciate you taking the time to do
this interview. We had an open house
here at Alpharetta Toastmasters not
too long ago. Care to tell us how that
went? To the larger point, what has
your experience been like both profes-
sionally and personally in leading our
club to new ground over the past year?
President Koskey: We had a packed
room with more than 25 members and
visitors at the meeting. We received
great feedback from folks who attend-
ed. With coffee & desert, two engaging
Table Topics sessions, and plenty of
time to get to know our fellow mem-
bers, it was definitely an event to be
repeated. Over the past few months,
I've really enjoyed getting to know
members and contribute to the club in
new ways, such as the Table Topics
meetings!
Interviewer: Seems like every week
someone from our club wins some
type of award, or accomplishes some-
thing great on their path to becoming
a better speaker. Enlighten us, for
those that don't know, on some of the
impressive achievements by our mem-
bers?
President Koskey: That's right!
Members of the Alpharetta club are
going above and beyond to achieve nu-
merous Toastmaster awards. These
folks are spotlighted on the club's home
page. In the 2016 calendar year through
April 25th, Lakshmi Potluri and Jerry
Xue achieved their Competent Commu-
nicator (CC) awards while Craig Hill
achieved his Advanced Communicator
Gold (ACG) award. We look forward to
even more in coming months.
Interviewer: What can those looking
at joining our club look forward to in
committing to the Alpharetta Toast-
masters experience? For example, I
know we foster a warm and welcoming
environment like few places.
President Koskey: New members to
the club can look forward to a New
Member Orientation session, currently
scheduled for the 2nd Wednesday of
each month. This program was devel-
oped by Ana Maria Marin & will be de-
livered by Chris Foster going forward.
(Thank you both Ana Maria Marin &
Chris Foster!) Additionally, members
can look forward to an environment in
which to learn & hone their speaking
skills, they can look forward to having a
mentor to partner with, and a group of
friendly supportive members with simi-
lar public speaking goals.
Interviewer: And finally, Presi-
dent Koskey. I, or we I should say,
want to know if there’s anything left
undone that you hope to achieve
before your time is up as president?
More succinctly, in the long term,
by what sole criteria do you wish to
be judged and remembered?
President Koskey: In the re-
maining months of this Toastmas-
ter year, I and fellow officers want
to continue creating an atmosphere
of practice slopes before members
hit the black diamonds in "real life."
We hope to see members grabbing
every single opportunity to deliver
speeches, fine tune their evaluation
skills, sharpen their impromptu
speaking, and even hone in on
those listening skills. I hope to be
remembered as a club president
who listened to what members
wanted and delivered a club experi-
ence that delighted members &
visitors. Thanks for the insightful
questions, Chen.
Interviewer: Thank you, Madam
President.
Page 3Issue No. 6

4. Greetings! We are large, diverse, and united around a common
cause—helping you improve your public speaking and leadership
skills. Whether you sweat profusely or cower in front of large
groups of people, we here at Alpharetta Toastmasters offer a
remedy. More than just manuals and book learning, we provide a
supportive and easy going environment tailored to suit your per-
sonal needs. Amaze your friends, managers and co workers by
mastering communication skills in your own time. Come invest
with us, and for a couple dollars a week you’ll be making one of
the best decisions of your entire life. Guaranteed results. We
guarantee it.
For more info, contact our VP of membership Kaitlyn Klucznik—
Kaitlyn.klucznik@gmail.com
We’re on the world wide web:
www.alpharettaclub.toastmastersclubs.org
Toastmasters Club 4941
Kroger on Windward Parkway
12870 State Highway 9
Alpharetta GA 30004
Club status:
Open to all on Wednesdays,
7:15pm
The single biggest problem in communication is the
illusion that it has taken place” - G. Bernard Shaw
“Growing up with a special needs sibling isn't easy, but I wouldn't have
it any other way. The daily challenges we face as a family have allowed
me to grow tremendously as a person. Tasks you and I take for granted
each day, for example brushing one’s teeth or putting on shoes are a
major climb for my brother. Furthermore, I will say that Toastmasters
has sharpened my interaction with him on a daily basis. For instance,
I'm even more willing to take my time speaking with him to make sure
he understands and vice-versa. Speech is a challenge for him in general
because a stroke reduced his control over his jaw muscles. Toastmas-
ters also helped to where I now strive more to listen for understanding
and not just for response”