Florida Toastmasters celebrate the arrival of spring

Tuesday, 1 September may have been cold and blustery outside, but the Florida Toastmasters kept their spirits high with their ‘Spring has sprung’ themed Open House meeting.

The Zoom meeting began with a sure-fire way to build confidence where all the Toastmasters were challenged to remind themselves of everything they have achieved in their lives.

A warm welcoming from Tim Knights set the positive tone for the evening. Karen Gray added to the cheerful atmosphere by sharing quotes from Robin Williams and Charles Dickens to celebrate the arrival of the spring season.

Keeping in line with the spring theme, Dick Hallet proposed a toast to the season after Gail Hemming’s Toast to Toastmasters International.

For the Educational Session, Ntombi Phaledi (the club’s Treasurer) shared some of her financial wisdom through a PowerPoint presentation of the club’s annual budget.

All eyes were then turned to Tim for his prepared speech. His unique way of speaking took the Toastmasters back in time to World War 2. His story, entitled ‘The Greatest Raid,’ described how a destroyer that had crossed the English Channel and rammed into the Normandy dock gates was packed with five tons of delayed-action explosives which detonated later in the day. The explosives blew the dock gates into match wood, rendering the dry docks inoperable and leading to the German battleship, Tirpitz, remaining in Norwegian waters and therefore taking no further part in the war.

Douglas Kruger was next to present his speech, which he used to encourage the Toastmasters to take a minute to go ‘backstage.’ He described how people often underestimate the importance of taking a solitary moment to recompose their thoughts when the world outside seems daunting.

Gail then took control of the next section of the meeting, and as Table Topics Master, she led the unprepared speeches. Dave Cairns was up first and spoke about how he met his ‘dream girl’ 50 years ago when he was working as a second-hand car salesman.

The next unprepared speech was presented by Diana Rodrigues, who described how the last few months have forced her to learn how to stand in her power. By fighting and standing up for herself, Diana said that she is becoming more and more confident. She described how she uses the support of her fellow Toastmasters to remind herself that she has the power to move forward with a smile on her face knowing she has people standing alongside her.

The final Table Topic was presented by Martin Faure, who covered how his wife helps keep him grounded and keep his competitive nature at bay.

The Evaluation team, made up of Victor Chewe and Mandy Gobisang, listened intently to all the speeches and provide constructive feedback. At the end of the evening, Diana happily accepted the trophy for Best Impromptu Speech.

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Florida — Tuesday, 1 September may have been cold and blustery outside, but the Florida Toastmasters kept their spirits high with their ‘Spring has sprung’ themed Open House meeting.

A warm welcoming from Tim Knights set the positive tone for the evening, followed by a confidence-building icebreaker where the Toastmasters were challenged to recall everything they have achieved. Karen Gray added to the cheerful atmosphere by sharing quotes from Robin Williams and Charles Dickens to celebrate the arrival of the spring season.

Keeping in line with the spring theme, Dick Hallet proposed a toast to spring for the Toast of the Evening after Gail Hemming’s Toast to Toastmasters International.

For the Educational Session, Ntombi Phaledi shared some of her financial wisdom through a PowerPoint presentation of the club’s annual budget.

All eyes were then turned to Tim for his prepared speech. His unique way of speaking took the Toastmasters back in time to World War 2 when he told the story of the German battleship Tirpitz and ‘The Greatest Raid.’

Douglas Kruger was next to present his speech, which he used to encourage the Toastmasters to take a minute to go ‘backstage.’ He described how people often underestimate the importance of taking a solitary moment to recompose their thoughts when the world outside seems daunting.

Gail then took control of the next section of the meeting, and as Table Topics Master, she led the unprepared speeches. Dave Cairns was up first and spoke about how he met his ‘dream girl’ 50 years ago when he was working as a second-hand car salesman.

The next unprepared speech was presented by Diana Rodrigues, who described how the last few months have forced her to learn how to stand in her power. She uses the support of those around her, including her fellow Toastmasters, to practice standing up for herself and to build her confidence.

The final Table Topic speech was presented by Martin Faure, who covered how his wife helps keep him grounded and keep his competitive nature at bay.

The Evaluation team, made up of Victor Chewe and Mandy Gobisang, listened intently to all the speeches and provide constructive feedback. At the end of the evening, Diana happily accepted the trophy for Best Impromptu Speech.