World Champion Public Speaker Lance Miller Keynote at SB Toastmasters 90th Anniversary March 22nd

Toastmasters International began humbly in 1924 at a YMCA in Santa Ana, California. Founder Ralph Smedley saw a void in public speaking practice, so he started a series of speaking classes at the YMCA where he worked. The classes turned into a club, the club spawned other clubs, and Santa Barbara Toastmasters Club #5 was the first club founded outside of Orange County on March 17, 1929. Learn more about the club here: santabarbaraclub5.toastmastersclubs.org.

Santa Barbara Toastmasters Club #5 has been meeting weekly ever since and will celebrate it’s 90th anniversary on March 22nd, 2019. The celebration will be held in downtown Santa Barbara at the Unitarian Society at 1535 Santa Barbara Street from 7 to 9 pm. For this special event there will be several speakers as well as food and drinks. The theme is the 1920’s (to remember our roots) so attendees are encouraged to dress appropriately if possible. All are welcome and tickets are only $20 and include one drink. Buy tickets to the event through Eventbrite here: goo.gl/pHSxPa.

The special keynote address will be given by Lance Miller, Toastmasters International 2005 World Champion of Public Speaking. An award-winning speaker and leadership and communication coach, Lance has spoken as a guest on over 150 television and talk radio shows and delivered over 5,000 presentations in more than 55 countries. Don’t miss this special opportunity to hear a world champion public speaker in Santa Barbara. Learn more about him here: lancemillerspeaks.com.

Each Toastmasters club has it’s own unique flavor, but they all have the same mission: to provide a supportive and positive learning experience in which members are empowered to develop communication and leadership skills, resulting in greater self-confidence and personal growth. Now Toastmasters International has clubs in 141 countries and over 352,000 members. 

Meetings have the same format all over the world. First the club is opened by the president and club business is discussed. Then two or three prepared speakers speak for 5-7 minutes each. Then all the members of the club participate in Table Topics – impromptu speaking practice guided by a facilitator on a themed topic. And finally, formal evaluations of the prepared speeches are given according to Toastmasters’ standards. All three sections of the meeting are given awards: Best Speaker, Best Table Topics and Best Evaluator.

Santa Barbara Toastmasters Club #5 meetings are held every week on Tuesday mornings at the Unitarian Society, 1535 Santa Barbara Street downtown from 7am to 8:30am. Then the club adjourns for coffee and snacks before work. The club has between 20 and 25 members so everyone who attends gets a chance to practice speaking at some point during the meeting.

The well-developed Toastmasters educational curriculum focuses on communication and leadership. New members are given the opportunity to choose from a variety of programs focusing on presentation, leadership development, persuasion, motivation, coaching and humor. As members work through projects they are evaluated according to Toastmasters International standards. The backbone of Toastmasters is evaluation on speeches and leadership projects from an attitude of loving and constructive criticism. 

Please consider joining the club for the 90th anniversary celebration and buying a ticket here: goo.gl/pHSxPa . Or just show up any Tuesday morning at 7am to our usual meeting location: The Santa Barbara Unitarian Society, 1535 Santa Barbara Street: santabarbaraclub5.toastmastersclubs.org.

For more information about the event on March 22nd or about this Toastmaster club contact Shannon Miller at 805-636-5011 or email Shannon@MillerShannon.com.