Over the holidays, Christina Kruis, the “Division L” Director for Toastmasters Calgary stopped by for a visit and to offer training for members of the everyone belongs™ Toastmasters Club. Table topics were introduced using creative tree decorations. Here are some of the highlights:
Last week, the everyone belongs™ Toastmasters club members were visited by the area and district directors from Toastmasters International. The visit was made to provide congratulations to the club for their ongoing successes and the welcoming atmosphere that they foster.
Toastmasters, for those who are unfamiliar, is an international organization that allows people the opportunity to master the art of public speaking. For DDRC clients, this is a chance to speak out and be heard in a supportive environment.
The club is overseen by Crysta Trask, the DDRC’s Creative Coordinator. She believes that the success of the club represents the growing skills and confidence of its members.
“They go outside of their comfort zone each week to grow and develop skills that they can use in their day-to-day lives,” Trask said. “They represent everything that DDRC is supposed to be about: inclusion, perseverance, dedication, advocacy, and everyone belonging.”
Since the beginning of the year, 12 club members have earned their “Competent Communicator” designation. In order to earn this designation, members must prepare and deliver 10 speeches.
Part of the Toastmasters program is the International Competent Communicator Manual. To ensure the success of club members, Trask created a modified version of the document using plain language. The visiting directors were impressed with this idea, and hope to adopt it for other groups where members are individuals with disabilities or are learning English as a second language.
During the weekly meeting, Table Topics were introduced through the creative method of “Table Topic Jenga,” where members carefully picked a block from the tower with a question printed on it to start a conversation.
“I was just trying to think outside of the box and create a fun new way to present and practice our Table Topic skills,” Trask said. “It can be a challenge to come up with new Table Topic questions on a weekly basis.”
The directors were again impressed with the idea, and plan to share it with other Toastmasters clubs.
For Trask, the highlight of the weekly meetings is watching the progress of the clients involved.
“Seeing the pride and excitement when someone successfully completes a speech is always fantastic.”
For more information about the everyone belongs™ Toastmasters club, please see our article from April.
August 10th marked the beginning of Occupational Health and Safety Week at the DDRC! This was a great opportunity for us to educate clients and employees about important safety and health issues.
Each day of the week featured a theme, and a variety of workshops and activities were offered to help highlight the themes. We were lucky enough to have guest speakers from the Calgary Fire Department and YMCA come to talk to us, and we had many employees share their expertise on particular topics.
Here are some of our favourite moments from the week:
Starting this fall, the DDRC will have a drop-in American Sign Language (ASL) Club for both clients and employees.
The ASL Club will be run by Crysta Trask, the DDRC’s Creative Coordinator, and Samantha Archibald, a Community Resource Worker.
According to Trask, the goal of the club will be to help improve the communication opportunities for individuals who have a hearing impairment, are deaf, or have a communication disability.
“My main goal for this club is to increase quality of life for all clients, as well as developing a stronger, closer DDRC community where everyone can be heard, acknowledged, and appreciated,” Trask said.
Archibald explained how isolating not being able to have a conversation with someone can be, which is an issue she hopes to overcome with this club.
“Some of our clients communicate with ASL or writing only, and that can be lonely,” Archibald said. “This can open communication for current and future DDRC clients.”
The club’s first meeting will be on September 9; the club will run biweekly.
Did you know that there are at least 137 distinct sign languages in existence? Although Quebec uses its own system (Quebec Sign Language), most of Canada uses American Sign Language. Much like differences in spoken English, there are different dialects across the country. For example, there are three different ways to sign the word “about” – a variation in the Atlantic provinces, one in Ontario, and a third used in the west and north of the country.
As the summer months draw to a close, and with growing season more than halfway over, we thought it would be a great time to update readers on the progress of the DDRC plot in the Rutland Park community garden!
The Learning and Leadership Garden Club met on-site last Monday to discuss the pros and cons of their first planting season. Despite a bit of hail damage, the crops have come in nicely, and the garden is truly something for all of the club members to take pride in.
Founded in 2011, the everyone belongs™ Toastmasters Club has received rave reviews from the Area Governor, and has been praised as fostering a caring and safe environment for all members. As of April 9, 12 members from the past year have graduated, and now the club will welcome 10 new members.
Toastmasters, for those who are unfamiliar, is an international organization that allows people the opportunity to master the art of public speaking, receiving feedback from peers rather than an instructor or coach. For DDRC clients, this is a chance to speak out and be heard in a supportive environment.
The club is overseen by Crysta Trask, the DDRC’s Creative Coordinator. Trask believes that Toastmasters is an ideal way to build self-esteem and confidence, while developing speaking and leadership skills. Participation also provides practice of basic conversation skills that are essential for successful social inclusion.
“We do all of this in a safe, relaxed, and non-judgemental environment,” Trask said. “We celebrate individual successes equally, and we delight in group successes.”
The everyone belongs Toastmasters Club was founded by long-time DDRC client Marilyn Wilson, who passed away last July. Wilson’s views on public speaking were that “the more you do it, the better you will be.” This has been proven by our club’s members: as of the end of March, each member of the everyone belongs™ Toastmasters club has received their “Competent Communicator” designation, awarded after their tenth and final speech.
Theresa is one of the members who has completed her Toastmasters journey at the DDRC. She shared her experiences with new members who might be anxious about public speaking.
“When I first started Toastmasters, I was kind of worried, so I asked people about it and asked for advice,” Theresa said. “I’ve learned a lot, and I’ve come a long way. I like Toastmasters now.”
Area Governor Dennis Falconer visited the everyone belongs group in March, and commented that our club “has taken the ethos of Toastmasters and offers something more than words can describe to this wonderful group of people.”
Members of the club meet every Thursday in the Learning and Leadership Centre.