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PLUGGED IN
Boldly Going Where Toastmasters Have Never Gone Before!
Jennifer Schmidt, EH2
As if using the transporter from Star Trek, • Learning CANVA and co-presenting
I materialized into the Area 63 Speech and in the virtual PR Masters CANVA
Evaluation contest by Zooming from home. I seminars in 2021 and 2022
felt like a technology pro in this second year • Visiting several clubs virtually in
competing virtually in an Area contest. 2021 and 2022 and meeting a ton
This is a huge contrast from March of 2020, of Toastmasters
when I drove to the Tualatin Library to physically • Attended virtual seminars held by fellow
sit in the audience. That day I cheered on Kaushik Toastmasters
Balasubramanian who won the competition. As you can tell the key word is virtual. As I
By April of 2020, New Horizons catapulted write this list, it’s hard for me to believe I actually
into our first zoom meeting where, “you’re on did all these activities virtually. Through each
mute” became its own catchphrase. As a club we experience, I learned something new, while
pushed forward learning and laughing together. meeting fantastic people along the way.
Technology was both a friend and a foe that This journey was quite the change from
we begrudgingly invited into our lives due to driving an hour to Tualuatin, Oregon from
necessity. Vancouver, Washington early every Saturday
At that time, admittedly zooming was way morning in order to arrive at 8:00 a.m. I would
out of my comfort zone, but I enjoyed seeing the eagerly participate in the Toastmasters meetings,
smiling faces of New Horizons club members. but not really do anything Toastmasters related
FOMO (fear of missing out) was stronger than my until the next Saturday when I would drive south
reluctance to learn how to use zoom effectively. again.
It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, once I Ironically, Toastmasters became a larger
gave it time and figured it out. My horizons, in part of my life when I wasn’t there physically.
fact, have expanded in this new virtual world Zoom was my Scotty and I materialized here,
and include: there and everywhere. I learned how to not
• Competing in two virtual Club Contests just tolerate technology but embrace the many
• Competing in two virtual Area Contests golden opportunities of doing more. No driving,
• Becoming the first virtual VPPR of New traffic, parking, and more chances to explore,
Horizons (2020 - 2021) learn, and grow–yes, please!
• Becoming a virtual charter member of Along the way I was challenged, such as when
PR Masters in 2021 I created my first meeting post for Facebook.
34 ONE COMMUNITY
