Port Speakers have the floor!
Portarlington Speakers
Portarlington Speakers got off to an energetic start on 17TH February as Carmel O’Leary took them in her speech for the weekly one hour of PE in the Hall at School. While they were still puffing she explained that this was not enough! Our children needed at least half an hours exercise every day if we are to keep them fit and overcome the weight problem that has become an epidemic. With 20% of our 9 year olds classed as overweight and another 7% classed as obese the need for action was clear and Carmel explained the role of the schools with their designated PE teachers. Parents also had a role and pro-active as ever Carmel promotes a Walk to School Club on a Friday which is great fun and of course great exercise. Members learnt that the man who gave us the Teddy Bear Theodore “Teddy” Rosevelt was not only a President of the United States and a great writer but also a war hero and a rancher as we listened to one of his great speeches.
Noreen Diver took the podium as Topics Master and soon had members discussing whether Ireland was becoming a police state with the Water Protest arrests, what we would say to our 13-year old selves, and a wide range of other subjects.
Jon McCowen explained the importance of listening and very carefully tested the listening skills of members. Mark Bastow and Damian Oliver gave very encouraging supportive evaluations of the speeches given.
Paul McCowen as General Evaluator for the evening gave a very useful description of the purpose of the roles and proceedings and as always gave some very useful suggestions for improvement.
Mark Bastow as President and Toastmaster for the evening thanked everyone who attended with a special mention to the guests. Guests are always welcome. The only way to really understand the friendly, entertaining and supportive nature of Portarlington Speakers is to come to a meeting. Admission for the first two meetings is free. The next meeting will be on Tuesday March 3 at 7.45pm at the Anvil Inn. Portarlington Speakers – Look for us Facebook, MeetUp or on www.portarlington.toastmastersclubs.org/.