Frederick Toastmasters Club

✨ Growth, mentorship, and stepping outside our comfort zones were at the heart of our May 7 Frederick Toastmasters meeting ✨

JinJin opened the evening with an inspiring reminder that sharing our growth publicly can lead to unexpected opportunities — including a recent invitation she received to present scientific training after posting one of her Toastmasters speeches online.

🗣️ We enjoyed two engaging speeches:
• Kim shared heartfelt and often humorous stories about the mentors who helped shape her career in emergency veterinary medicine, reminding us how powerful encouragement and support can be.
• Robert used candid storytelling and self-deprecating humor to explore how facing embarrassment head-on can build resilience, confidence, and personal growth.

🧠 Table Topics brought plenty of creativity and laughter as participants invented elaborate conspiracy theories and imaginative explanations for everyday things.

🎖️ Congratulations to our award winners:
🏆 Best Speaker – Kim
🏆 Best Table Topics – Naveen
🏆 Best Evaluator – Naveen
🌟 Shining Star – Lewis

👏 We also celebrated the election of our incoming 2026–2027 club officers:
President – Stephanie
VPE – Kris
VPM – Kim
VPPR – Lewis
Secretary – Miranda
Treasurer – Pete
Sergeant at Arms – Jay
Mentoring Coordinator – Dee-Anne

A warm welcome as well to our newest members: Dee-Anne, Jane, and Jason! 💙

Whether mentoring others, volunteering for a first Table Topics response, or simply showing up ready to grow, our members continue to demonstrate the supportive spirit that makes Toastmasters such a valuable community.

👉 Want to improve your communication skills, build confidence, and grow as a leader?
Join us at our next meeting!

🗓 Thursday, May 21
🕡 6:30 PM
📍 FCAR, 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick

Guests are always welcome!

✨ Perspective, growth, and real-world impact at our latest Frederick Toastmasters meeting ✨

We kicked off the evening with a simple but powerful reminder: sometimes the challenges we face are also signs of something good. That perspective set the tone for a meeting focused on growth, self-awareness, and connection.

🗣️ Highlights from the meeting:
• Erin shared how volunteer programs impact patient experience — bringing passion and real-world purpose to her speech
• Jeff took us on a journey through space 🌌, blending humor and awe to reflect on how remarkable it is that we exist at all
• JinJin inspired us with her story of turning challenges into growth, offering practical techniques to communicate with confidence and impact

🎖️ Congratulations to our award winners:
🏆 Best Speaker – Jeff
🏆 Best Evaluator – JJ
🏆 Best Table Topics – JJ
🌟 Shining Star – Beth

👏 We’re also just *one goal away* from achieving all 10 Distinguished Club Program goals — an exciting milestone for our club!

👉 Want to build confidence, improve your communication skills, and be part of a supportive community?
Join us at our next meeting:
🗓 Thursday, April 30
🕡 6:30 PM
📍 FCAR, 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick

Guests are always welcome — come see what Toastmasters is all about! 💙

✨ Presence, growth, and powerful stories at our April 2 Frederick Toastmasters meeting ✨

We kicked off the evening with a powerful reminder: *“Pick your thing, lock in, and go all out.”* — setting the tone for a night of authentic speaking and meaningful connection.

🗣️ Highlights from the meeting:
• Inspiring speeches on confidence, communication, resilience, and belonging
• Personal stories ranging from travel mishaps to life-changing experiences
• A moving reminder that growth comes from stepping outside our comfort zones

🧠 Table Topics brought creativity and laughter, with speakers sharing stories sparked by fun, fill-in-the-blank prompts.

🎖️ Congratulations to our award winners:
🏆 Best Speaker – Tanya
🏆 Best Evaluator – JJ
🏆 Best Table Topics – James C.
🌟 Shining Star – Kris

👏 We also welcomed new members and celebrated continued progress toward our Distinguished Club goals — just one more milestone to go!

👉 **Join us TONIGHT!**
If you’ve ever thought about improving your public speaking or building confidence, this is a great night to visit.

🗓 Tonight
🕡 6:30 PM
📍 FCAR, 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick

Guests are always welcome — come see what Toastmasters is all about! 💙

✨ What a fantastic evening at our February 19 Frederick Toastmasters Open House! ✨

We kicked things off with a delicious potluck dinner and great fellowship, followed by a meeting filled with engaging speeches, laughter, and connection.

🗣️ Highlights included:
• Thoughtful and humorous speeches on communication styles, active listening, belonging, and embracing life’s humbling moments
• A fun and creative Table Topics session inspired by popular song lyrics 🎶
• An incredible turnout — including 9 guests joining us!

🎖️ Congratulations to our award winners:
🏆 Best Speaker – JJ
🏆 Best Evaluator – Beth
🏆 Best Table Topics – Jay
🌟 Shining Star – Robert

👏 We also celebrated several member achievements as we get closer to completing all of our Distinguished Club Program goals — great momentum for our club!

👉 **Join us TONIGHT!**
We’re meeting again this evening and would love to have you visit.

🗓 Tonight
🕡 6:30 PM
📍 FCAR, 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick

Whether you’re looking to build confidence, improve your public speaking, or just meet a supportive group of people — come check us out!

Guests are always welcome 💙

❄️🍽️ You’re Invited! Frederick Toastmasters Winter Open House 🍽️❄️

Join us on **Thursday, February 19** for an evening of great food, friendly faces, and inspiring speaking!

We’ll start with a pot-luck dinner at **6:00 PM**, followed by our engaging Toastmasters meeting at **6:40 PM**.

✨ Curious about Toastmasters?
✨ Want to build confidence speaking in front of a group?
✨ Looking to grow your leadership skills in a supportive environment?

This is the perfect night to visit!

👋 Guests do NOT need to bring food — our members are providing everything. Just come as you are and enjoy the evening.

Bring a friend, coworker, or family member — the more the merrier!

📍 FCAR – 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick
🗓 Thursday, February 19
🕕 Dinner at 6:00 PM | Meeting at 6:40 PM

We’d love to see you there! 💙

🏆 What an exciting night at Frederick Toastmasters! 🏆

Last Thursday’s meeting was extra special as we held our **Club Speech Contests**, featuring both the Table Topics Contest and the International Speech Contest. The room was filled with energy, encouragement, and outstanding speaking!

🧠 **Table Topics Contest**
Contestants responded to the same surprise prompt —
“Should wearing socks with sandals be a crime or be celebrated?” 😄
It was fun to hear six very different (and creative!) answers to the same question.

👏 Congratulations to our winners:
🥇 First Place – Naveen
🥈 Second Place – JJ
🥉 Third Place – Beth

🗣️ **International Speech Contest**
Contestants delivered prepared speeches that inspired, challenged, and moved us.

👏 Congratulations to:
🥇 First Place – Tolu, *“A Step Backward”*
🥈 Second Place – JJ, *“Embracing Humiliation”*

🎉 A big thank-you to **Stephanie**, Contest Chair, and **Gerry**, Chief Judge, for running such a smooth and engaging contest — and to everyone who volunteered or came out to support our speakers.

Both contests are the first step on the path to higher levels of competition, and we’re excited to cheer on our winners as they advance to the **Area 43 Contest on March 1**!

👉 Want to see speaking excellence in action or try it yourself?
Join us for our upcoming meetings — guests are always welcome! 💙

✨ Presence, purpose, and connection at our most recent Frederick Toastmasters meeting ✨

Our inspiration, delivered by Erin, centered on her word for 2026: *presence*. She invited us to slow down, really listen, and connect — reminding us that Toastmasters is about more than speaking well; it’s about showing up fully.

🗣️ We enjoyed three thoughtful speeches:
• Joseph encouraged us to let go of what’s no longer working so we can grow forward.
• JinJin transported us to her hometown in rural China, sharing how community, nature, and generosity shaped who she is today.
• Robert reminded us that purposeful communication plants ideas that can create lasting change.

🧠 Table Topics reflections looked back on lessons from 2025 and forward to 2026, with themes of resilience, gratitude, growth, and the courage to pivot.

🎖️ Congratulations to our award winners:
🏆 Best Speaker – Joseph
🏆 Best Evaluator – Erin
🏆 Best Table Topics – JJ
🌟 Shining Star – JinJin

We’re excited to head into contest season, continue supporting new members through mentoring, and build momentum toward our Distinguished Club goals.

👉 Our next meeting is **Thursday, January 29**, featuring our **Club Contests** — no roles to sign up for, just come and enjoy!
Guests are always welcome 💙

https://www.ted.com/talks/lori_gottlieb_how_changing_your_story_can_change_your_life

How changing your story can change your life Stories help you make sense of your life -- but when these narratives are incomplete or misleading, they can keep you stuck instead of providing clarity. In an actionable talk, psychotherapist and advice columnist Lori Gottlieb shows how to break free from the stories you've been telling yourself by...

🎃👻 It’s been a fun and busy few weeks at Frederick Toastmasters!

Our **October 30 “Spooktacular” Halloween meeting** was a frightfully good time — complete with costumes, candy, and creative speeches! It was no trick that three Ice Breaker speeches from Tatiana, Issak, and Maurice were on the agenda — they were all real, and they were a treat!

Members and guests enjoyed a lighthearted evening that proved public speaking can be both educational *and* entertaining. 🕸️

Just one week later, we gathered again for our **November 6 meeting**, diving right back into thoughtful speeches, valuable evaluations, and plenty of laughter.

We also welcomed two special visitors: **Keisha Shephard and Tiffany Winfrey**, hosts of the new *Yes And* podcast. They’ll be featuring our club in an upcoming podcast episode and YouTube video — stay tuned!

👏 **Congratulations to our award winners across both meetings:**
🏆 Best Speaker – Tatiana and Kim
🏆 Best Evaluator – James C. and JinJin
🏆 Best Table Topics – JJ and Lincoln (a guest!)
🌟 Shining Star – Aida and Lewis

🎩 A big thank-you to our Toastmasters of the Evening — **Naveen (10/30)** and **Eric (11/06)** — for keeping both meetings running smoothly and full of energy!

It’s inspiring to see our members supporting each other’s growth week after week. Whether we’re sharing a laugh in costume or working on communication goals, every meeting helps us become stronger speakers and leaders. 💪

👉 Want to build your confidence, develop leadership skills, and meet a friendly, supportive community?
Join us at our next meeting:
🗓 Thursday, November 20, 6:30 PM
📍 FCAR, 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick

Guests are always welcome — we’d love to see you there! 💙

🎉 We had a fantastic turnout at our October 16 Frederick Toastmasters meeting — 16 members and 5 guests!

Our meeting really *took off* with an entertaining flight safety–themed opening from Tom, followed by two engaging speeches from Larry and Eric. ✈️

👏 Congratulations to our award winners:
🏆 Best Speaker – Eric
🏆 Best Evaluator – Tolu
🏆 Best Table Topics – Tom
🌟 Shining Star – Beth

🎩 We also held a special election to fill two officer roles — congratulations to our newly elected Secretary, Miranda, and Sergeant at Arms, Lewis! 🎉

👉 Want to have some spooky fun (and a few treats!) while building confidence, practicing public speaking, and meeting a supportive group of leaders?

Join us for our **Spooktacular Halloween Meeting** — costumes welcome! 👻
🗓 Thursday, October 30 | 6:30 PM
📍 FCAR, 490 Monocacy Blvd, Frederick

Guests are always welcome — we’d love to see you there! 💙