Anchorvale TMC Chapter Meeting on 24th May 2014

Be prepared to be dazzled! Anchorvale's 53rd Chapter Meeting had all the makings of a classic!

It was yet another Chapter meeting for Anchorvale Toastmasters, however it was anything but ordinary to me. It was an oratorical feast, a sensory overload. I was undoubtedly impressed and frankly quite touched by the brilliant speeches as well as the strength and spirit demonstrated by the Anchorvale family. Everyone chipped in when we were setting up, the speakers were all top-notch and the meeting was so indelibly well-executed.

Where should I even begin... then with…

Salma, our Toastmaster of the Day (TMD)! She was like a hurricane. She came, she delivered and she blew us away with such a stirring and powerful performance, leaving in her wake - the audience, spell-bounded and yearning for more.  I’m not exaggerating: Each time she took to the lectern, she shone brightly, infecting us with her brimming energy, zest and language prowess. With a strong sense of purpose, she presided over the meeting smoothly and when the dust settled, all we could remember was how brilliant and captivating she was as the TMD. If only I had managed to record it down…

Alas, what’s a Chapter meeting without the speeches? And like a mighty clash of the titans, this segment pitted one beautifully crafted speech against another, as speakers each offered their best, ranging from gems of wisdom on IPPT and losing weight, to cautionary tales of voyages at sea and even to pre-loved furniture and the gastronomic importance of chocolate. Where else can one find such diverse topics being presented within one room? Throughout the speeches, I laughed heartily, smiled at the shared daily experiences and ached for the stories which tugged at my heartstrings. The stories were all fantastic and so were the speakers, as they turned a hot, simmering afternoon into a cool, breezy respite.

As the saying goes ‘third time’s a charm’, and this definitely rings true, thanks to our – Evaluators. And by that I meant all our different evaluators, from Speech Evaluators, to our General Evaluator ACS ALB Daniel Tran and even Language Evaluator, DTM Crispin Rodriguez. For the speech evaluations, DTM Richard with his years of veteran Toastmaster experience delivered such a precise and empowering evaluation, and it became clear we still had much to learn from our Club mentor. Crispin, our visiting Toastmaster from NTU Toastmaster Club, gave us a clinical diagnosis of our grammatical errors wowed us as we delved into the very foundations of the English language. And thankfully for Daniel, we had someone to assess the overall effectiveness of our meeting, with his insightful and important comments. We will definitely learn from our mistakes and improve from there.

What about Rachel, our intelligent Table Topics Master who provided us with wise proverbs about animals. We certainly learnt much from her, and it prompted a further discussion outside the meeting.

The list goes on and on, and there were still many praises to sing for my dear club. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, I’m just proud and delighted to be part of Anchorvale Toastmasters. As Roger CC CL mentioned in his closing address, it is easy for a club to ride the waves of success but it should not rest on its laurels. As Anchorvale continues on its voyage, there will be greater adventures and stormy weathers ahead, and we should be poised and ready to surmount them. With the camaraderie and friendship, it is always a pleasure to attend Chapter meetings and I believe, this is only a bond which can get stronger and stronger.

Don’t just take my word for it. Do come on down for our next chapter meeting on the 14^th of June to experience the joy yourself.

Three Cheers to Anchorvale Toastmasters! Hurray, Hurray, Hurray!

We would like to thank all Appointment Holders!
Congratulations to Award Winners!

Best Prepared Speech: Debananda TM
Best Evaluator: DTM Richard Tay
Best Table Topics Speaker: Alice from Sengkang West Zone D RC

Written By: Norman Tan TM