Saturday, August 15th, 2009, 8:45am EDT:
Toastmasters from around the world poured into the ballroom at the MGM Grand Casino in Mashantucket, CT to witness history in the making. Within just a few short hours, Toastmasters International President-Elect Gary Schmidt would announce the name of the 2009 World Champion of Public Speaking.
When I blogged my recap of the 2007 Championship I was overwhelmed by the positive impact it seemed to have on Toastmasters the world over. Though I missed the 2008 contest (something about a wedding and a honeymoon, hmm…) I vowed I’d do my best to provide a recap of the 2009 contest. So on Saturday morning, it was with notepad in hand that I took my seat next to my husband, Jim, and his fellow champs.
Which leads me to my disclaimer: what follows is my take on this contest. It represents my opinions, my feelings, and my observations. It is not my husband’s. I don’t know how to say that any more clearly. Jim does a great job speaking his own mind, thank you very much … so remember: although I am the wife of a World Champion, I only speak for myself. Not Jim, and definitely not the other Champs.
Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way … here’s what I saw from those ten talented contestants.
Speaker #1:
Chakisse Newton (Region VIII)
Happily Never After
Chakisse is a statuesque, graceful woman with a naturally commanding stage presence. I first saw her compete in the 2005 WCPS in Toronto. She looked a smidge different this time, given that she’s about six months pregnant (and beautifully so, I might add!). But “poise” and “polish” are two words that immediately come to mind when I think of Chakisse.
Her speech centered around the idea of not waiting to be happy, but instead, finding your happiness in the moment.
Chakisse told us the story of her younger brother, Robert. At his birth, she said her “life went from fairy tale to fairly terrible.” No longer an only child, she resented the infant with curly black hair, big brown eyes, and a huge smile. But over time, he wormed his way into her heart. And then, she said, her world caved in: Robert had a condition that only affected one in 10 million people. He’d never walk, never talk, and probably wouldn’t live past his first birthday.
But he defied the odds, living to adulthood. Chakisse told us how he had “setbacks of surgeries and seizures” but still, he smiled. While she was waiting for her “happily ever after”.
You’ll have to watch the video to see how she pulls us into her conclusion with both humor and gut-wrenching sorrow, but in the end, you’ll agree: we can choose to be happy now … never “after”.
Speaker #2:
Byron Embry (Region III)
The Only Thing Standing
Although Byron hails from my home region, this was the first time I’d seen him speak – or seen him at all, for that matter – as I didn’t attend my Region’s conference this year. I’d heard rumblings, though, about a young man who seemingly came out of nowhere – a young man with a lot of charisma.
Byron speaks very quickly, and it took me a moment to settle into his speech and for my brain to “compute” what he was saying. But man, can he deliver a punchline!
His speech asked the question, “Is the foundation of your love unconditional?”
Byron’s opening story talked about his mother’s home being hit by a tornado. When it was over, nothing remained but the foundation. It was a beautiful metaphor he used to great effect as he wove a tale about his mom.
A policewoman by career, he called her “the hurricane” – because when she arrived, things got very quiet … and you knew you needed to evacuate or take shelter immediately. As he told us tales of youthful hijinks, he said he was “grounded 25 years to life – and the only reason” he was there to speak to us? “On parole.”
He talked about rejecting his mother’s presence in his life during college, but several years later, finding his life had fallen to pieces around him – but she was still there. “All these years,” she told him, “you thought I was the storm … but really, I was the foundation.”
Byron’s got a great future as a presenter as he continues to hone and polish his skills. During the interviews, he shared with us that he’s been a Toastmaster for less than a year and has struggled with a speech impediment since childhood … that somehow miraculously disappears when he’s giving a speech.
I’m looking forward to hearing more from this young man.
Speaker #3:
Jack Ackerman (Region IV)
Listen to Your Heart
He might take offense to the characterization, but when I saw Jack take the stage, I couldn’t help but think he was just downright cute. He’s an older gentleman from the central US (Iowa, I think he said?) and he tells a story with this little twinkle in his eye that … well, it just makes me smile. He’s simply cute.
His message was that we should listen to our heart and do for others; that the more we give, the more we get in return.
Jack told us the story of his first love – the Ackerman family car … an old, black Ford. He used hilarious – and effective – physical delivery to illustrate how they had to drive the car up hill in reverse so the engine wouldn’t stall out.
He went on to tell us about how his father chose to give away their car to another family who had lost everything. It was a story of self-sacrifice … and as teenage Jack argued with his dad about giving away the car, he said, “Every time I make a decision in favor of giving, it works out.”
Some months later, the Ackerman family received the unexpected gift of another car – and this one could be driven uphill going forward, instead of reverse!
“My dad lived it, I learned it,” Jack said. And in his closing, he told us “Life is like a boomerang: what you give is what you get.”
It was an adorable speech with a heartwarming message. I am truly a better person for having heard Jack speak!
Speaker #4
Erick Rainey (Region I)
Feed the Right Dog
Erick is another speaker I’d seen on the “big stage” before. He competed from DNAR in 2005 and came in 3rd at the WCPS. Erick may compete from a different area (he moved somewhere in Region I) but he’s got the same great smile and the same passionate conviction I remember from his previous run.
His message centered around feeding yourself encouragement and ignoring your inner critic.
The title came from an anecdote he shared about two dogs in your head: one is panting like a big, sloppy Laborador – “You’re great! You’re awesome! I love you!” – while the other is growling like a Doberman, full of negative self-talk.
Erick’s delivery of that anecdote is one you’ll want to watch on the video. He did such a great job illustrating the two dogs – and changing from one to the other in a rapid-fire manner – that it not only got laughs, but it made his point.
“Life is not a dress rehearsal,” he said, as he told us a story about following his dream to audition for a show. He had a good conclusion with effective call-backs to previous portions of his speech.
And I must say that one of Erick’s strengths as a speaker is, by far, his voice. The timbre of his voice is powerful without him having to shout or be forceful. Very impressive!
Speaker #5:
Carl Walsh (Region II)
In Search of the Bunny Badge
I felt an immediate affinity with Carl when, in his opening, he told us about his Army officer father. (I’ve got one, too!) What amused me even more is that Carl’s experience with learning to swim is awful similar to the way my dad taught me. (Watch the video, you’ll understand…)
Carl’s message didn’t come into full focus until the conclusion of his speech. He wove a tale of a father who poked and prodded (and pushed) him to be better. While attending a Cub Scout awards ceremony, his dad said, “Hey, look – he’s a Wolf, and he’s a Bear, and you? You don’t even have a Bunny Badge!”
(Suddenly, the title of his speech made sense.)
With the youthful fervor of “I’ll show him!” he earned his badges, and presented them to his father … only to be told, “Now, don’t you feel good about yourself?” Carl had an epiphany, and called that feeling of self-confidence a “bunny badge”.
He transitioned his speech into adulthood, and shared with us the high of being married and expecting his first son … to his wife’s miscarriage at 6 months and her death just 5 weeks later. He said “life threw me in the deep end. It was sink or swim. And I chose to swim.”
Admittedly, there’s only so much you can do in 7 minutes, but it felt awful quick when Carl told us his first wife’s friends set him up with the woman who’s now his second wife. It was nice, however, to know he’s got his happy ending.
And speaking of endings, that’s where he gave us the core of his message: “we can control our lives, or let circumstances to it for us … because the power behind your Bunny Badge is you.”
As long as this has become, and given I've only just finished the first 5 of 10 contestants, I'm going to break this post into two. Stay tuned for the second half of my recap of the 2009 Toastmasters Insternational World Championship of Public Speaking (speaking-peaking-eaking...)
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