Thanks From The LGA-Elect

want to take this time to thank all of the Toastmasters of District 47 who supported me i n my campaign for the position of Lieutenant Governor of Administration (LGA)

Special considerations must be given to the following people: to my wife Barbara, whose charm and personality helped convince many to cast their votes for me To Sonny and Jan Dixon who spent one sleepless Friday night making posters for the campaign To Dick Battin who displayed early confidence in my campaign, and who supported me throughout the election. An d to all of the Bahamians who worked and supported me during the election An d special thanks to those who cast their votes for me

District 47 has experienced tremendous growth in the past This growth has made District 47 one of the largest districts, if not the largest, in Toastmasters International As a member of Region 8 we comprise one-third of its clubs and membership total.

The management of a vast District like ours is indeed overwhelming to the imagination But we are fortunate to have an outstanding organizational set-up that allows us to manage the District

I n keeping wit h the management concept, I have three key areas I wil l concentrate my efforts in order to keep our tarn functioning at its peak The key areas are:

A CLU B GROWT H

1 This includes not only new cubs but also to strengthen existing clubs Currently we have 15% of our clubs wit h membership less than 10 This is a sad situation that must be corrected

The membership chairmen, area governors, the clubs, and I wil l define the problems and develop solutions to the probems and help the clubs experience new growth

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2 New clubs — our growth pattern has created voids and gaps throughout the district We have cities and towns without a Toastmasters club W e have some cities large enough for 7 or 8 clubs wit h only 2 or 3, and so on We wil l establish a uniform and consistent growth pattern for this year and the years to come

B DISTRIC T PUBLI C RELATION S

1 We wil l develop a strong public relation program to promote Toastmasters International and District 47 This wil l come in the form of newspaper releases, radio and television interviews, etc The PR wil l concentrate on events around the district, and of Toastmasters International

2 W e wil l promote Toastmasters to the public as an educational organization and emphasize programs like Speechcraft, Youth Leadership, and others

3 Growth activities wil l be publicized and related to the public

C ADMINISTRATIV E FOLLOW-U P

1. The Area Governor Reports are important road signs for the district This is the only way we can tell what each club is accomplishing This function naturally wil l not be overlooked

2 You can be ensured that new club growth efforts, membership growth, and PD work wil l be recorded according to administrative procedures Otherwise, they would not do us a bit of good

These are the things I wil l work on this year M y monthly LG A Report in the SUNSHINER wil l give you a status report on these and other matters concerning District 47 management

Again I wish to thank everyone for the support you have given me, and kindness shown

Ken Cinton, AT M LGA-Elect

LGSD Report

Editorial

Now it is time to say good-bye to you while I am still at my post This is the time that I wish to thank everyone who made this publication a success — that means YOU — the subscriber Special thanks go to Bob Martin, Nance Sanders, Emmett Clary, Sonny Dixon and my club Jose Gaspar i n Tampa Jim Bradley was particularly vital to the efficient publication of the magazine As the circulation manager he organized the mess of addresses and motivated my club to mail the SUNSHINER within one, rarely later, day after its printing Many other people deserve thank yous from me

This has not been a wasted year I wil l go away from it wit h many friends, and recognition Above all, I know that I saw the fifteen months all the way through to its conclusion — now I feel accomplished. Next year, while centering much of my time on self-edification, I wil l devote time to assisting AG-6 Sonny Dixon, and wil l attempt to help my good friend Ken Clinton in his administration of his office

What a year we the Toastmasters of District 47 have had! Oh, it has had its ups and downs — let's discuss briefly the negatives first: Whenever personal feelings receive publicity through gossiping, and whenever feelings lead to childish actions, the effects wil l not be as good as ill Animosity and poor communications besmirched our excellent district at times Sometimes i t seemed hard to see how some people wit h their antipathetical feelings could work together — but work together they did!

Now for positive aspects of the 197677 year: the Area Governors and the elected district officers worked hard for us The district chairmen worked hard, too If District 47 is not Number 1 in 1977-78, i t may be becauce we (unlike many districts which use more sim- plified methods for approving DCP's under 2000 points) di d not use the T I standards for minimum DCP point totals; hopefully the coming year wil l see a change in District policy in this regard. I have it from good sources that there is a way by which clubs desiring the basic rating of "Distinguished Club " wil l be able to have their points certified by a representative of the district. That should make it possible for 104 clubs, instead of 27, to be distinguished The additional points accrued from such a change would undoubtedly make us Number 1 However, if hard work alone can make us the Best, which we are, then there can be little doubt as to the state of District 47's health District 47 has a number of accomplishments for the year Sonny Dixon represented our District 47 so well at the Regional Speech Contests Many Toastmasters published i n the TOASTMASTER and other publications 10 new clubs have been started. We had double the C&L completions expected, nearly a dozen more ATM's, 4 DTM' s to date, and over double the Speechcrafts and YLP's The net membership increase has been phenomenal! The District now has at least tw o President's 40 clubs — the perrennial Orlando Conquerors and the Osceola club — not even a year old

Definitely this is the end of a fantastic year for the District and for myself For the District it began over a year ago in the same fashion the previous year was ending — wit h hard work and mucho enthusiasm So what that there were a few rough moments? They wil l happen any year, and they serve to provide us with timely rememberances which should help to keep history from repeating itself. W e have learned a lot and have accomplished more than we thought we would do For myself, this 1 year had many wonderful times I mar-

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Goodbye Past — Look Out Future — Here We Come!

M y personal goal is to make District 47 Number One and keep i t there To be Number One, we must all realize that this means all of us doing our jobs

M y experience as Lieutenant Governor of the Southern Division has been invaluable Not only have I met most of the Toastmasters i n the Southern Division, but have had the opportunity of meeting wit h many, many fine members throughout the entire District urge every Toastmaster who has never served as an officer at the Club, Area, Division, or District level to avail himself of an opportunity of a lifetime to really educate himself or herself in "disciplined responsibility" of leadership and delegation Money wil l not buy this experience — only your time and dedication will

Again, so long Past! Future, I live you — and look forward to meet you as Lieutenant Governor of Education

By LGSD Bob Gelford, LGE-Elect

(Continued from Page 6) ried Jane in April and put together the SUNSHINER Few criticized negatively; nearly everyone I met and worked wit h helped to give you this magazine which I hope and believe measures up to the high standards of District 47

Good-byes are not easy, and I' m certainly glad that I really do not have to extend them since I'l l be around Learn to work for the common good, and wit h those you'd rather not work with Desire is the prerequisite for "getting things done." There is mucri more to learn from Toastmasters than one wil l find merely on the club level These three final thoughts are what I learned during the year; I recommend that you ponder them, employing their substances for your personal and club growth for the future (Which is now.)

Thomas E Guth, CT M

SUMMERTIME FUN AT THE SUMMER

CARNIVAL