Dear District 79 Member,
Great leaders do not set out to be just leaders. They set out to make a difference, because it is never about them, but about the goals they have set for all around them and the people who are going to help them achieve those goals. They might not be the best in their craft, but they are the best in harnessing their courage, faith in others and themselves and perseverance. Nevertheless, it all begins when the leader’s heart is set on the mission they follow, when they honor compassion over passion and altruism over egoism. This, in fact, is the source of the brand-new success-tagline of District 79 for the Program Year 2020/21: #OneMissionOneFamilyD79.
Since its reformation in 2016, the Toastmasters clubs of District 79 faced various challenges, which were only augmented by the kingdom’s social, economic and technology revolution. Yet, out of compassion and love towards other members, our Toastmasters could support each other to safeguard the culture, traditions and excellence of our clubs. We even survived the most devastating global crisis of the century together in 2019/20, while enabling nearly 60% of our clubs to receive “Distinguished” or higher rank.
Thus, the Program year 2020/21 has been dedicated to the family who we are today. As a bold first step, the District team adopted the “Round Table” concept for communication and decision making, signifying that every member’s voice, opinions and personalities must be equally valued. The
Program Year began with a series of events that promoted creativity and innovation, such as the virtual inauguration ceremony, highly engaging district officer training, out-of-the-box club officer training, golden quarter campaign for club and membership growth, #OneMissionOneFamilyD79 campaign, video messages from all the key District leaders and podcasts. The icing on the cake was the newly introduced district CSR committee, which is now ready to run many extra miles with our members, their families and communities.
Dear member, as your District Director, my humble request to you is to continue to support the Toastmasters mission, as you have always done. The challenges that we face as citizens/ residents of Saudi Arabia can be easily overcome when we stick together as one family. Let us always give constructive feedback, while letting our heats glow with altruism. Let us march forward with a positive attitude.
You and I are one team, and this team will be glorious!
MADHUSHA NANAYAKKARA,DTM
District Director 2020-2021