Toastmasters Club – Enhancing the Art of Speaking

Toastmasters International Club
Image: toastmasters.org

Providing financial advice for more than half a decade, Ryan Mattiza has both educational and professional business management experience. He received his bachelors of science degree in business administration from the University of Arkansas in 2009. Currently as the mortgage lender at Arvest Bank, one of Ryan Mattiza’s interests is his membership with Toastmasters International Club of Overland Park.

The Toastmasters Club is a gathering of people with the common interest of helping individuals improve their public speaking and organization skills. With a focus on giving speeches, gentle feedback is provided by evaluators to help members improve communication for career advancement, enhancing presentation skills, or even preparing for a wedding toast. The organization hosts the annual Toastmasters International Convention with the goal of promoting public speaking by bringing together members from around the world. This year’s Toastmasters International Convention will be held in Washington, DC, in August 2016.

It has been announced that motivational trainer and 2000 World Champion of Public Speaking winner Ed Tate has been selected to be the keynote speaker at the opening ceremony. He co-authored Motivational Selling: Advice on Selling Effectively, Staying Motivated and Being a Peak Sales Producer and has been requested for speaking engagements over 100 times a year. Having helped merge two rival newspaper bureaus in 2001, Ed Tate will share his experience in conflict resolution and demonstrate how to overcome everyday adversities in his keynote address.

Samaritan Community Center Seeks Volunteers for Its Missions

Samaritan Community Center
Image: samcc.org

Established in 1989 by Fellowship Bible Church of Northwest Arkansas as a clothing ministry and food pantry, the SCC evolved and became a standalone nonprofit organization that strives to serve those who are hungry and hurting around Northwest Arkansas. In 2003, the Church gave SCC a 19,000-square-foot building, and in 2004, the SCC opened a second location to serve those around Washington County.

Since SCC is a nonprofit organization, it relies heavily on the support of the community. It takes more than 300 volunteers each month to complete all of its activities, and the SCC needs help with the following areas:

*Samaritan Café: Volunteers assist with cooking and preparing free hot lunches as well as serving the food.

* Samaritan Health Clinic: Volunteer dentists, oral surgeons, dental assistants, and hygienists provide emergency dental and medical care for adults.

* Samaritan Kids: Volunteers fill containers with healthy snacks, which go to more than 6,500 pre-kindergarten and elementary school children each week. These children are at-risk for hunger or lack food to eat on the weekends. Volunteers also help with Backpacks for Kids, which is a school supply drive offered annually in late July. They fill backpacks with grade-appropriate school supplies and deliver these items to the children prior to the start of school.