W29 Report posted

Governor Michael Foster

Please note that Michael’s monthly reports are filed in the order that the most recent are on top.

August Report

Another month has passed, and we are all now well on our way with the Toastmaster year. Over the past month, I have been out and about visiting our clubs in the South-West. The clubs have made me feel most welcome, and it is great to see the enthusiasm of all of our members.

Club Visits

In Mandjar, Bunbury, and Margaret River, we are all experiencing issues with building up our membership base. This is not uncommon, as many people will join Toastmasters, get to a level where they are comfortable, and move on. This is why it is so important to have a plan in place to attract and retain new members.

Margaret River. The club has been busy on the public relations front. Margaret River has successfully got their website up and running, http://margaretriver.freetoasthost.cc/.
This is a great way to attract new members, as many people these days turn to Google for answers. Another initiative in the club was a story in the local paper. This proved successful as visitors to the club explained that they had seen the article in the paper, and decided to come along.

Bunbury held their club competition on the 18 August 2009. The contestants for both competitions put on a professional display. This is a testament to the hard work that the club is doing in growing their members’ communication skills.

Jetty Toastmasters. Jetty hosted Club Officer Training in the South West. The program format was explaining the roles of the club officers, conducting the TMI educational program relating to leadership and the Distinguished Club Program. This training was well received, with all of the club officers walking away with clear direction of what was required.
The other great thing about this is that we have been able to train 75 percent of our Area!

Mandurah.  The success of the newspaper articles in Margaret River has been mirrored in Mandurah. From the two articles submitted to the paper, Mandjar attracted three visitors. Mandjar have been very busy promoting Toastmasters. Through delivering old magazines in targeted areas, and are in the process of conducting a flier drop, ready for the demonstration meeting on the 5 October 2009, in Mandurah.

Area Contests

With most of the clubs completing their competitions, we look forward to the Area Competition in Bunbury on Sunday, 13 September 2009. The competition will be fierce and the winner of the Area’s Humorous and Table Topics will continue on to Division in November or December.

We are all doing a great job in our respective clubs, and in order to propel ourselves forward I would encourage each of the clubs to interact closely. There is a strong bond between the Margaret River and Busselton clubs, which is driving these clubs forward, all we need now is for Mandjar, Bunbury, Jetty, and Margaret River to combine their collective efforts to boost our membership, and retain the fine speakers we now have.

Until next time we meet,

Michael Foster

W29 Area Governor

July Report

Hi all,

Welcome to Area W29. W29 covers the beautiful South-West of this great state, from Margaret River to Mandurah. Clubs include Margaret River, Jetty (Busselton), Bunbury, and Mandjar (Mandurah).

At the start of the Toastmaster year, Margaret River, Busselton, Bunbury, and Mandurah’s club executives have been busy shaping plans for success.

Club Contests

August will see the club competition season start, with Margaret River, Bunbury, and Mandurah club competitions all within a week of each other. Winners of this competition will meet in Bunbury on the 13 September 2009, to find out who will move on to Division.

Club Officer Training

August will also be time to train the club officers in the SW. Conducted on a Saturday morning in Busselton, 22 August 2009, everyone is welcome to attend.

Recently, Mandurah celebrated their 10th anniversary. Three of the founding members were present. Mandurah has exposed the Toastmasters’ education program to over 200 people, and continues to deliver the program to the public in the peel region.

Congratulation goes out to Lea of Busselton, on her award of the Advanced Communicator Gold. This starts the movement towards of our clubs towards achieving the goals of the Distinguished Club Program.

Club Visits

As we move into August, there is also the first round of the club visits. This is an opportunity for the new Area Governor to build rapport with the clubs, provide support for the members, and help the club executives focus on their success plans.

As you are able to there is many and varied happenings in our Area. We look forward to sharing our success in successive blogs.

Feedback is always welcome, please email me at mickandcarrie@gmail.com

Cheers,

Michael Foster
Area Governor, W29