More than 50 people during a Summer Toastmasters meeting is not an achievement any more. Wednesday 21st of July was no different. For many of us Toastmasters addicts, the club has become an integral part of our week, and one of our not-to-be-missed summer attractions. It seems that everybody who comes appreciates the chance to keep their communication skills sharp. There are absolutely no problems with filling in the summer agenda. Speakers, be it members or guests, are now signing up for last available slots, while interest in doing various leadership roles remains high with many relatively new members trying their best for the first time.

That night, not only our Toastmaster - John Dooly from Vox Populi, but the Topicsmaster - Barbara Leydon from Clondalkin Club as well, were new to their roles. However, it did not stop them from performing exceptionally well. John prepared great personal introductions of people doing other roles, and it included recounting their most memorable event. What a wonderful and unique idea! Additionally, John was a great and well organized Toastmaster and he made us laugh a good few times thanks to his natural sense of humour.

The Topicsmaster for the night, Barbara, came up with such interesting questions that she got a huge amount of volunteers eager to share their opinions on the subject. She asked what you wanted to be when you were younger, who was your favourite TV presenter, and whether age mattered when it came to love. Afterwards we were asked to describe our feelings looking at a picture of a bird covered in oil, and discussed whether we, as a nation, were Fast Food addicts. If not for the time restrictions, the Topics session brilliantly crafted by Barbara could have gone on for much longer. What was also remarkable was that John and Barbara seemed to work very well as a team and nicely supported each other.

In the second part of the meeting we had three excellent speakers with their admirable performances. Our first speaker was a guest speaker - Catriona McColgan. She presented us with three school programmes planned for the coming year, one of which was ‘Big Brother, Big Sister’ programme. The Catriona’s speech was an informative one and based on the most recent research on the subject. The next speaker, Fiona Stynes from the Dublin Club, talked about ‘Fear’. She explained different types of fear and ways of overcoming them. Fiona’s presentation inspired the audience to get out of their comfort zone and do things they always wanted to. Our third speaker was Sarah Naughton from Hellfire Club, who completed her second stage project from the Advanced Comunicator Manual. Sarah talked about the retirement in an entertaining way. She expressed very interesting thoughts and approach to her subject.

The meeting finished with not one, but two poems (by guest Brian Mercer and Celine Glynn from Clontarf Marino) and amazing evaluations of each speaker and the meeting itself. Many thanks for all beautiful words we heard from Poetmasters and for encouragement to speakers given by evaluators. The meeting was very exciting. Well done everybody!

What I really like about the Summer Toastmasters Club is that coming to a meeting; you do not exactly know what to expect. Of course, we are keeping the general framework and roles as per the manuals, but different clubs have slightly different routines and ways of doing things. Some clubs have a Poet or Joke Master, and some don’t. There are clubs that separate the roles of Grammarian and Ah-Counter while others have them combined. Some clubs have a Toast at the beginning, ask the Timer and Lights for her opinion on member’s timekeeping during Topics, or evaluate the performance of every role, including evaluators, separately.

All of the above can create a bit of uncertainty as you do not know in which way a person from another club is going to perform their duties. However, exactly this uncertainty generates an invaluable learning experience; if you are open to new ways of doing things and listen carefully, you will extract new ideas that might be of benefit to you and your own club in the new season. The exchange of knowledge and experience between various clubs has never been easier. The Summer Club became a second-to-none networking platform for members of any club and guests. Personally I have got to know more people within 3 weeks that I did during 6 months of being a member of my own club. Thanks everybody for being there and contributing to such a terrific experience!

by Karolina Gwinner, PRO 2010/2011

It was an amazing evening on Wednesday 7th July. As you walked into the elegant Temple Bar Hotel around 6:45 pm you could hear from a distance people chatting and laughing. When you approached the room, where the first Summer Toastmasters meeting was held, you could see a line of excited guests waiting impatiently to get in. Very quickly the room filled with people longing to practice their communication and leadership skills.

It came to us as a big and very pleasant surprise that in the middle of a beautiful summer over 60 people joined us for that evening. We had not expected such a number in our wildest dreams, and needed to arrange 10 extra chairs at a short notice. We hosted Toastmasters from no less than 12 different clubs, including Glasnevin, Castlenock, Iarnrod Eireann, AIB, Greystones, Dublin 2601, Vox Populi, along with many guests. Among the very special participants of the evening was Joe Grehan, who is 92 years old and has been a distinguished member of Toastmasters for a remarkable 27 years. Joe is believed to be the oldest Toastmaster in the world. Thanks to his great passion for life and people, Joe eagerly teaches us how to find our own happiness, love and joy. Thanks Joe, it was great to have you there.

The meeting was run by the Toastmaster John Kelly who is the President of the Greystones Club, and an excellent leader. He came across as a very warm and encouraging host, providing lots of tips for improving communication skills. If you were there, you would have also been captivated by Marie McNamee’s poem. She had written all those beautiful words herself and dedicated them to her mother. Well done Marie, it was a pleasure to listen to you. Your poem moved not only our brains but also our hearts.

One of the most important parts of the meeting – the Topics Session - was skillfully crafted by Fiona Stynes from the Dublin 2601 Club. The topics were very diverse and fun to reply to. You could choose between your favourite superhero, your opinion on Jedward, reasons to spending holidays in Ireland, the best advice you had ever received, and many others. If you felt that a question you got was not your cup of tea, Fiona had a successful strategy to deal with it – she offered a fall-back question: ‘Is this the sunniest summer in living memory?’ Luckily, it appeared that nobody needed any extra help; people just came up with interesting and funny replies. Everybody really enjoyed the Topics and had a good time.

After the break we were all excited about three advanced speakers and their presentations. They took us for a journey starting from different ways to save on electricity (by Karl McEntegart, Glasnevin), through staying confident and happy in times of uncertainty (by Helena Davis, guest speaker) and finishing off with the story of the fight for Irish independence (by Peter Kelly, Greystones). Speeches were followed by thoughtful and encouraging evaluations to give each speaker feedback about what they did well and what they could improve on. This part of the meeting was both informative and inspiring. People were leaving the room chatting and with smiles on their faces - it was the best sign that they had a great time:) Many thanks to everybody who contributed to the huge success of our first Summer Toastmasters meeting!

As soon as we finished the formal part of the program, more than a half of the audience headed for a drink to the bar to socialize and get to know each other. Our Summer Club seems to be a brilliant platform to meet other Toastmasters from many different clubs and to exchange ideas and experiences. The best proof of it is that some people were so carried away by passionate discussions that they stayed until late in the night.

By Karolina Gwinner, PRO 2010/2011

Watch Joe Grehan deliver an off-stage speech entitled "Changing Lanes"

Prison Toastmasters from SpeakEasy Movie on Vimeo.