In the opening remarks, President Summer Murphy shared the club’s practice of acknowledging systemic racism. “Every Friday, we start our meetings this way,” she stated, explaining that we began that after George Floyd’s murder.
Murphy emphasized the importance of shedding light on this ongoing struggle, even when it is not making headlines. She then turned the group’s attention to 109-year-old activist Viola Fletcher, who is sharing the story of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre through her memoir “Don’t Let Them Bury My Story.”
In a show of support for the Black Lives Matter movement, the group observed a minute of silence, muting microphones and turning off cameras to honor all victims of racial injustice.
The meeting was then turned over to the Toastmaster of the day, John Doggett. John introduced the “Word of the Day” (WOD), which was “compassion,” sharing that it is a feeling of empathy and concern for the suffering or misfortune of others, coupled with a desire to help or support them.
John then invited all attendees to take a moment to introduce themselves to our amazing guest, Anthony Haase!
Toastmaster Dave Burr introduced our first speaker, Toastmaster Kerstin Haase. Kerstin delivered a speech that explored her personal journey with reading books on the topic of racial inequities. She candidly shared her difficulty getting through these emotionally-charged books, but drive to continue her self-discovery journey. She focused on the areas of her life where she feels called to improve and grow, as she strives to be a more informed and empathetic individual.
Dave evaluated Kerstin’s speech, complimenting the speaker’s exceptional and captivating performance while also providing constructive feedback on areas for improvement to support her continued growth as a public speaker.
Toastmaster Anu Parvathaneni introduced the second speaker, Toastmaster Saraswathi Mahalingam, who delivered a speech titled “Conquering Negativity: Strategies for a Positive Mindset,” in which she shared how engaging in activities like travel and communication, staying busy, and releasing negative thoughts can help keep them at bay, drawing an analogy to scarecrows being mere illusions just as negative thoughts are not real, and finding comfort in surrounding herself with compassionate friends and family who understand her, fostering a positive environment that nurtures empathy and growth.
Anu Evaluated Saraswathi’s speech, highlighting the excellent topic, vocal variety, etc., and provided constructive feedback to further enhance the delivery.
Toastmaster Tim Murphy led a dynamic table topic session, fostering quick thinking, effective articulation, and confident on-the-spot communication skills.
Toastmaster Hema Kellett served as General Evaluator, providing comprehensive feedback on the meeting and commending the exceptional performance of participants. Toastmaster Summer Murphy delivered the Timer report, ensuring each segment adhered to the allocated time, while Toastmaster Norris Bass, the Grammarian, offered valuable linguistic feedback and shared resonating quotes.
Toastmaster John smoothly handed over the meeting to Toastmaster Summer. Summer then proceeded to wrap up the meeting and officially adjourn the session.
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The next Sunrise Toastmasters meeting will be at 7 a.m. on June 7, EST. If you would like to join our meeting as a guest, contact us for the meeting link.
The roles for the next meeting are as follows:
Toastmaster: Dave
Speaker 1: Savannah (stepped in)
Speaker 2: Norris
Table Topics: Saraswathi
General Evaluator: Tim
Evaluator 1: Summer
Evaluator 2: Hema
Timer: Anu
Grammarian: Kerstin
