JEDDAH, 25 June 2003 — CTM Joey Villanueva, one of the top toastmasters in the Kingdom, was elected on Sunday as governor of the Toastmasters clubs of Jeddah, known as Area 11.
Villanueva will succeed CTM Ben Guerra, the first governor of Area 11, which is composed of six clubs — Tanglaw, PACE, Hope, PSME, ALJ and Al-Rehab.
Guerra was named “best area governor” for this year in the division (Kingdom) and district (Gulf area) levels,
Like Guerra, Villanueva is a founding member and a former president of Tanglaw Toastmasters Club, one of the oldest in the Kingdom.
Before his election as governor, he was assistant area governor for education. He is also a former assistant division governor for marketing.
As governor, Villanueva appointed the following set of officers for 2003-2004: CTM Jose Poovathinkal of HOPE Toastmasters Club, assistant governor — education; CTM Danilo Abenes of Tanglaw, assistant governor — marketing; Ameer Hamza Sheikh of HOPE, secretary; and Henry Cabansag of Tanglaw, treasurer.
Villanueva said he will strive to continue the plan of Guerra to “establish more clubs in the area to develop the second area before we will end our term.”
The member clubs of Area 11 are among more than 7,000 clubs belonging to the Toastmasters International (TMI), a movement founded in California in 1924 by a group of professionals, with a view to fostering unity and peace through improvement in communication and leadership skills.
Toastmastering is one of the fastest growing activity in the Kingdom, which now has two divisions. One is Division A (Jeddah and Riyadh), under which Area 11 belongs, along with Area 1, 4, 5. The second is Division F, composed of Area 9, 17, and 20 for the Eastern Province.
Both divisions, in turn, belong to the Gulf Toastmasters Council (GTC), which is soon to become a full-fledged district.
Toastmasters are ranked according to their accomplishments, with beginners holding the rank of TM (Toastmaster), advancing to CTM (Competent TM), ATM (Advanced TM), ATM Silver, ATM Gold, and finally, DTM (Distinguished TM). There are also those who take the parallel path to achieve Competent Leadership (CL).