Meeting # 1014, March 25, 2015 (View pictures here)
In honour of the first day of spring, Chair and Toastmaster Meaghan Johns chose THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS as the theme and IDYLLIC as the word of the day. Table Topic Master Wanrudee Isaranuwatchai got participants to tell a single story, which ended up to be quite an inception type dream state with baby strollers and half eaten sandwiches.
Amy Warren gave her 5th speech from the Advanced Storytelling Manual (Bringing history to life) and in “Helen of Toastmasters” she shared the little known history of the first female member of Toastmasters and the barriers she had to overcome. Noelle Hamersley evaluated Amy’s speech.
The second speaker was Andrew Xu who gave his second speech from the Competent Communicators Manual (Organize your speech). In “Why I Don’t Drive” he made the case of why people should give up their cars in favour of public transit. Janine Chin evaluated Andrew’s speech.
Vahid Anwari was our third speaker, and he gave speech #10 from the Competent Communicators Manual (Inspire your audience). In “Motivating Yourself”, he shared his experience of visiting Dubai and seeing the two worlds of rich and poor, and he urged travelers to leave the resort and learn how people live. Kendrick Doll evaluated Vahid’s speech.
The fourth speaker of the night was Luis Correa, who gave his second speech from the Competent Communicators Manual (Organize your speech). In “If Laugh Gives You Roses” he explained why it is important to laugh, and his experience growing up as the comedian in his family. Elizabeth Hibbert evaluated Luis’ speech.
The final speaker of the night was Jaze Bordeaux who spoke from the Professional Speaker Manual. In “Rich O’Shea effect”, he implored members to consider running for the Executive Office and talked about in his case, how it benefited all areas of his life.
Naomi Hamersley was the General Evaluator, Eduardo Mijangos was the Timer, Cici Xu was the Quizmaster, Jean Yang was the Grammarian and Moiz Ali was the Vote Counter.
Our next meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 8.
Meeting # 1013, March 11, 2015 (View pictures here)
This meeting was an especially memorable one as the club honoured Geoff Smith at the Geoff Smith Appreciation Night. Chaired by Jaze Bordeaux, the meeting featured several members recounting memories and paying tribute to the longest standing member of the club (27 years!). The word of the day was fittingly IMPACT since Geoff’s impact on the club is immeasurable. Table Topic Master Danish Ahmed provided topics – such as parents or a favourite band – and asked participants to describe their commitment or their dedication to that topic.
Elizabeth Hibbert gave her 3rd speech from the Competent Communicators Manual (Get to the Point) and in “Why Toronto Needs a Second NHL team” she laid out a 3 point argument about why the Toronto market would benefit from a second team. Javier Fernandez evaluated Elizabeth’s speech.
The second speaker was Wanrudee Isaranuwatchai who gave her ninth speech from the Competent Communicators Manual (Persuade with Power). In “To our Toronto”, she urged everyone to be kind to each other and to themselves. Yasser Addullah evaluated Wanrudee’s speech.
Noelle Hamersley was our third speaker, and in “Ode to Geoff Smith”, she provided a roast – a combination of humour, gentle teasing and heartfelt memories to honour the member of the night. Shirley Li evaluated Noelle’s’ speech.
The final speaker of the night was Biswajit Das, who spoke from the High Performance Leadership Manual where he shared what he learned after organizing the Area contest, including how he overcame challenges. Jeff Hecker evaluated Bis’ speech.
Nadine Ricketts was the General Evaluator, Alia Zhang was the Timer, Naomi Hamersley was the Quizmaster, Caroline Kiernan was the Grammarian and Andrew Xu and Eduardo Mijangos were the Vote Counters.
Meeting #1012, February 25, 2015 (View pictures here)
The meeting was chaired by Jeff Hecker, who chose ADVENTURE as the theme for the evening. Grammarian Wanrudee Isaranuwatchai selected AUDACITY as the word of the day and explained that it meant “the willingness to take bold risks.” Table Topic Master Elizabeth Hibbert asked participants to describe how random statements were adventurous, like going on a blind date or going skydiving.
It was a packed agenda with six prepared speeches.
Javier Fernandez gave his icebreaker speech from the Competent Communicators Manual, entitled “The Adventure,” during which he described how he came to travel to Toronto from Spain and after his return to his home, how he found a job and came to live in the city. Danish Ahmed evaluated Javier’s speech.
The second speaker was Moiz Ali who also gave his icebreaker from the Competent Communicators Manual. In “Rollercoaster Ride” he described several examples from his life – skiing, the Tough Mudder race – in which his resiliency helped him achieve his goals. Amy Warren evaluated Moiz’s speech.
Luis Fernando was our third and final icebreaker speaker and in “Let It Be” he described his family life in Mexico and the exact moment when his life changed. Meaghan Johns evaluated Luis’ speech.
Next was Alia Zhang, who gave Speech #3 from the Competent Communicators Manual (Get to the Point). In “The Cultural Difference in an Inter-Cultural Marriage”, she used the relationship between her western husband to illustrate how the cultures between east and west can cause barriers in communication. Noelle Hamersley evaluated Alia’s speech.
The fifth speaker was Bisjawit Das. Speaking from the High Performance Leadership project, his “Friday Evening” speech inspired the audience to attend the area contest to find entertainment and inspiration. Janice Law evaluated Bis’ speech.
The final speech of the night was Caroline Kiernan, who also gave her third speech from the Competent Communicators Manual (Get to the point). In “Sleep, a Speech,” she outlined the physiological stages of sleep, and provided tips on how to get a better night’s sleep. Kendrick Doll evaluated Caroline’s speech.
Naomi Hamersley was the General Evaluator, Cici Xu was the Timer, and Eduardo Mijangos was both Quizmaster and Vote Counter.
Grosvenor Toastmasters 