Nonprofit Toastmasters International celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. Since its founding, the group has been dedicated to empowering individuals to become effective communicators and leaders. Toastmasters offers members opportunities to develop public speaking and leadership skills in a safe, supportive environment. The Hacienda Park Toastmasters Club, which was chartered in 1988, is part of Area 28 in District 57 of Toastmasters International and serves the Dublin and Pleasanton communities.

“Our club comprises members from diverse backgrounds, representing various walks of life, from Dublin, Pleasanton, Livermore, and Castro Valley areas,” says Sree Gudreddi, who is President and also the Vice President of Membership. “We meet both virtually and in-person once a week on Thursdays.”

The nonprofit strives to create a positive environment to enrich members using the club mission of “Commit, Support, and Succeed,” according to Gudreddi. The members deliver prepared speeches and receive feedback right away, an essential element to improving public speaking skills. “Our goal is to motivate and encourage members to commit to the Toastmasters promise while supporting each other in this journey to become excellent communicators and leaders.”

Gudreddi notes that one of the features of Toastmasters is an “exciting, flexible, and interactive learning experience” called Pathways. Pathways helps members learn the communication and leadership skills they need. The program offers opportunities to develop up to 300 unique competencies, with 11 specialized learning paths to choose from. Pathways is available in Arabic, English, French, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, and Traditional Chinese, with select paths available in Korean and Tamil.

“All of our members are reaping the benefits of being a Toastmaster, with continued learning, in their personal and professional lives,” according to Gudreddi. “The skills are imbibed within us, making us better communicators and leaders. Our officers, being the backbone of our club, are also developing leadership skills along with organizing, budgeting, networking, and interpersonal skills in their roles.”

Throughout the year, the club has open house events with a guest speaker and a special theme to introduce the benefits of joining the club. At the district level, officers and members are eligible for training sessions as part of the Toastmasters Leadership Institute, which is conducted twice a year. Toastmasters Leadership Institute events bring together Toastmasters from across the district to network, share ideas, and learn. Outside of the Institute, additional training opportunities are held throughout the year. The many topics may include becoming a club coach, how to improve club quality, and how to become a club leader. International speech and evaluation contests are organized at club, area, district, and higher levels that are open to everyone.

“Our goal is to create awareness of the benefits of joining Toastmasters,” says Gudreddi. “We encourage and welcome guests to attend meetings. Our club features a mix of newcomers and seasoned presenters. There is no need for a reservation or prior preparation, and there’s no pressure to join.”

While meetings were once held at Hacienda, the club now gathers for in-person meetings at the Dublin Public Library. Founded in 1924, the Toastmasters International organization is headquartered in Colorado. It has approximately 270,000 members in more than 14,200 clubs in nearly 150 countries.

For more information about the Hacienda Park Toastmasters Club, please visit www.haciendapark.toastmastersclubs.org, www.linkedin.com/in/hacienda-park-toastmasters, and www.facebook.com/HaciendaParkToastmastersClub.