Next Meeting: Thursday 27th November

Tullamore Toastmasters extends a warm and festive invitation and welcome to all to come along to our second-last meeting before the Christmas break. At this time of the year spirits are high and people are actively seeking distraction for a few hours. While also giving value for money, Tullamore Toastmasters is where it is at. For €5 Tullamore Toastmasters offers entertainment, inspiration and no small amount of education and conversation about issues ranging from current and relevant, to festive and funny. We’ll throw in a cup of coffee and a few biscuits as well. Meeting in the Tullamore Court Hotel on Thursday 27th November at 8.30 pm. Hoping to see you there.

Humorous Speech Contest & Table Topics Contest 2014

The next meeting of Tullamore Toastmasters is again a special night. On Thursday the 2nd of October, we will be holding two contests within the club. The winners of the Humorous Speech Contest and the Table Topics Contest will then go on to represent the club at the Area Final in Ballymahon.

Although this is not a normal meeting, it is, like all meetings of Tullamore Toastmasters, open to the public. Come along and see how things go!

Open Night in F14 -Battery+ Gallery

The next meeting of Tullamore Toastmasters will not be in our normal venue. We will be in the F14 –Battery+ Gallery, surrounded by all of the contemporary art of the Foundation14 Arts Festival. Members and visitors are invited to discuss topics of art, literature and music. New members and visitors are always welcome!

The meeting is on Thursday the 18th of September, at our usual time of 8.30pm.

The 2014/2015 Toastmasters season is upon us!

The summer break draws to an end. Tullamore Toastmasters will start meeting again in September. Our first meeting of the season will be on the 4th of September. Meetings will continue every second Thursday.

Thursday, 4th September 2014
Meet at 8:30 p.m. in the Tullamore Court Hotel.

Thursday, 18th September 2014 in association with the Foundation 14 Arts Festival
Meet at 8:30 p.m. in a Foundation 14 art gallery.

Foundation 14 is an Arts Festival in Tullamore which puts art into public spaces. Last year, Foundation 13 invited us to hold a Toastmasters meeting in one of the temporary art galleries in a disused shop on the High Street. We had an excellent meeting with an art theme to it. I’m happy and excited to report that this year’s festival, Foundation 14, have invited us to repeat the experience.

Thursday, 2nd October 2014, Humorous Speech Contest & Table Topics Contest
Meet at 8:30 p.m. in the Tullamore Court Hotel

The Area Final will be shortly after this (the date is yet to be decided), and the Division Final is on Saturday the 18th of October.


All Toastmasters meetings are open to the public.

Committee 2014/2015

The Committee for the 2014/2015 Toastmasters year was elected at the AGM on the 29th of May and came into office on the 1st of July. The committee is as follows:

President: Timothy Green.
Vice President Education: Eileen McGrath.
Vice President Membership: Ciara Kinnarney.
Vice President Public Relations: Mike Keenan.
Secretary & Treasurer: Ciara Kinnarney.
Seargant at Arms (Fáilte Officer): Dolores Conroy.
Immediate Past Preisdent: Jennifer Dillon.

 

Next Meeting: 6th March 2014

The next meeting of Tullamore Toastmasters will be on Thursday the 6th of March at the usual time and place: 8:30 pm in the Tullamore Court Hotel. The meeting is open to the public: all are welcome.

Internetional Speech Contest & Speech Evaluation Contest 2014: Results

The competition meeting on the 20th of February was chaired by Des Doyle. The first order of business for the night was to vote in new members. This was handled by our president, Jennifer Dillon. New members voted in were Des Doyle, Mike Keenan, Eileen McGrath, and Conor McCarthy.

Then, after a short topic session from our Topicsmaster for the night, Phil Newton, came the International Speech Contest. There were two entrants for the Contest, first Mike Keenan, with a speech entitled “Speaking the Music of Life”, then Timothy Green, with a speech entitled “She Sells Sea Shells on the Sea Shore”. After the Contest, there were a few more topics while the ballot counters totted up the results from the judges, and then a break for coffee, biscuits, and a chat.

After the break, there were a few more topics and then the Speech Evaluation Contest. Our guest speaker, Francis Keenan, VPE of Athlone Toastmasters, gave a poetic speech entitled “Wisdom”. The three contestants, Mike Keenan, Timothy Green, and Eileen McGrath, took notes on the speech, then went outside for five minutes preparation time (while Phil Newton engaged the audience with a few more topics). At the end of the five minutes, the contestants had to give up their notes. Then each contestant entered the room one at a time, receiving their notes back as they came in, and evaluated Francis Keenan’s speech, giving him feedback on where the speech was strong and where it could be improved.

After a final bout of topics, the winners of the two contests were announced: Mike Keenan won the International Speech Contest and Timothy Green won the speech evaluation contest. The winners will go on to represent the club at the Area Final.


The area final will be on Monday the 7th of April. The venue has yet to be confirmed, but will probably be the Prince of Wales Hotel in Athlone.


Note: One of the requirements of the International Speech Contest is that the contestant has already given six speeches in Toastmasters. Mike Keenan had achieved this, even though he’s a new member, as he is also a member of Athlone Toastmasters. This requirement does not apply to the Speech Evaluation Contest or other contests. This was, in fact, the first evaluation Eileen McGrath had given. This is the third year running in Tullamore Toastmasters where a new member has given their first ever evaluation as part of the Speech Evaluation Contest.

Competition, 20th February 2014

The next meeting of Tullamore Toastmasters is on Thursday the 20th of Februrary. It’s at the normal time, 8.30 p.m., and in the normal place, the Tullamore Court Hotel, but it’s not a normal meeting. This is a competition night.

There will be two competitions on the night, first, the International Speech Contest, in which contestants must give a five to seven minute talk on a subject of their choice, and then a Speech Evaluation Contest, in which contestants are judged on how well they evaluate a test speech. The test speech will be given by a guest speaker, in this case Francis Keenan from Athlone Toastmasters.

Competition nights are, as ever, open to the public. All are welcome.

Next Meeting: 23rd January 2014

The next meeting of Tullamore Toastmasters will be on Thursday the 23rd of January at the usual time and place: 8:30 pm in the Tullamore Court Hotel. The meeting is open to the public: all are welcome.

Next Meeting: 9th January 2014

At the usual time and place: 8:30 pm in the Tullamore Court Hotel. All welcome. See you there.