Category Archives: Members
L’chaim! (“To life!”)
We all have our crutches — all of us, no matter how experienced a speaker we are. Past-president Susan’s crutch is a sometimes overdependence on notes. But Susan didn’t look at her notes even once during this week’s great speech. … Continue reading
Next Meeting at Murchie’s: Coffee’s On Us
A great speech often just boils down to “show and tell.” Remember this great tradition from elementary school? Every day one kid brought something from home and gave a short presentation about it. (Four to six minutes, red light at … Continue reading
Scare and Scare Alike
We all ask ourselves, as we are preparing our speeches: what’s my main objective? To entertain? To inform? To inspire? All are worthy, and a speech can push more than one button. But once a year at VanCore we aim … Continue reading
Say it Like You Mean It: Eunoia
Not all Toastmasters clubs include a “Word of the Day” on their weekly agendas, but VanCore does, and it’s hard now to imagine a meeting without it. There have been some obvious words, some silly ones, and some crazily obscure … Continue reading
This is Where I Live (Honest)
Quick: in two minutes or less, explain and defend your home province. Easy enough, right? But what if you were asked, on the spot, to explain a different province? Maybe one that you’re not that familiar with or, gulp, never … Continue reading
The Thriller on Pender
Why contests? Because most of us find our best selves when the stakes are raised. This week, we departed from our usual format and devoted the meeting to a Table Topics competition – with the winner to advance and represent … Continue reading
Funny Strange or Funny Ha-Ha?
Have you noticed nobody tells jokes anymore? Maybe it’s because they’re so dangerous. What one person finds hilarious another may find grossly offensive (and it’s hard to predict these things in advance.) Plus which, they’re hard to tell well. Get … Continue reading
What’s the Good Word?
Not every Toastmasters club features a “Word of the Day,” but VanCore does. Each week, one member floats a relatively uncommon but useful word, with a view to building everybody’s working vocabulary. The challenge is then for people to use … Continue reading
House Beautiful
When you throw an “Open House” there are usually mixed feelings. A new phase of life is nigh! But a stream of strangers just questioned your taste in wallpaper, and now you have to get your carpet cleaned. Fortunately, there … Continue reading
VanCore Toastmasters 