Stepanie von Bargen, CC, ALB

Each and every one of us has joined Toastmasters in order to groom both our public speaking and our leadership skills. The only way we can do this is not only by speaking but also by listening to each other, be it during an evaluation, listening to a speech, participating in an educational workshop or contest.

When we are born, we quickly (hopefully) learn to communicate in order to express ourselves, so that we may fulfill our wants, our needs and our dreams. It¡¦s what we do in order to survive and to flourish. We soon find our voice. Some of us remain silent for many years and find our voice later in life. Some of us don¡¦t find our voice until we join a Toastmasters club.

The slogan for our incoming District Governor is "Harnessing the Power Within". Each of us has a passion for Toastmasters that may have been ignited by a friend, a peer, a fellow Toastmaster, a mentor, perhaps even a keynote speaker. For me, it was the gift that was given to a speaker in a meeting I was brought to as a guest.

What gets your adrenalin going? What keeps you engaged and passionate? Our pulse is that power within us that reminds us that we're alive, that we¡¦re doing something we enjoy, that we have a need to speak and to be heard, that we have a need to be powerful leaders and ambassadors for Toastmasters and all it represents.

What I see for this District; as incoming Public Relations Officer; is a District of people who need to talk, to talk with a purpose, to talk with integrity and to talk about Toastmasters in order to increase membership in our respective clubs, areas, divisions and districts and to promote Toastmasters to those who have a need for the supportive learning environment Toastmasters can provide. My vision as incoming Public Relations Officer is to improve and increase communication both internally to existing Toastmasters and externally to potential Toastmasters in the making. We don't talk about ourselves as Toastmasters enough, we don't celebrate our member and club milestones enough and we don't network with each other enough. I want to ensure that EVERYONE in district 60 knows who is on the District Executive Team and knows who to come to and where to go when they need information. There is always room for improvement because there will always be someone who has no idea what Toastmasters is all about.

I will provide you with updated information features showcased in our monthly communication to all members entitled The District 60 Pulse of PR. Every time you see that title in an email from me, I want you to be reminded of what keeps you motivated and passionate about Toastmasters and I'd like you to share these thoughts with me so I can feature them in Member testimonials.

If there is no pulse, there is no life and we in District 60 are without a doubt a District of Communicators, a district full of life and potential and a steadily beating pulse represented by a group of people who care and have each other's back in order that we may continue to learn from each other. We have the opportunity to harness the Power Within. We are the pulse that keeps District 60 going.

I wish you all the very best of success in the coming year and embrace the opportunity to work with you and look forward to getting our District pulse racing, in a very good way... Stephanie