District 78 Spring Convention Highlights

 

The District 78 Spring Convention was held in Miles City on April 29-30, 2005 at the Eagles Club, 24 N 8th Street in downtown Miles City.

The Friday Fun Night, hosted by the Skills Club, was a Lewis & Clark theme, complete with a Native American host in the guise of Mary Lou Hermes, and Lewis in full officers uniform (District Governor Rick Fasching). The amiable hosts offered an array of entertainment including a lip sync contest, skit contest, and costume parade.

Saturday was a full day, with educational sessions, speech contests, the District Council meeting, and featured speakers. Jim Key, 2003 World Champion of Public Speaking, was District 78's special guest and he did not disappoint. Jim's keynote presentation, "Hitting the Mark: The Quest for Excellence", gave members and guests a rare opportunity to hear the best of the best. He also gave an educational  presentation "Speak Better, Quicker!" that gave the audience some concrete suggestions for improving their speaking skills.

Additional educational offerings included:

The District Evaluation Contest provided an opportunity to hear an entertaining speech by Billie Holmlund of Anaconda, MT. No one will look at a hanger the same way! Congratulations to all the participants of that contest. Winners were: First, Josie Skibstad of Billings (Division B); and Second, Pamula Rustan of Dickinson (Division C).

A favorite at the spring convention is the District International Speech Contest. Five speakers tackled a variety of topics, all with humor, thought, and enthusiasm. Lisa Albers-Koppman of Rapid City (Division E) was named the winner with her speech "Family Soup." Second was Jozef Zelenak of Fargo (Division D) with his speech "Bold Like Fire." Third was Carolyn Glidewell of Missoula (Division A) with “Never Give In, Except …” Lisa will represent District 78 at the Region IV Conference in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan this June and, who knows, may even win to go on to the World Championship of Public Speaking.

The Communication & Leadership Luncheon was an opportunity to recognize District 78 members who achieved educational completions—CTMs, ATMs, CLs, ALs, and two DTMs.  First Timers were also recognized. In addition, Paul Kief did it again—he traveled the most miles to Convention. Last year it was the most miles from Bemidji to Rapid City; this year 600 miles from Bemidji to Miles City.  Mary Lou Hermes came in a close second with 521 miles. 

District 78 presented the Communication & Leadership Award to Mr. Jack Larson of Miles City, MT. Jack graduated from Montana State University and then began a successful teaching career. He has 25 years experience teaching agriculture and advising Future Farmers of America (FFA). He coached and advised several state winning teams in livestock evaluation, ag mechanics, range, farm business management, and parliamentary procedure. In addition, he coached individual state finalists in public speaking, extemporaneous speaking, freshman-greenhand competition, and state talent. He was selected to Who's Who Among America's Teachers several times, and the CCDHS Ag Education Program was chosen as Montana State's AgEd Program of the Year for 2003-2004. Mr. Larson is indeed a very worthy recipient of the Communication & Leadership Award.

The District Council meeting was held to conduct the business of the District, including the election of officers for the 2005-2006 year. Congratulations to:

Miguel Restrepo - elected District Governor
Mary Lou Hermes - elected Lt Governor Education & Training
Bonnie Steiner - elected Lt Governor Marketing
Craig Vigen - elected Division D Governor
Kari Elling - elected Division F Governor

Other positions still need to be filled. If you are interested in serving on the District team, please contact Miguel
Restrepo.

The evening concluded with the banquet, and inspirational messages from the outgoing District Governor, Rick Fasching, and incoming District Governor, Miguel Restrepo. International Director JoAnn Edstrom installed the 2005-2006 District 78 officers.

Recognition went to Spring Convention Linda Wolff and her team for organizing and hosting. Don't forget to mark October 28-29, 2005 on your calendar for the District 78 Fall Conference in Rapid City, SD. Watch the website for more details as they become available.

Meeting minutes from the District 78 Spring Convention
District Executive Meeting
District Council Meeting
Ratification of Decisions

 

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