Riverbend Toastmasters Club

05/27/2026

May 26, 2026 Theme: Mental Health Awareness Month

SAA Norman started the meeting with his business-like tone explaining all the housekeeping matters then introduced our TM Midi. Prior to the meeting, Midi distributed a pink card to each member, later she told us to write down one name who might have mental illness and then turned the card over. Next Harry, our past president began the Business Meeting: Harry provided a 2026/27 Club Officers Nominating Committee update that we have all the names filled for each position. Harry announced that we would continue to accept nominiatees until Jun 9 also a quorum would be required.

After the Business Meeting, Midi introduced speaker Stella with her L4 Elective Q&A Session, entitled: "The best leaders arer still learning". Evaluated by Cherry. Table Topics Master by Barney: TT speakers were: Vicki, Bola, Torie, Nayyer and guest Tabani. TT speakers were evaluated by Nayyer. Best TT won by our guest Tabani. Our helpers were: Norman as Grammarian (WOD: Resilience), Vicky as Timer, Bola as our Quiz master. General Evaluator by Harry. Harry also won best Evaluator.

Before Midi conclused the meeting, she told us to turn the pink card around and try to remember to pray for or talk to the person on our pink cards

President Stella present the 7 out of 7 ribbon to the club, also each members received a D99 pin from District 99 as a farewll keepsake. Next meeting will be June 9 to vote for new executive.

05/13/2026

05/13/2026

May 12, 2026 Theme: Lessons from Mom - celebrating the women that raised us

Our SAA Bushra gracefully introduced our TM Stella (Club president) who invited members to tell us one lesson we learned from our mothers, she then quickly moved into the Business Meeting portion to induct new member: Adhi L.

Two speakers tonight were: Vicky and Midi (Midi presented a 10-15 mins Successful Club Series), they were evaluated by Adewale and Norman respectively. TTM Harry used 2 long..... Ah......Um intentionally to emphasis what's the next questions and whom to pick? TT speakers were: Torie, our guest Michael, Adhi, Craig and Bushra. TT speakers were evaluated by Sipai with valuable suggestions. Quiz master Adhi who had 3 roles today (inducted new member, quiz master and TT speaker) gave us 3.5 minutes quizzes and stumbled us a few times. GE Norman reminded us a few things we should have made notes of e.g. our agenda needed some clean up. Timer by Thomas who gave us a very thoughout report including his observation. Grammarian/Ah & Um counter Cherry gave a factual report. Tonight the one guest Michael who had so many questions about our club, we hope he will return.

05/13/2026

April 28, 2026 Theme: Let's talk gardening!

SAA opened the meeting to welcome our first time TM Vicky to talk about gardening. We had our Area Director Elaine visited our club. 3 speakers: Bunmi, Barney and Abdul, they were evaluated by E1 Stella, E2 Harry. Since Abdul was moving forward to District International Speech Contest, he was evaluated by everyone in the room. Toast was given by Cherry apprciating all gardeners and their harvest. TTM Adewale was clear with his use of words: TT speakers were Bola, Craig, Torie and AD Elaine. TT speakers were evaluated by our seasoned TTE Nayyer. Quiz master Sipai, GE was Midi, Timer was Cherry and Grammarian reported by Norman.

WoW! Our president felt generous, she gave out two Best evaluators to Nayyer and Midi, two Best Table Topics to Torie and Bola and Best speaker by Bunmi.

04/15/2026

April 14, 26 Theme: SPRING CLEANING

WOD 'Renewal' was being used many time from the time SAA Bunmi introducing our 1st time TM Barney who started the meeting as if he was a seasoned TM. We had one(1) guest: Wendy.
Grammarian was Adewale, Timer was our one month old newest member, Adhi. Tonight we had one speaker Midi with her Presentation Mastery (Level 4 elective) Q & A. Speech title: Aging with Dignity-supporting Seniors with Compassion. Midi was evaluated by DTM, Harry.
TTM Sipai had some very difficult questions about cleaning places and old habits. TT speakers were: Bunmi, Torie, Wendy, Cherry and Craig. TTE Vicky evaluated all TT speakers with one favorite thing and one point of improvement. Quiz master Nayyer used over 4 minutes to quiz our attentive listening skills. We excercised team effort and answered all her quizzes. General Evaluator was Abdul who also won the best evaluator this evening. Abdul's attention to details deserved this Best Evaluator title.
Best Table Topics won by Bunmi. Next meeting April 28, Vicky will be the 1st time TM.

03/25/2026

March 24, 2026 Theme: The Benefits of Humour

We had 2 visitors Sylvia and Adam. SAA Barny was excited to start the meeting to introduce TM Norman with the WOD: Levity which surely matched our theme. Everyone felt very chatty, it took us over 19 minutes to go around the room to introduce ourselves.

Our helpers: Vicky as Grammarian/ah counter, Bola as Timer. One speaker Stella with her speech: "People who changed me", she was evaluated by Cherry. Table Topics Master Adewale who carefully chose 5 table topics speakers who didn't have a role. They are: Adhi, Thomas, Tori, Abdul and guest Adam. Table Topics were evaluated by Nayyer. Best Table Topics speaker won by our newest member Adhi. Quiz Master Bunmi had over 10 rapid fire quizzes for us and we got them all except one.
General evaluator was Sipai who skillfully evaluated every aspect of the meeting who also won the best evaluator ribbon. Bravo Sipai ! 🤩🤩🤩
Our SAA Barny who will be the TM for next meeting on April 14

02/18/2026

Toastmasters Meeting Summary – February 10, 2026
Theme: “What Have You Learned from Children?”
Word of the Day: Judicious

Toastmaster Harry, DTM, guided the meeting with steady leadership and seamless transitions, ensuring a focused and engaging program. Bailey fulfilled the dual roles of Sergeant at Arms and Timer, keeping the meeting organized and on schedule. Regine, as Grammarian, introduced the Word of the Day, Judicious, challenging members to be deliberate and precise in their language. Norman delivered the General Evaluation, providing a comprehensive review of the meeting’s strengths and offering constructive recommendations for continued improvement.
During the prepared speech segment, Cherry, DTM, presented her Ice Breaker from the Presentation Mastery path titled “Am I Predestined to Be Something?” Her speech was reflective and personal, exploring identity and life direction. Adewale evaluated her presentation with balanced and actionable feedback. Stella followed with her Dynamic Leadership project, “Creating the Best Club Culture,” focusing on strengthening engagement and shared responsibility within the club. In a collaborative format, all members present contributed to evaluating Stella’s speech, modeling the inclusive culture she advocated.
Midi led an engaging Table Topics session that challenged members to respond thoughtfully to theme-based prompts. Speakers demonstrated confidence and creativity in their impromptu remarks. Nayyer evaluated the Table Topics segment, offering insightful observations on structure, delivery, and impact.
Barnabas energized the meeting as Quiz Master, testing members’ listening skills with questions based on the evening’s roles and speeches. Prizes were awarded to participants who answered correctly, adding a fun and interactive element to the session.
The meeting concluded with recognition of standout performances. Adewale was awarded Best Table Topics Speaker for his strong and compelling impromptu response. Nayyer, DTM, was recognized as Best Evaluator for delivering clear, constructive, and impactful feedback.

Overall, the February 10 meeting was reflective, well-structured, and highly participatory. Members demonstrated continued growth in communication and leadership while offering thoughtful, judicious feedback in a supportive environment.

02/04/2026

Today’s Toastmasters meeting centred around the theme “Leaders are made?”, which encouraged thoughtful reflection throughout the session. Our Word of the Day was Legitimate, and it was used effectively across the meeting.
Our Sergeant at Arms, Sipai, ensured the meeting ran smoothly and on time. The meeting was confidently led by our Toastmaster, Stella, who set a positive and engaging tone. Cherry DTM, our General Evaluator, provided strong leadership and insightful feedback that tied all parts of the meeting together. Our Grammarian, Barnabas, did an excellent job listening for strong language use and the Word of the Day, and Bailey kept us all on time as Timer.
Thomas, our prepared speaker, delivered a five- to seven-minute speech titled “Busy or Effective.” His speech explored the idea that being busy does not always mean moving forward. Harry DTM, our speech evaluator, provided thoughtful and constructive feedback.
Table Topics were led by Midi, encouraging spontaneous and engaging participation, and were evaluated by Sipai, who offered clear and supportive observations. Our Quizmaster, Adewale, wrapped up the meeting with an engaging quiz that reinforced attentiveness and learning.
We finished the meeting by recognizing our winners: Thomas received Most Improved Table Topics Speaker, Harry won Best Evaluator, and Kay, our guest, won Best Table Topics. Overall, this was a well-run and engaging meeting that reinforced the idea that leadership is developed through reflection, participation, and continuous improvement.

01/14/2026

Jan 13, 2026 Dream Big

This was our first meeting of 2026, we used to talk about resolutions, visions, goals, hopes, plans and Dreams. But we must strive to make our dreams come true through dedication and self-discipline.
Tonight we had one visitor Jess. SAA Harry introduced TM Cherry, WOD: Tenacity provided by Grammarian Stella. Timer: Bushra. We had two prepared speeches by Regine entitled: The silent passion that shapes my path. 2nd speech by Stella, entitled: Time is not Guaranteed. They were evaluated by Sipai and Thomas respectively. Adewale was our Table topics Master who selected Sipai, Torie, Jess and Vicki as our TT speakers. Thomas was our TT Evaluator. Our guest Jess won the title of Best Table Topics Speaker. Regine won the best speaker title because she presented her very first ice breaker in a competent manner. GE was Harry who pointed out the wooden thing in front of TM Cherry was a lectern not an altar at church. 😂🤣😝 Quiz master was Thomas who took 3 roles tonight; thank you Thomas for your dedication to our Club where leaders are made.
Our president who just returned from a long vacation gave her closing remarks and presented ribbons to our winners: Jess, Thomas and Regine. Next meeting is Jan 27. Speech Contest is coming in February

12/10/2025

Dec 9, 2025 Theme: Goodbye to 2025 Party

We held our last meeting of the year at Boston Pizza. SAA Bushra gracefully welcome everyone and introduced TM Thomas H. to chair
this special party/meeting. Thomas H. handled the floats like an old timer but in fact this was his 1st time as Toastmaster of the meeting. WOD was Jovial. Two guests attended: 1st guest was Emma, our long lost member who brought a bottle of homemade wine which has a label of her and hubby's lovely smile; very nice picture!
Our speaker tonight was Sipai, speaking from Presentation Mastery Level 3, Know your sense of humour. Sipai might just be our potential contestant for this year's Humorous Speech Contest. Her speech was evaluated by Mairim. Cherry was the Game Master who conducted the gift exchange with a lot of rules, humors and laughter. Quiz Master Adewale tested our active listening skills rapidly. Special thanks to Bushra for not only our SAA also as our Timer tonight. Grammarian Norman attentively and diligently catching all the ahs/ums and WOD was being used by each member. Everyone left this party with lots of smile and a gift. Sipai was recognized with a gold medallion for completing her level 1 of Presentation Mastery. Norman not only our Grammarian, also won the best Table Topics Speaker for having emotion and expression with the extra soft blanket he received.
There will be no meeting on Dec 23rd, we shall return on Jan 13, 2026