Page 7 - voices-2021-08

COVER STORY

Life Beyond Toastmasters

Leanna Lindquist, DTM

It was my privilege to interview Raynette Yoshida
and Ted Takamura. I know them from Marylhurst
Toastmasters Club. They have become my friends.
I am inspired by their commitment to give to the

community and to Toastmasters. Raynette has an
infectious laugh. I refer to her as the Energizer
Bunny.

Leanna: How did you two meet?

Ted: We met in Ellensburg, Washington, a little
town of 12,000. There were 8,500 students on
the Central Washington State College campus.

Raynette was an art major in her sophomore
year. I returned as a post-bac to complete a B.A. in
accounting. We met through the Hawaiian Club,
which was a group of about 30 students who met

once a month. It was a social gathering because
everything is about food. It was about getting
people together, especially since people from the
islands tend to be isolated.

Leanna: You grew up in Hawaii and met in Washington?
Ted: Yes. We did not meet in the Islands because I
never went to the Big Island, Hawaii. And Raynette

never went to Kauai before we met.

VOICES! | AUGUST 2021 7