August 13, 2008 The Fontana Leaders, a local Toastmaster club, has recently partnered with the Fontana Community Assistance Program (CAP) for a new free workshop in public speaking scheduled from 6 to 8 pm on Thursday, November 13 at the Cypress Neighborhood Center, located at 8380 Cypress Avenue in downtown Fontana.

"While many of our club members are often called upon to speak in public, we are also a great asset for those who may not be comfortable in front of an audience," says Laura Van Sciver, VP of Public Relations, adding "the goal of the CAP workshop is to target those who might not be interested in becoming members but who are new to the public arena or who are looking to simply speak up for themselves in a career setting. Three of our club members have volunteered to work with the students and help them to discover their own voices and effectively communicate."

The Fontana Leaders meets every Thursday at the Fontana Chamber of Commerce, located at 8491 Sierra Avenue from 12:15 to 1:15 pm. Members give 5 to 7 minute presentations and have a series of conversational improvisational speeches. Meetings follow set protocols that include timing speeches, counting grammatical errors and other simple training techniques that in time build confidence and improve the skills of even the most polished speakers.

For more information about Fontana Leaders or Toastmasters International, please visit the website at www.orgsites.com/ca/fontanaleaders. For more information about the CAP program or some of its classes, please visit www.fontanaCAP.org.

--Laura Van Sciver