The Mullingar Toastmasters celebrated their 25th anniversary at the Greville Arms Hotel on Friday evening, (back from left) Anke Von Bünau, Lorraine Murphy (president), Tom Byrne, Brian McLoughlin, Patrick Cavanagh, Carol Whyte (founder member), Linda Gavagan, and Rose Harraghy; (front) Maureen McCormack, John Waldron (founder member and immediate past president), Rachael Waldron, and Pat Kenny. Missing from photo, Donna Marie Woods.

Mullingar Toastmasters mark their silver anniversary

By Patrick Cavanagh

Joining Toastmasters was one of the best things I did in my life! Very quickly I learned from my fellow Toastmasters that I can do anything I believed I could do, and that I could become anything I believed I could become. Tweak the word ‘impossible’ and it becomes ‘I’m possible’. As Walt Disney said: ‘if you can dream it, you can do it’.

Toastmasters encourages members to dream and there is great joy when a member achieves – and often exceeds – their dreams.

And this feeling of positivity is wonderfully infectious. Positivity doesn’t mean that everything is okay all the time. Positivity doesn’t mean that you won’t get your bad times now and then. Positivity means realising there is always something to be learned and gained from life’s challenges.

You’ll win or you’ll get smarter. And it’s not just you who will win or get smarter. By sharing your experiences, trials and tribulations and by facing challenges, all Toastmasters win and get smarter.

Mullingar Toastmasters started in The Greville Arms Hotel, Mullingar in 1997, a quarter century ago. On Friday June 24, 2022, we celebrated our silver anniversary. Three members who attended that first meeting were present. What an evening! We celebrated throwing off the shackles of Zoom! We celebrated meeting up in person for the first time in almost two years. And it was like we had never been apart. What a feeling!

Toastmasters was founded in October 1924 by a group of people who wished to improve their communication skills – and in so doing enhance their self-confidence and manage their careers and lives. There are now about 16,200 Toastmaster clubs around the world with about 360,000 members.

The first half of a typical meeting consists of members giving speeches, to prearranged objectives. These are then evaluated by other members with a view to helping the speaker become even better. The second half of the meeting, called Topics Session, is where members give impromptu two-minute speeches, with no time to prepare.

This is a great opportunity to learn to think on your feet! A general evaluator gives a report at the end of the meeting as to how well it was run, and perhaps to suggest how things could be improved.

Joining, and staying, in Toastmasters will not stretch your budget – it’s less than €100 for a year. But it will expand your self-confidence to areas you never believed possible. For many people the thought of speaking in public is terrifying. Quite a few are scared to ask for what they want – even when fully entitled.

Interpersonal communication is now more important than ever in this interconnected world we live in. Those who are unable to communicate could be left behind. With Toastmasters you’re surrounded by people who really enjoy seeing your successes.

Mullingar Toastmasters takes a break during the summer and will resume in September. The next meeting will be in The Greville Arms Hotel, Mullingar 8pm on Thursday September 8.

Mark it in your diary as it could be the beginning of the best part of your life. Perhaps 8pm on Friday June 28, 2047 you could be writing the article to the paper celebrating the Mullingar Toastmasters 50th anniversary!

The Mullingar Toastmasters celebrated their 25th anniversary at the Greville Arms Hotel on Friday evening, (back from left) Anke Von Bünau, Lorraine Murphy (president), Tom Byrne, Brian McLoughlin, Patrick Cavanagh, Carol Whyte (founder member), Linda Gavagan, and Rose Harraghy; (front) Maureen McCormack, John Waldron (founder member and immediate past president), Rachael Waldron, and Pat Kenny. Missing from photo, Donna Marie Woods. Photo by Thomas Gibbons