| |
Here are some facts about who we are and what we do:
We are a proper Toastmasters Club, affiliated
with the Worldwide Toastmaster Organization. Our club
has been registered with Toastmasters International since December 22, 1987.
We meet every Tuesday at noon, on the 11th floor of
Calgary Place Building in downtown Calgary.
At Shell Toastmasters, we emphasize
Teamwork,
Focus and
Value.
- Teamwork:
Our club's basic premise is that we can all
learn faster when working as a team than when working individually. Our teamwork
provides each participating member with unparalleled personal growth opportunities. The keyword here is "participating".
- Focus:
Our focus at Shell Toastmasters is effective
communication. Our club's most visible learning goal is to improve our public speaking. Along with public speaking improvement, we also promote better listening, leadership skills, and conducting better meetings. This club is made up of professionals and we do our best to make each meeting count.
- Value:
Portable skills is the key value we provide each of our members at Shell Toastmasters. These skills include, but are not limited to, public speaking, thinking on your feet, listening, leadership, planning, web building. Our aim is to ensure each of our members can use these skills at work, at home and anywhere they would need these value-added skills.
Our club is very friendly and operates in a very positive minded atmosphere.
The Story of Toastmasters
Since Toastmasters began, more than two million men and women have benefited
from the communication and leadership programs of the organization.
The first club was formed in October 1924, when a group of men assembled by
Dr. Ralph C. Smedley met in the basement of the Santa Ana, California YMCA
to
form a club "to afford practice and training in the art of public speaking
and in presiding over meetings, and to promote sociability and good
fellowship among its
members." The group took the name "Toastmasters."
A year later, a second club was started in Anaheim, California, followed by
a third in Los Angeles. By 1930, it was apparent that a federation was
necessary to
coordinate activities of the clubs and to provide standard methods. After
formation of a club in Victoria, British Columbia, the group became known as
Toastmasters
International.
Growth was slow during the early years, but the number of clubs increased
steadily. The forerunner of today's Communication and Leadership program,
Basic
Training, was introduced in 1942 and has been expanded and updated many
times since then to keep abreast of the times and members' needs.
Membership in Toastmasters International increased rapidly after the end of
World War II, and by 1954 the number of Toastmasters clubs had approached
1500.
Gavel Clubs were formed in 1958 to accommodate groups wanting Toastmasters
training but not qualified for Toastmasters membership. These clubs provide
communication and leadership training in correctional institutions,
hospitals, and schools. In 1966, the Youth Leadership Program, for young
people in junior and
senior high school, was added to the list of established community programs
being presented by Toastmasters.
In 1962, World Headquarters offices were moved to a new building in Santa
Ana, California, not far from where the first club began.
In 1973, Toastmasters club membership was opened to women, enabling them to
benefit also from self-development in communication and leadership. In the
same
year, a comprehensive listening program was introduced to further help
members develop their communication skills. The following year saw a
celebration of their
organization's first 50 years and the promise of an even more successful
second half-century.
New programs, including the modular Advanced Manual Series, Success/
Leadership Series, and self-study cassette tape programs, were added to
augment the
Communication and Leadership program. Growth in new clubs, especially in the
corporate sector, reached new highs in the late 1980s, with more than 7000
clubs.
Toastmasters International is the undisputed world leader in public speaking
training with the promise that the best is yet to come. |
