February 6, 2026 Club Meeting | St. Louis Toastmasters in Midtown Clayton

ATTENDANCE–Members = 8 (HK, Rosemary, Alan, Jane, Jaja, Mark, Dora, Mitch)

ATTENDANCE–Guests = 6 (Jolynne, Claude, Jamie, Sharon, SJ, Lisa)

Current club membership = 18

TOASTMASTER OF THE DAY – Jaja

TIMER – Rosemary

Ah COUNTER – Jamie

WORD OF THE DAY

> Expert: a person who has a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of or skill in a particular area.

SPEECHES:

> “The Eye Exam That Should Come to You,” Presentation Mastery Level 1 speech (Writing a Speech with Purpose), by Jane

> “Childhood Trauma,” Research and Presentation, by Dora

EVALUATIONS:

> Good opening with a question to engage the audience. Effective use of visual slides. Explained the procedure well, which took the mystery away. Closed the presentation with a clear takeaway message. Need to improve eye contact in the zoom meeting – keep the eyes on the camera. Overall good speech with relatable content. – Rosemary

> Strong message delivered with clear definitions and helpful examples. Maintained good presence in the Zoom setting and used effective hand gestures. The closing was especially powerful emphasizing on healing to support both oneself and others. The body of the speech had some redundancy —don’t feel the need to fill every moment; keep it tight and focused. – Mark

TABLE TOPICS QUESTIONS—HK

> What are some lies you have made that you can still remember. – Alan

> Do you prefer more risk, or more safety net? – Mitch

> What is the trait or character you were born to shine with? – Claude

> What is your phobia? – Jamie (BEST TABLE TOPICS)

> What is the modern technological device you spend most time with? – Sharon

> What did you watch, hear or see recently that inspired you? – SJ (BEST TABLE TOPICS)

> What is something you feel guilty about? – Lisa

NEXT CLUB MEETING–

In-person meeting at the Center of Clayton, Friday, February 20, 2026, 7:15 am

www.midtownclayton.toastmastersclubs.org

Club Success Stories

I’ve gained a lot of confidence in my speech. I still drop in a few ums and that. I’m getting better at organizing my thoughts and in my preparation. I’m spending more time in my preparation.

John

Well, most definitely, it has lifted a weight in terms of the fear of public speaking and getting up in front of a group of people.

Regina

Toastmasters has given me the opportunity to develop, not just as a speaker, but as a person. It’s helped me to get closer and another step on the journey to being the best version of myself. There are leadership opportunities. There’s character development. There’s the ability to meet new people, build new friendships, forge new interests, and to realize just how much beauty, how much greatness there is in one little club, in one little community, is a reflection of our world.

Kiren

Faye sharing her public speaking testimonial through the St. Louis Toastmasters club in Midtown Clayton

Toastmasters has helped me a lot. I used to be really afraid of speaking in public and I still kind of am, but it’s helping me along the way, so I’m not as shaky when I’m talking in public and I begin to get a hold of myself more quickly when I’m in Toastmasters. And this club has definitely helped me do that and helped me grow.

Foye

Toastmasters has made me more comfortable speaking in front of a group, and Toastmasters has and will continue to be a very positive, motivating and self-improving experience for me.

Jerry

The benefit of the club for me was that I grew professionally. I became more confident. Now, I lead a lot of team meetings at work weekly, some of them monthly, quarterly for small or large groups of people and I feel more confident.

Aida

Joining Toastmasters put me outside of my comfort zone and it helped me understand that showing up is 90% of the journey. Just showing up, walking in the door. And so, I take that with me and I show up in more places than I ever did before.

Catherine

I’ve gained a lot of confidence in my speech. I still drop in a few ums and that. I’m getting better at organizing my thoughts and in my preparation. I’m spending more time in my preparation.

Dennis

The ability to communicate is of utmost, number one. Number two, a better listener. As you’re an evaluator and you listen to people, you really have to listen for the key points. And I think the other part is a mentor and that to see new people come into the club and as they progress from their first speech to their other speeches, and everybody gets something different out of it. The stories that you hear about where people came from and what their life experiences are.

Mark

I can definitely see a difference since I joined Toastmasters in being comfortable in uncomfortable situations. So, it’s not necessarily eliminating the jitters, but being able to succeed despite them.