The 219th Regular Meeting: October 17, 2026

A Lively Day at Senri Toastmasters Club!

On October 17, we held our 219th regular meeting of Senri Toastmasters Club in a hybrid format, with members joining both in person and online. It was a lively and enjoyable afternoon filled with speeches, learning, laughter, and opportunities to connect with one another.

Our Toastmaster of the Day, Marilyn, led the meeting smoothly. As a Division Director, she brought her leadership experience to the meeting and helped everything run well.

Mats took on the Word of the Day role and introduced the words “relate” and “relatable.” It was a great reminder that learning a new word or expression can help us communicate more naturally.

I had two roles yesterday: Joke Master and General Evaluator. It was a busy afternoon for me, but I enjoyed being involved in different parts of the meeting!

The joke that got the biggest laugh was a simple Japanese play on words:

“Furansu no pan wa… Furansupan!
But… Nihon no pan wa?”

The answer is
“Ja-pan!” 😂

In Japanese, pan means bread. So, French bread becomes “Furansupan,” and Japanese bread becomes “Ja-pan”—a little twist on the word “Japan”!

The laughter reminded me that humor is a wonderful way to bring people together, even when we come from different countries and speak different languages.

Speeches

Tamiko shared her experience of working on her public speaking weaknesses and the tricks she has been using to improve. Her story was something many of us could relate to. After all, we joined Toastmasters to learn, challenge ourselves, and become better communicators. We all have our own strengths and weaknesses, and it is encouraging to see how we can keep improving step by step.

We had four prepared speeches, each on a different topic:

Yuichi: My Recommended AI Tips and Tricks

Lily: Your Evaluator is Your Cheerleader!

Kankan: From “Whatever” to “Here’s What I Need”

Sora: NAVER Map is amazing!?

What a variety of topics! From AI tips and the importance of evaluations to communication styles and the usefulness of NAVER Map, there was something for everyone.

The evaluation session was another valuable part of the meeting. Our evaluators offered constructive suggestions on effective gestures, unnecessary body movements, and language choices. These small details can make a big difference in how our messages are received by the audience.

As General Evaluator, I was reminded once again that Toastmasters is not just about delivering speeches. It is also about learning to give helpful feedback that encourages others to grow.

Guests Made Our Meeting Special

We were happy to welcome two guests who joined us online from Mongolia, as well as Miwako san, from Kansai TM Club, who came all the way from Nagasaki to attend in person.

Whether we join through a screen or sit together in the same room, we can learn from one another and share our experiences.

OktoberFest After-Party!

The fun continued after the meeting at our OktoberFest-themed after-party!

It was a wonderful opportunity to relax, chat, and get to know one another better outside our usual meeting roles. We discovered little things about each other that we might not have known otherwise.

One fun discovery was that Yasuko-san and I share the same birthday! We also found out that both Rene and Madelyn have birthdays in October. What a lovely way to celebrate the connections we have within our club.

Every meeting gives us a chance to try something new, share what we have learned, and support our fellow members.

(by Anne)

The 218th Regular Meeting: September 19, 2026

As the seasons shift from summer to autumn, we always find something new in the coming days. In the same way, our meetings continue to advance, and we learn and develop new skills at every session.

This meeting had the regular lineup of programs. Therefore, we also had usual role takers. Here, I would like to focus on the role takers’ activities rather than speakers.

We have a variety of roles that contribute to the success of our meeting:

Toastmaster of the Day by Kama-yan: He kept the meeting energetic with warm and encouraging comments for all speakers and role takers.

Topicsmaster by Renelyn: She created an engaging theme, “Autumn,” with topics such as “A Horror Movie,” perfect for enjoying an autumn evening.

Timer by Ma-chan: She delivered precise and calm time announcements, giving a professional atmosphere to the role.

Vote Counter by Yasuko: She presented the voting result after two rounds of voting were declared invalid.

Grammarian and Word Master by Yuichi: He selected “Integral” as today’s word. Although it sounded solemn, many members successfully incorporated it into their speeches. He also provided wonderful words/expressions as well as examples of usage to be improved.

We continue to brush up our skills in each role and we always seek useful and effective approaches from various aspects.

It is unfortunate that I cannot cover the great efforts of the four Evaluators and three technical role takers—Zoom Master, PC-Stage, and PC-Projector—who also contributed significantly to the success of the meeting.

(by Hiko)

The 217th Regular Meeting: August 8, 2026

Kan Kan delivered a speech based on a project, "Understanding Your Leadership Style."

Kan Kan delivering her speech online

"Leadership?" you may wonder. Yes, we learn leadership in Toastmasters by taking leadership roles in our meetings and in our daily activities. That is why some of the "Paths" in our education program, Pathways, have this project.

In this project, we respond to a survey with 48 questions. Kan Kan's results showed she has a strong tendency toward affiliative and altruistic leadership styles. After introducing this result, she went on to tell us a story of her helping a new employee by reaching out to her with small talk and offering assistance with her assignment. She wanted to help her because she remembered how insecure she was at the beginning of her career. She just wanted to make her new colleague feel a little better. She then told us that leadership does not have to be "big and lofty." It can be just being ready to notice someone's stuck and offer help.

With this simple yet strong message, she incorporated a lot of beautiful phrases such as "everyone else was buried with work," "I wanted someone to point me in the right direction," "I reached out because I'd been in her shoes," and "That's not I'm after right now." This was a great speech by "Kan Kan, an ordinary person still figuring things out."

A scene from the hybrid meeting

Another aspect of leadership visible in this meeting was a suggestion provided at the previous meeting. At the last meeting, the General Evaluator, Jinyoung, raised an issue that it is sometimes difficult for online members to find the timing signals, especially when the Timer is at the venue. We came up with some ideas and incorporated one of them. The idea was to have the Timer stand much closer to the camera than before. With the timing signals occupying a larger part of the venue pane on the Zoom screen, it should have made it a lot easier for online participants to spot them.

The timing signal shown closer to the camera

This is another way to demonstrate leadership in improving our meeting and our club. Thanks to Jinyoung's initiative, our meeting is now more online-participant-friendly.

(by Tenten)

The 216th Regular Meeting: July 18, 2026

Today's meeting was a series of “firsts” for our club; the first meeting of the Senri club’s 2nd term, our new president “Hiko’s” debut, 1st speech of “Yuichi”. It was one of the most meaningful meetings I’ve ever attended.

Our new president, Hiko, kicked off the meeting with great energy. I’m confident that Senri Toastmasters will navigate this new chapter successfully under captain Hiko. I can’t wait to see the promising future of the club.

T.M.O.D (Toastmaster of the Day, facilitator of the regular meeting), Yuriko, successfully led the meeting. She introduced each session with kindness and shared thoughtful comments on every speech. Thanks to her leadership, all participants fully enjoyed today’s meeting, I’m sure.

A Toastmasters meeting typically consists of three parts: Prepared speech, Table Topics, Evaluations. Here are some highlights from them.

First, Prepared speech session.

Three speakers (Yuichi, Kama-yan, Ma-chan) shared their own stories:

• Yuichi : His curiosity about things and reasons for joining our club
• Kama-yan : His experience as Table Topics Master at our last special meeting with wonderful episodes
• Ma-chan : The journey of pursuing her dream of becoming a medical animator

Every speech was unique and resonated with all of us.

We had other role takers; Table Topics Master “Tami”, Grammarian “Anne”, Timer “Mats”, Ah-counter “Yasuko” and others.

Thanks to their contributions, the meeting ran smoothly.

In particular, Table Topics Master “Tami” showed remarkable growth, facilitating confidently with clear comments. I always admired her efforts to improve her English and public speaking skills. And the kind and professional report of Grammarian “Anne”, the brief report of Timer “Mats”, happy welcoming to Ah-counter “Yasuko”, made the meeting special.

However, there was a technical issue related to offline mic low volume. While our officers fixed the problem quickly, it seems we need to double-check mic volume before the meeting in advance.

Overall, the meeting was fantastic as always. I hope we can keep this atmosphere for a long time.

(by Jinyoung)

The 215th Regular Meeting: June 20, 2026 “General Evaluator’s Reflection”

We were very delighted to have a new member, Yuichi, in today’s meeting. As the General Evaluator, I felt it a pleasure to have had a tense but lively meeting.

Smooth Start & Progress

Our Toastmaster of the Day, Renelyn has a long career as a Toastmaster. She started the meeting smoothly and concluded it humorously.

Prepared Speech Session

The three speakers’ speeches made us think about and realize the meaning of our being a Toastmaster. They were worth listening to repeatedly. Their passion to be a Senri Toastmasters Club member is so great.

Evaluation Session

All the evaluators engaged us with resonating comments. For example,

“The body language like gesture or eye contact made the speech more remarkable.”

“Real leadership experiences created the speaker’s motivational technique.”

“The necessity of mentioning some more specific changes with Maho san in your speech.”

We took it to heart.

Table Topics Session

TT master, Kazu was joining from India. Like Japan, India is now in the monsoon season. He said, “There’s heavy rainfall today, too, and it’s a miserable situation.” He gave us the topic of “rain.” It was a timely one. This topic brought out a wide range of vivid experiences or stories from the audience, which elicited laughs.

Other Roles & Reflection

From an overall perspective. As usual, we’ve learned a lot of valuable things about skills, words & phrases & expressions and the fun of inspiring each other. It’s thanks to each role taker’s supporting this meeting, what we call, “our teamwork.”

However, we’ve left an unsolved issue. That’s ‘how reducing filler words improves speech clarity and confidence’ (proposed by the previous GE, Anne). Let’s set this as our next goal again.

(By Tami)

The 213th Regular Meeting: Apr 18, 2026

Our 213th meeting was full of energy and great speeches. Today, I would like to focus this blog on our four prepared speakers.

First, Mats asked a very interesting question: "Will AI take over the job of an interpreter?" She explained that there are things only humans can do, like reading subtle facial expressions. Her talk was very helpful, and I believe that kind of "human touch" is something only Mats can provide.

Our second speaker, Madelyn, shared a heartwarming story about the kindness around us. It’s true—we really are surrounded by kindness. We usually enjoy her humorous speeches, but today she showed us a new, touching side of her speaking style. It made her speech even more meaningful and rich.

The third speaker, Takashi, gave a very strong and motivational speech. I loved his conclusion: "No matter my age, it is never too late." He is the perfect example of this message. Since joining Senri Toastmasters, his English and presentation skills have improved so much. I really admire how hard he works to reach his goals. He proved that it is never too late for a new challenge!

Our final speaker, Rene, gave a professional presentation about an event plan. It was very well-organized, like a real business presentation. She even handled disruptive questions perfectly. We learned a lot of skills that we can use in our own workplaces.

Also, I really enjoyed the Table Topics session. In Japan, we often talk about "May Sickness" (gogatsu-byo), where people feel a bit tired or lose motivation during this season. Our Table Topics Master, Kazu, prepared great questions for us. It was nice to hear everyone’s opinions before May starts. Thanks to this session, I think we can all keep our motivation high!

It was a splendid meeting with a lot of learning. I look forward to seeing you all again soon!

(Eri)

The 212th Regular Meeting: Mar 21, 2026 “A Heartwarming and Assertive Saturday at Senri!”

Thank you everyone for another wonderful meeting! To be honest, I was struggling with hay fever and felt quite congested, wondering how I’d get through the session. However, simply participating gave me so much energy that I feel completely refreshed now. There was so much to take in, but I would like to share three particular highlights that stayed with me.

First, Ma-chan shared a touching "My Senri Experience" that reminded us all of Anne’s incredible mindset. It was heartening to hear how Anne always reaches out to new members with such encouraging words. The idea that Toastmasters is a place where we can embrace failure without fear and then apply that assertive confidence to our workplaces is something that truly resonated with me. I am so glad Ma-chan shared that spirit with us today.

Next, I was delighted to hear from our four speakers. These are four individuals whose stories I look forward to every single time, and today was no exception. In particular, Takashi-san’s speech brought a lump to my throat. Having followed his heartfelt posts about his wife on Facebook, hearing him speak today with such a blend of humor and deep emotion was incredibly moving. It was a truly assertive and honest performance, and I sincerely wish his wife could have heard that beautiful story.

I was also deeply impressed by Tenten. Even though he delivers flawless speeches every time, seeing him intently taking notes while listening to his evaluation reminded me that this humble, lifelong-learning attitude is what matters most, no matter how experienced we become. It was a powerful example of how to be assertive in one's own growth.

This meeting was a truly fruitful experience for everyone involved. A huge thank you to our Toastmaster of the Day, Yuriko, for leading us with such a fun and welcoming atmosphere. I also want to say a big congratulations to Mats on your debut as a role taker! Welcoming Mats as a new member makes Senri Toastmasters Club an even more vibrant and exciting place to be.

I look forward to seeing you all again next month!

(Eri)

The 211th Regular Meeting: February 21, 2026 “Contest Spirit and a Heartfelt Farewell”

At our 211th Regular Meeting, the Senri Toastmasters Club atmosphere was filled with a unique blend of focused determination and warm sentiment. As we are currently in the midst of the contest season, our agenda included a special session dedicated to supporting our club contestants.

Highlight 1: Road to the Contest – Feedback for our Contestants

In addition to our usual content, we held a special practice session for our club contestants, Anne and Eri. Both delivered their contest-ready speeches, providing a "fruitful and beneficial" opportunity for all club members to engage in the spirit of "teamwork".

The venue was opened for feedback, and the response was overwhelming. Many members offered insightful comments and suggestions, creating a learning loop that benefited not only the contestants but every member in attendance. This session truly embodied our motto of "Growing Together."

📅 Mark your calendars!
The Area C3 Contest will be held on February 28th. We encourage anyone interested in witnessing high-level public speaking to come and support our contestants!

Highlight 2: A Fond Farewell to Mune-san

The meeting also carried a touch of sadness as we bid a "bittersweet" farewell to Mune-san. For the past four years, Mune-san has been a dedicated member, participating almost exclusively online from Tokyo. Due to a new work assignment, he will be moving to the United States.

In his closing remarks, Mune-san shared that his time with Senri Toastmasters significantly improved his English skills and public speaking confidence. He expressed that, thanks to the club, he now feels ready to share the joy of learning and prepared to embark on his new journey abroad. While we will miss his presence, we are incredibly proud of his accomplishments.

Good luck in the USA, Mune-san!
We will always be cheering for you from Senri! 

 (Kama-yan)

Club International Speech Competition (The 210th Regular Meeting): January 17, 2026

We held our Club Speech Competition again this year. The meeting began with an “Induction Ceremony.” Our new member, Shunya, joined us just as the new year began. A university student, he is now the youngest member of our club. We recited our Club’s Pledge, welcoming both the fresh member and the new year’s start.

 After the ceremony, we moved on to the Senri Toastmasters Club Speech Competition, featuring both English and Japanese speeches.

Each speech made us laugh, surprised us, and had us nodding deeply in agreement. According the characters in their stories, their vocal tones shifted dramatically, and the directions of their faces were swiftly changed—almost like watching a performance of “Rakugo,” full of humor and heartfelt moments. I deeply regret that I can’t clear their details because they were conducted as part of the official Toastmasters International Speech Contest.

Following the Award Ceremony, we held the Evaluation Session for the one competitor whose speech was delivered as part of Toastmasters International Pathways project.

As the Competition Chair, I want to express my sincere gratitude. This event would not have been possible without our teamwork.

Thank you to all officers for your cooperation—our Timers for their precise time management, our Ballots Counters for their smooth coordination, and our dedicated anonymous judges, including those who joined us from other clubs.

(Hiko)

The 209th Regular Meeting: December 20, 2025 “Christmas Words & Phrases”

On December 20, 2025, Senri Toastmasters held its 209th regular meeting with the heartwarming theme, "Christmas Words & Phrases". The afternoon kicked off with a delightful live performance of "Jingle Bells," filling the room with festive magic. Fittingly, our Word of the Day was "delightful," which perfectly captured the spirit of the meeting.

Highlight 1: Managing a Difficult Audience
A major highlight was Hiko's project, "Managing a Difficult Audience". This project focuses on addressing common behaviors of difficult audience members in a calm and professional way to prepare for presentations outside of Toastmasters. Hiko managed these interruptions very politely and carefully. While he was a bit hesitant and it took some time to settle the disruptors, he remained calm throughout the process. The evaluator of Hiko’s speech, Kazu, provided an excellent suggestion: once you handle a disruptor, you should directly return to the main part of your story to maintain the flow. It was a valuable lesson for us all!

Highlight 2: Effort Blossoms in "My Senri Experience"
Another highlight was the "My Senri Experience" shared by Takashi. His story was highly relatable and filled with humor, drawing plenty of laughter from the audience. Takashi has been working hard behind the scenes as our Sergeant-at-Arms, taking English pronunciation lessons, and even studying abroad this past summer. All that effort truly blossomed in this speech. If he had been a speaker in the Prepared Speech session, I definitely would have cast my vote for him as the Best Speaker. It was wonderful to see his dedication pay off!

Inspiring Speeches in Brief
The Prepared Speech session was filled with a variety of wonderful presentations. Maririn showcased tactful vocal variety while sharing fond memories of the Expo, while Tenten delivered a motivating speech on taking an active role in the organization of our meetings. Kankan shared a resonating story about overcoming obstacles with the support of the person beside her, and Tamiko, our club’s "Queen of Humor," delivered a relatable and delightful presentation that left everyone in stitches.

In my General Evaluator report, I commended the delightful atmosphere created by our Toastmaster of the Day, Rene’s thoughtful decorations and her preparation. We closed the meeting with a warm "Happy Holidays!" I look forward to seeing everyone next year. Have a wonderful holiday season and a great New Year!

(Eri)

The 208th Regular Meeting: November 15, 2025 “Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice”

１１月のミーティングでは、Toastmaster of the Day（司会） が “Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice” にふさわしいデコレーションで暖かかつ華やかな雰囲気、また様々なミーティングの機会に Spice や Role でたとえ話をすると言うユニークなスタイルで進行しました。

At our meeting on November 15th, the Toastmaster of the Day created a warm and splendid atmosphere with decorations fitting for “Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice”! And she led proceedings with a unique style that included using metaphors based on Spice and Role during various meeting opportunities.

ミーティングの進め方についてはミーティング紹介の記事をご覧くださいませ。
ミーティングでの役割についてはロール紹介記事をご覧くださいませ。

For the details about how meetings are conducted, please refer to the article of the meeting introduction (Link in Japanese).
Also, for information on roles within meetings, please refer to the role introduction article (Link in Japanese).

さて今回はミーティングの中での一幕を紹介しながら、どういう雰囲気なのかの一端をお伝えします！

Now, let me share a glimpse of the atmosphere by focusing three points with introducing behind the scenes from one of our meetings!

1） Teamwork
華やかな会場のセッティング、オンラインとオフラインを繋ぐ機器の設置・準備。これらは一人ではできません。千里トーストマスターズクラブの Motto である “Teamwork を” 発揮してみんなで準備しています。電子機器が苦手な人も大丈夫！気が付けば皆配線や装置に詳しくなっていきます👍

1） Teamwork
The beautiful venue setup and setting up the equipment to connect online and offline participants —these tasks can't be done alone. We're putting the Senri Toastmasters Club motto “Teamwork” into action, so we prepare together. Even if you're not tech-savvy, no worries! Before you know it, everyone becomes familiar with the wiring and devices.

2） Grow Together
トーストマスターズクラブの特徴は、先生やトレーナーがいない事。会員同士で Evaluation を行い、お互いを高めあっていくことです。Evaluator は、スピーチの内容を Evaluate し次のスピーチに生かす Tips を得ます。General Evaluator は、ミーティングの進め方や、会員の動きその他全体を見ながらクラブの発展に貢献します。こうしてお互いに成長をしていくのがトーストマスターズクラブの醍醐味です。

2） Grow Together
The feature of the Toastmasters Club is no teachers or trainers and members evaluate speeches each other for mutual enhancement. Evaluators assess the content of speeches and speakers gain tips to refine future speeches. General Evaluators contribute to the club's development by overseeing meeting procedures, member’s active participation, and overall operations. All of these foster our mutual growth and this is an essential element of Toastmasters Club.

3） Exercise Your Brain
Table Topics session（即興スピーチ）では、お題が出されて、その場で考えます。誰が当たるかは直前までわかりません。このセッションでは皆が何を話すべきか頭をフル回転させながらミーティングに参加します。

3） Exercise Your Brain
At the Table Topics session (impromptu speech), Topicsmaster will give you a topic then you will think and create a short speech on the spot. But you don't know who will be called on until the very last moment. That’s why during this session, everyone practices thinking quickly and coherently about what they should talk about. This is exciting!

千里トーストマスターズクラブではこのような雰囲気でのミーティングをしています。興味がある方は是非クラブのホームページにアクセスしてコンタクトしてみてください👍

Senri Toastmasters Club provide supportive meetings with such a nice atmosphere for developing our member’s achievement. So, if you would be interested, you can visit our club website and feel free to contact us anytime!

(Kazu)

The 207th Regular Meeting : October 18, 2025 – A Meeting Likened to an Orchestra

The 207th regular meeting likened to an orchestra was a showcase! This became eventually possible through the creative imagination and mimicry of playing certain musical instruments by the Composer of the Day, Hiko. He has assigned instruments for main role takers in the meeting sessions. He tried to have an instrument coming from the orchestra’s - string, woodwind, brass, and percussion. It was great! The audience mindset was transported to the scenario Hiko was creating.

In like manner, the General Evaluator, Rene was named as the Concert Master. The Composer and the Concert Master along with the vivacious and well engaged role takers opened an orchestrated meeting.

The “overture,” My Senri Experience was delivered by the timpanist, Jinyoung Seo. His “lyrics” expressed his admiration and reasons why he joined the club. He was moved by the kindness, transparency, and continued passion of members to learn and to improve.

The “prelude” in the form of Prepared Speeches was indeed awesome! The audience was able to listen to 5 great speakers who delivered magnificently. The audience heard various topics ranging from benefits of swimming, conquering fear of heights, Osaka Expo family experience, the formidable quiet strength of a father, and the Expo Ring’s positive energy. The audience was absorbed listening to each speech stamped by the speaker’s unique delivery style, coordinated body movements, and clear organization.

The “postlude” in the form of Evaluations was likewise amazing! The audience was able to hear 5 impressive evaluators who used the “Sandwich Approach” in giving their constructive feedback. The evaluators did not only give praises, recounted some incidents in the speech, gave suggestions for improvement in the form of word usage, vocal variety, gestures, and body movements but always tied up the speech with its project objective. The audience got a lot of ideas on how to evaluate effectively by listening to the 5 evaluators.

The “encore” in the form of Table Topics was led by Takashi, the clarinetist. His timely topic “Gender Inequality” was triggered by the news of Japan’s first female Prime Minister. He asked speakers to comment/share experiences on “gender inequality” at the workplace, at home, and in society. It was fascinating to note how each speaker handled or reacted to the inequality issue brought about by sexes.

As the “imaginary orchestra music” slowly faded . . . the curtain call had a lot of applause, the 207th regular meeting was a success! The meeting was captivating and was well orchestrated. Indeed, it was a display of teamwork and the unstoppable dedication to improve in public speaking.

Written by Rene

The 206th Regular Meeting : September 20, 2025

We had six speeches today, including “Here’s My Trick” by Anne.

A variety of stories, from social ettiquette, film and novel, recorder, Anpanman, to exercise.  We truly enjoyed the diverse flavors of speeches. Once again, we realized that every member has their own drama and their own perspective in daily life. The stories were as varied as autumn leaves, changing color from the foot to the top of a mountain. It’s amazing that today’s meeting theme was "Autumn Imagery."

This was followed by  Table Topics Session, hosted by Sora, which focused on the autumn equinox, “お彼岸” in Japanese. It was a rather unique theme. When we heard about equinox customs in China and Mongolia, we were intrigued by the differences from Japan’s. Additionally, many speakers seemed to be a little bit perplexed but nostalgic.

Toward the end of the meeting, we held our usual business session consisting of reports from officers. There was the report about meeting feedback that was shared by members about the meeting itself. Sharing both constructive suggestion and praise helps boost motivation of members.

And tonight, how about enjoying moon viewing with a strong beer in hand?

Hiko, General Evaluator

The 205th Regular Meeting: August 16, 2025

 Full of Energy!

Our 205th Regular Meeting was filled with energy. We had five prepared speeches for the first time in eight months, which also means that we had five evaluation speeches. Additionally, we had 10 Table Topics (impromptu) speeches.Topics of the prepared speeches vary from a self-introduction to the speaker's communication style to an introduction of Mongolian culture to an invitation to Kansai Osaka Expo to developments around a genocide in Rwanda. The first speaker, Ma-chan, made her debut with her Ice Breaker speech (the first speech a new member delivers to introduce themselves to the club). She tactfully organized her speech so the audience members easily understood what brought her to the Senri Toastmasters Club. 

The second speaker, Yasuko, talked about her communication style, referring to a glasses shop owner, "Gotou san," who has a similar style to hers, in a humorous presentation. The third speaker, Yuriko, introduced a Mongolian greeting and how Mongolian people enjoy summer by sharing her experience during her three-week trip to Mongolia. The fourth, Mune-san, shared his experience at the Kansai Osaka Expo, and tried to convince us that the expo is worth our visit. The last speaker, Hiko, delivered a well-researched, thought-provoking speech about a genocide in Rwanda and the developments afterward.Five evaluators discussed how the speeches could be improved after commending the speakers on things well done. The Best Evaluator Award winner, Anne, effectively demonstrated how Ma-chan could use her hand gestures to enhance her speech by using many examples from different parts of her speech. Giving demonstrations is always a great way to clearly communicate our suggestions. Another evaluator, Mariko, took a step further and did something unusual. She brought her speaker, Yuriko, to the stage and took her to different places on the stage to demonstrate how she could have used the width and depth of the stage to make her speech engaging.

Another thing that was unusual this time was that we listened to as many as ten Table Topics speeches. The Topicsmaster, Madelyn, presented the topics before calling on a participant to speak on each topic. In this way, she forced everyone to consider how to talk about these topics. This helped create an energetic atmosphere in the meeting, along with the summer-related topics she prepared and her efficient facilitation of the session. With five prepared speeches, five evaluation speeches, and 10 Table Topics speeches, the meeting was fully packed and lasted for two hours and a half, but it didn't feel that long thanks to the energy these speeches brought about. A great way to spend a hot summer day.

Tenten, General Evaluator

The 204th Regular Meeting: Jul 19, 2025

 Step Up and Conquer – A Fresh Start at Senri Toastmasters

Today marked the first meeting of the new term at Senri Toastmasters, and what an invigorating start it was! With a newly installed team of officers and a theme that called on us to "Step Up and Conquer," the atmosphere was filled with energy, purpose, and a touch of nervous excitement.

When I heard the theme, I thought—that’s exactly why I’m here! At Senri Toastmasters, I’m trying to conquer my fear of public speaking and evaluations.  Many times I feel nervous and awkward, but I hope to become a strong and confident speaker. My goal this term is to level up, battle my fear, and conquer it one speech at a time.

🎉 Welcome to Our New Member!

The meeting started with a special moment: the Induction Ceremony for our newest member, Ma-chan. Welcome to Senri Toastmasters! We’re so excited to have you on this journey with us and can’t wait to support you as you step up and conquer your own goals.

🌟 Highlights of the Prepared Speeches

We had the pleasure of hearing three inspiring speeches, each offering something unique:

1. Kan Kan took us on a virtual tour of Xiamen, China, recommending it as a wonderful travel destination. Her speech followed the structure of a well-organized presentation, which was the goal of her Pathways project. After a warm introduction, she guided us through three exciting places to visit and wrapped it all up with an inviting conclusion.  I would love to go there!

2. Yuriko shared her experience of “Exploring Mongolia through a Local Toastmasters Club.” She recounted her recent journey and the friendships she built with local Toastmasters in Mongolia. It was interesting to hear how their club operates a bit differently from ours—and surprising to learn that their meetings pause for summer vacation! Her speech gave us fresh ideas we might consider for our own club.

3. Kama-yan delivered a thought-provoking speech titled “Shall We Set a Positive Feedback Timer?” He emphasized the power of frequent positive reinforcement in communication and leadership. By blending humor, he demonstrated how intentional feedback can encourage growth—something we can all take to heart.

🙌 Leadership in Action

Our Toastmaster of the Day, Eri, did a wonderful job leading the meeting with grace and clarity. She kept the program running smoothly, set a welcoming tone, and created a supportive space for everyone to shine.

As we kick off this new term, let’s remember the spirit of "Step Up and Conquer." Whether it's delivering a speech, taking on a new role, or offering encouraging feedback, every step we take is a step toward growth.

Evaluators Hiko, Marilyn and Tamiko all did incredible jobs using the sandwich technique, providing constructive feedback with encouragement.  Good suggestions made: If you had used your own personal experience….Use more vocal variety…We now feel more familiar with…

A big thank you to Word Master, Madelyn for choosing the word “invigorating”—it perfectly captured the spirit of the meeting!

Thank you to Topics Master Yasuko for your simple but deep questions like—“What makes you angry?” and “What makes you happy?”  These questions encouraged us all to think more deeply. 

Here’s to a bold, invigorating journey ahead—together!  Come and visit us!

Anne, General Evaluator