Celebrate 20 Years of Sharing the Toastmasters Learning Experience with Indian Professionals
The Indian Professional Toastmasters Club 6366 is currently going through
an evolution, as all growing clubs do. Later this year, we will be celebrating
our 20th anniversary. In 1986, the club was started by an attorney in Cerritos
who also publishes a newspaper dedicated to the people from the Indian subcontinent,
India Journal. In the beginning, the club was an attempt to provide the Toastmasters
learning experience to Indian immigrants who made a living as a professional.
Club 6366 started with an accountant, an attorney, an engineer, a computer consultant, a technical writer, and a college professor, and saw the membership grow to include many more. A few months after the club began, the club’s mentor asked me to join to help gain charter strength. I agreed and immediately liked the social interaction so much that I stayed.
A “Professional Melting Pot”: Club 6366 Provides the
Toastmasters Learning Experience to Immigrants and Others
Beyond the official Toastmasters mission, an unspoken goal in the Indian Professional
club is to help immigrants get over the language barrier that exists. Our club
is very sensitive to people who don’t speak perfect English and provides
them a chance to improve with practice and some first-rate tips. After seeing
so many people use public speaking to improve themselves, it makes you wonder
why more don’t. Seeing the stagnation that befalls so many others makes
you want to achieve better communication skills also.
Our meeting is not unlike other Toastmasters meetings. It is divided into the three standard sessions: impromptu speaking, prepared speeches, and evaluations. Occasionally, we exercise parliamentary procedure during the business meetings.
Compared to the other clubs I’ve been a member of, this club has the most social interactions. Not only do we go out to dinner after the meetings, but we have picnics, parties, and get-togethers for sporting events during the year. The different cultures in the club come together to make these social events very memorable. Some of the most memorable events for me have been cricket games, Super Bowl parties, skiing, banquets for Indian organizations, and college plays. Next, we’ll be having a Texas Hold’em party!
One issue the club struggles with, like any club, is prospecting for new members and, in our case, members that also include people outside the Indian community. While immigrants from all over feel very much at home here, we are trying to expand our image beyond the Indian community in Los Angeles and Orange County. The club’s new goal is to focus more on a blend of cultures and helping us all integrate with one another. This was not the main focus of the club in the past.
Several of our members want to change the club’s name, because it doesn’t reflect the demographics of our club anymore. We no longer are focused only on Indians nor do we cater primarily to those in professional jobs. Still, the name didn’t deter me or other non-Indian prospects from joining in the past. I would agree to a name change that emphasized the multicultural aspect, maybe something like “Professional Melting Pot.”
(The Indian Professional Club of Area E-4 meets every Tuesday at 6:29 P.M. sharp at the Buena Park Library, 7150 La Palma Avenue in Buena Park. Contact manekmonday@yahoo.com for more information.)