It took months of planning and came to fruition the weekend of May 30th to June 1, 2025. The conference was well attended and the St Albert Inn & Suites was a superb venue for toastmasters to gather, have some fun, network, and share.
Comedy Night Participants
Friday night started with an open mic comedy night. All the comedians were Toastmasters who stepped up and took their shot at immortality. And, you know what? It was a rousing success. The crowd was entertained for over an hour by Toastmasters from District 99 who came up and told their stories. To say we laughed would be an understatement. We were entertained.
Saturday saw an opening keynote by Dr. Marvin Washington titled Harnessing Diversity: Inclusive Leadership in Action. His insights into leadership in our diverse world were valuable.
Lots of recognition on Saturday as well as Toastmasters across District 99 were recognized for their accomplishments. For a recap of the recognition provided please see the presentation located here. Program Quality Drector, Von Eric Tandoc, and Club Growth Director, Margaret Andris, shared recognition and thanked the many people that played a part in helping them to grow the district and deliver quality training for club officers and members.
Educational session and contests filled out the agenda for Saturday with 6 educational sessions, the International and Evaluation contests. Congratulations to the winners of the contests. For the International, Ohpapi Omoaka will be representing District 99 at the quarter finals. If selected, he will go on to the semi-finals at the international convention, this year in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For the Evaluation, John Hallett took home the trophy.
Saturday night was the District Director’s Banquet and Dance. The C&L Award was given to Puneeta McBryan and she gave us some insights in her views on leadership. The four new DTM’s were recognized and awarded their pins and ribbons.
District Director, Rebecca Cuthbertson Hulst gave her farewell address before the dance floor opened up.
Sunday’s program included 6 more educational sessions and farewell keynote by Linh Huynh titled “Wonderlust: Roadmap for Thriving in Uncertain Times”. She gave excellent insights into how to focus and achieve your goal, no matter how challenging it seems.
The new executive team was installed by Past International President Neil Wilkinson.
- District Director, Marg Faryna DTM
- Program Quality Director, Cheryl Persson DTM
- Club Growth Director, Lynell Bird DTM
The new team of Division Directors was also installed during the ceremony:
- Division A: Judy Danyleyko
- Division B: Chris Nixon
- Division C: Pei Ying Ng
- Division D: Wes Montey
- Division E: Colin Minielly
All will take office on July 1st, 2025. Reach out them if you are interested in serving as a leader on the district team.
The conference was a great event. If you want to see a copy of the digital program, you can find it here.
International Speech Contest Winner
Evaluation Contest Winner
