News

District 61 Council - Fall 2008

It's time for our Spring Conference and the District Council ! Please read and bring with you a printed copy of this material so that you can best participate in the Council meeting.

Best Membership Drive Campaign

Congratulations to Visioneers Advanced (#9472, Division B, Area 14)! They are the winner of the Best Membership Drive Campaign! The club recruited the most new members from May 1 to June 30 … a total of 13 new members! The prize for the winning club? A complimentary registration at the upcoming Fall Conference AND a complete series of Advanced Manuals. Bravo!

Distinguished District - Congratrulations!

The final statistics for the 2007-2008 year have been posted on the TI website and it is confirmed that District 61 is a Distinguished District! I received an official call from International President, Chris Ford, and I share the congratulations with all of you.

I am pleased to note that District 61 finished the year in a tie for first among the 61 districts in North America for having the highest percentage of distinguished clubs. We also established several district records, such as 3,778 members, 177 paid clubs and 1,675 new members.

Of the 4 goals a district must meet to be distinguished, (CCs, ACs, clubs and membership payments) we were closest with membership payments. Our goal was 7600 and we finished with 7612. I extend a huge thank you to everyone who helped to push us over the top by adding new members and renewals. What great teamwork! Each of you can be very proud of your significant contribution.

Congratulations to 2007-2008 LGET, Frank Schilder, DTM, who will receive the Excellence in Education Award at the International Convention in Calgary. All the best to Frank in his year as District Governor.

Congratulations to 2007-2008 LGM, Leona Hamel, DTM, who will receive the Excellence in Marketing Award at the International Convention in Calgary. As the new addition to the Top 3, Leona was a pleasure to work with and she did a superb job.

I wish to recognize the other Senior District Executive team members who supported the district with their dedication and hard work. They are...

• Public Relations Officer, Lise Blondin, DTM
• District Secretary, Andre Bergevin, DTM
• District Treasurer, Harold Mendes, DTM
• Immediate Past District Governor, Sue Dalati, DTM
• District Sgt. at Arms, Beverley Miranda, DTM
• District Parliamentarian, Richard Inomata, DTM

Congratulations to the following 2007-2008 Division Governors for leading their divisions to President's Distinguished Division status:

• Division A - Elizabeth Russ, ATMB, 3 of 3 areas distinguished or better with 2 Select Distinguished Areas and 1 President's Distinguished Area.
• Division B - Michael Crawford, ATMS, 4 of 5 areas distinguished or better with 2 Distinguished Areas, 1 Select Distinguished Area and 1 President's Distinguished Area.
• Division E - Patricia Wait (formerly Dolhan), ATMG, 5 of 5 areas distinguished or better with 3 Distinguished Areas, 1 Select Distinguished Area and 1 President's Distinguished Area.
• Division G - LouLou Borduas, DTM, 4 of 6 areas distinguished or better with 1 Distinguished Area, 2 Select Distinguished Areas and 1 President's Distinguished Area.

Congratulations to the following 2007-2008 Division Governors for leading their divisions to Select Distinguished Division status:

• Division C - Norma Domey, DTM, 5 of 6 areas distinguished or better with 3 Distinguished Areas and 2 Select Distinguished Areas.
• Division F - Riccardo Di Done, DTM, 5 of 6 areas distinguished or better with 2 Distinguished Areas, 2 Select Distinguished Areas and 1 President's Distinguished Area.
• Division I - Danièle Bérubé-Poulin, DTM, 2 of 3 areas distinguished or better with 1 Distinguished Area and 1 Select Distinguished Area.

Congratulations to the following 2007-2008 Area Governors for leading their areas to President's Distinguished Area status:

• Area 1, Division A - Kevin O'Henly, ATMS, CL
• Area 13, Division B - Beverley McKiver, CC, CL
• Area 42, Division E - Diane Pearson, ACG
• Area 54, Division F - Leila Albassit
• Area 74, Division G - Clement Ducharme, ATMS

Congratulations to the following 2007-2008 Area Governors for leading their areas to Select Distinguished Area status:

• Area 2, Division A - Bob Brousseau, DTM
• Area 3, Division A - Todd Collins CC, ALB
• Area 12, Division B - Cathy Hayward, ACS, ALB
• Area 20, Division C - David Farris, ATMS
• Area 22, Division C - Chris Fraser, ATMB
• Area 44, Division E - Vicky Cano-Lamy, ACG
• Area 51, Division F - Harry Felix, ACB
• Area 55, Division F - Nicole Audet, ACS
• Area 71, Division G - Serge Bergeron, ACB, CL
• Area 75, Division G - Pierre Desparois, CC, CL
• Area 91, Division I - Gabriel Genest, ATMS, ALS

Congratulations to the following 2007-2008 Area Governors for leading their areas to Distinguished Area status:

• Area 11, Division B - Ray Oickle, CC, ALB
• Area 14, Division B - Owen Evans, ACG
• Area 23, Division C - Guy Dechênes, DTM
• Area 24, Division C - Christine Bacon, ACS
• Area 25, Division C - Michel Henry, CC
• Area 40, Division E - Tom Trottier, ATMG
• Area 41, Division E - Virginia Butcher, CC
• Area 43, Division E - Naomi Wilanski, ACG, CL
• Area 50, Division F - Serge Teupe, CC
• Area 70, Division G - Lise Chenier, CC, CL
• Area 92, Division I - Renée Levaque, CC

Congratulations and thank you to these individuals who also made an outstanding contribution to the District in their official capacities as...

• President, Toastmasters International, Chris Ford, DTM
• Area 10 Governor, Fran Watson, ATMS
• Area 21 Governor, Maggie Lackey, ATMG
• Area 52 Governor, Pedro Calderon, ACG, CL
• Area 72 Governor, Geneviève Michaud
• Area 73 Governor, Rosario Villanueva
• Area 90 Governor, Francine Gilbert, ACS
• Webmaster, James Watson, DTM
• Chair, Translation Committee, Pierre Desrochers, DTM
• Editor, The Leader, Lise Blondin, DTM
• Chair, Fall 2007 Conference Committee, Aline Aubin, ACB, ALB
• Chair, Spring 2008 Conference Committee, Vita Lewis, DTM
• Chair District 61 Audit Committee, James Watson, DTM
• Speakers Exchange Committee, Harry Kingston, DTM
• Chair Nominating Committee and Alignment Committee, Sue Dalati, DTM
• District Book Store Manager, Phillip Godon, ATM-S, ALB
• District 61 Phone Line, Muriel How, DTM (English), Leona Hamel, DTM (French)
• Translation - Hélène Buteau, ACS

It takes a team to manage a district and what a wonderful team we had in 2007-2008! I hope each of you has fond memories and valuable new experiences as a result of your contribution to the success of District 61. Let's all continue "Shaping Ourselves for Success!"

Simon Parcher, DTM
Immediate Past District Governor
Toastmasters District 61
"Be a Star! Soar to Success!"

Caroline Tison to Receive District Communications and Leadership Award

Caroline Tison will receive District 61's Communications and Leadership Award on April 19, 2008 at the annual Spring Conference to be held in Pointe Claire, Québec.

Caroline Tison is the Executive Director of West Island Community Shares (WICS) – a West Island community development and fundraising organization. Prior to making the jump to the not-for-profit sector, Caroline held executive positions in other sectors such as financial services, print media and supply chain logistics where she developed her skills in communications, program management, project management, sales and training. She has developed a reputation for being a leader and for “getting things done”. Her passion is people. She is dynamic, results driven and a strong believer in giving back. She currently volunteers her time as a Director on the John Abbott College Board of Governors. She spent four years on the Board of Directors of the West Island of Montreal Chamber of Commerce, where she chaired the Accolades and Discover the Star committees. She is a founding member of Women’s Links, a grassroots not-for-profit organization that raises funds for West Island women and children in need. Caroline holds various degrees including an MBA from Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) and a Bachelors of Commerce from Concordia University. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers and holds a diploma in Small and Medium Business Studies. Caroline is the proud mother of a 6 month old son, Thomas Li.

Recipients of the District 61 2006-2007 Year End Awards

Posted: 8 December 2007

• President of the year: Leo Gregory, president of Beaconsfield Toastmasters Club
• Area Governor of the year: Birgitte Chan, Area 10
• Division governor of the year: Nena Nera, Division B
• Toastmaster of the year: Brian Sutton

For a list of past awards recipients, see the District Hall of Fame page.

2007 Fall Conference Contest Winners - November 17th-18th, 2007

English Humorous Speech Contest

• 1st Bill Tilden - Cataraqui Valley Club
• 2nd Tim Cummins - CN Collaborators Club
• 3rd Ron Singer - West Carleton Club

French Humorous Speech Contest

• 1st Sylvain Alix - Les Toastmasters de Granby Club
• 2nd Brigitte Chan - Causeurs Sussex Speakers Club
• 3rd Louise Ouellette Bolduc - Taxorators/Taxorateurs Club

English Table Topics Contest

• 1st Craig Senior - Message Masters Toastmasters Club
• 2nd Teri Kingston - Advanced Speakers Club
• 3rd Laura Gagné - West Carleton Club

French Table Topics Contest

• 1st Louise Ouellette Bolduc - Taxorators/Taxorateurs Club
• 2nd Benoît Paquin - Club Le Marquis
• 3rd Richard Nault - Les Communicateurs de la Rive-Nord Club