The term District Officer refers to any Toastmaster Officer above the Club Level. This includes the District Governor, Lt. Governor of Marketing, Lt. Governor of Training, Division Governors and the Area Governors. All of these positions exist to help clubs and club members. The district officer you are most likely to encounter is your Area Governor. Your Area Governor should atttend your club twice a year to make an official visit. During the Visit the Area Governor will tell you about district news, get a feel for the club meeting, pass on ideas from other clubs, and make sure you are aware of what the District may be able to do to help. The Area Governor will also ask questions to fill out an Area Visit Form which will be sent to The District Governor and to International HQ. This form makes sure that the Area Governor and the Club officers consider many aspects of what makes a good club and considers them conscientously.
If your club is having trouble (e.g. falling memerbship, unproductive or unpleasant meetings) then your Area Governor should already be aware of it. If your Area Governor isn't aware of the problem then someone should inform the Area Governor. (The email address for all Area governors is on the District web site in the directory.) Your Area Governor is able to mobilize the resources of the District to help. An Area Governor has been trained by the district to aid clubs, and has the contacts with other district officers and clubs to get advice and ideas.
Where do Area Governors come from? Area Governors, like all Toastmasters officers, whether district or club, are volunteers. One of the questions the Area Governor will ask during official visits is: Who would be interested in being an Area Governor? Part of an Area Governor's duties are to find a successor just as part of a club President's job is to train a replacement for the next year. If you are interested in becoming an Area Governor, or just in talking about what's invloved, then contact your Area Governor. Remember, Area Governors are Toastmasters too: they love to talk!