THE VOX A YOUNG ADULT TOASTMASTERS CLUB NEWSLETTER
03 ON EUSSI • 9102 REBMECED
YAT IS BACK! A NEW TERM, A NEW CHALLENGE! By TM Maram Al Aradi
REAL FEMINISM By TM Sara Taher
FAREWELL JITHIN, INSPIRATION, AND SO MUCH MORE!
THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS TM NAJLA QAMBAR Hey there, family! I want to take this opportunity to say, THANK YOU. Thank you for being vibrant, supportive, and just plain fun. You have really saved our club this term just because of these three things. All of the new and veteran members mixed together to make up an amazing group of individuals that can, have and will do amazing things outside of the club. It has been a while since learning and teaching have been so much fun at YAT and I am super excited about our progress. The last two years were a dark time for the club. 2017 was the year we really thought we were going to close. There was no one willing to take up the new roles as excom and our membership dropped by almost 50% simply because most were pursuing higher studies, or migrating from one country to another. Despite the thought of closing, the veterans pushed and said “Let’s try a year” if nothing changes, then we would have no choice. A year passed, there was hope but then it was dashed once more as the list of active members just lowered and lowered. We thought for sure, 2018 would be it. But again, we said, “Let’s give it another year”. This drive and motivation were fueled by members who left but left us to say “YAT gave me something I never thought I would find.” or “Everything changed once I joined YAT”. These words pushed us to do better and work harder to get our membership to where it needs to be. We’re almost there YATs! Let’s continue to learn, talk, lead and inspire each other. There’s nothing stronger than a family who aims to learn in moments of enjoyment. Much love, Najla Qamber President
A NEW TERM, A NEW CHALLENGE! TM MARAM AL ARADI
Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI) is new training format for club officers that has been recently implemented in District 20. It provides the necessary knowledge and tools to toastmasters to develop and improve their leadership roles throughout their toastmasters’ journey. The first event of the term 2019-2020 is one out of two Club Officers Trainings under the umbrella of TLI and District 20 officials, District 20 Director, Distinguished Toastmaster Wafaa Salman and Program Quality Director, Distinguished Toastmaster Mohammed Saleem, which was on June 21 st 2019 (Friday) at British University of Bahrain, Saar. This training event was aimed to prepare the club elected officers to embark the term 2019-2020 with full throttle and they consist of 7 officers; The Club President, Vice President of Education (VPE), Vice President of Membership (VPM), Vice President Public Relations (VPPR), Secretary, Treasurer, Sergeant At Arms (SAA). Each club officer had an extensivecomprehensive-one-hour training session that incorporated sharing knowledge, personal tips and various activities to reinforce the training which was delivered by Distinguished Toastmaster Imtiaz Ahmed, Distinguished Toastmaster Meenakshi Sundaram, Distinguished Toastmaster Farhaz Farouk, Toastmaster Shivraj Piramuthu, Distinguished Toastmaster Saira Ranj, Distinguished Toastmaster Ahmed Rizvi, Toastmaster Vincent Lobo respectively. Toastmasters International is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to empower individuals in terms of speaking and leadership. An esteemed organization that has been founded by Dr. Ralph C. Smedley more than 90 years ago. One of the reasons this organization has been standing tall is because of its four core values: Integrity, Respect, Service and Excellence.
A NEW TERM, A NEW CHALLENGE! TM MARAM AL ARADI
In other words, to be honest with one another while maintaining respect in all aspects, to promise to help one another in a friendly supportive atmosphere where one can grow and hone their speaking and leadership abilities to aspire, rise and achieve excellence. Therefore, in the spirit of sharing, exchanging knowledge and rising together as toastmasters and club officers, the theme of the TLI – 1 st Club Officers Training event was “Collective Energy, Shared Vision” where 50% of the training was open to all Toastmasters and not just club officers and the other 50% was aimed at the elected club officers. As Head of Education to this first of its kind movement in District 20, I would say that it was challenging since I was working alone and I was also the Head of Public Relations but it was not impossible. The event was hosted by Division C under Division C Director Elect Distinguished Toastmaster Mohammed Jahangir Khan and chaired by Toastmaster Hisham Jiffry, under the supervision and guidance of District 20 appointed TLI Chair, Distinguished Toastmaster Rosaline Roy and District 20 Program Quality Director, Distinguished Toastmaster Mohammed Saleem. Hence, I had many resources that helped me formulate a solid program including the “Training Club Leaders” Manual from Toastmasters International Website, item 217, Rev. 5/2015. The program started with Distinguished Toastmaster Mohammed Saleem with Building a Healthy Team, Distinguished Toastmaster Husni Ameen with Renewing Our Vows, Distinguished Toastmaster Alka Kumra with Who’s Who and Distinguished Toastmaster Alaguthevar Ponnuchamy with Moments of Truth.
A NEW TERM, A NEW CHALLENGE! TM MARAM AL ARADI
The remaining 50% of the training, fully dedicated to club officers, had Distinguished Toastmaster Ali Shahbaz Ali with an exciting and interactive session on the Distinguished Club Program and Club Success Plan and finally concluding with the Club Officer Role Breakouts. The Master of Ceremonies of the event was Toastmaster Colin Lobo, who did a phenomenal job hosting and controlling an event of this magnitude with a total attendance of 313 toastmasters from all around Bahrain. This was the first time we had a club officers training with an attendance exceeding 80% of the registered toastmasters, all thanks to the Public Relations campaign I have designed and established – which was my first Public Relations Campaign ever. Thank you Canva®! You can check out the Instagram page @tli.bh for more information and updates on the educational programs that are happening this term. In conclusion, this was an amazing experience which went very successfully. I had the fear of failing but that was just me being extra dramatic. With powerful team members whether from the organizing committee or my club members of the Young Adult Toastmasters, I am capable of pushing my limits and take on extra challenges, otherwise, how will I know that I can and how will I grow and learn? As the great leader, Malcolm X, once said “If not now, then when? If not me, then who?” I might not realize the benefits of pushing myself now, but I am confident enough that throughout my journey of life, I will find out!
WHAT IS FEMINISM? TM SARA TAHER “Are you a feminist?” is a question that was always directed to me, and I always find it funny when men ask us if we are feminists or not, because the fact is, all females are feminists except that, each one of us has a different degree of feminism inside her. The real question is “What is feminism?” Oxford Dictionary defines feminism as “The advocacy of women’s right and the equality between the two genders”.
Throughout my educational years I concluded that, the briefer the definition, the more chances people get to elaborate on it and this is how I made my own elaboration listed in three points. I call them “What is NOT Feminism?” Number 1. Feminism is NOT “Women = Men”. This might sound confusing since the definition of feminism itself states that it is all about equality. To unravel this confusion, let us consider a female as (X) and a male as (Y). If X and Y are both healthy, have the same weight, height and age, for sure after few months of working out, Y (the male) will be able to lift more than X (the female). That is because men are stronger physically. On the other hand, let us assume that X is a teacher, works almost the entire day, comes back to a two-floor home, does the housework, takes care of her two kids, cooks dinner and is always there for her husband. Can Y do that? YES HE CAN!!
WHAT IS FEMINISM? TM SARA TAHER
.. for one week, one month, or even one year but can he do it forever with the probability of the responsibilities to increase? No he cannot, and this is because women are stronger internally. The type of equality feminism is calling for is for the both genders to stand on the same level. The equality between them in job opportunities, political equality and freedom. A man can be a feminist too, by holding another woman’s hand and pulling her up to stand with him on the same level. Number 2. Feminism is NOT “Women Hating Men”. The fact is that women do not need men, they want en. Needing
is
different
from
wanting.
Needing
is
a
weakness and wanting a is strength. If a person is healthy and goes to the gym because they want to be stronger and healthier. Therefore, going to the gym is his strength. On the contrary, if a person is suffering from diabetes and the doctor recommends the need to lose weight then this person will be going to the gym by force – they need to lose weight – therefore, it is a weakness. A woman without a man is strong, a woman with a man is way stronger. Dear women who are reading this “Be with a man that makes you stronger or else he is not the man you should be with. Be with a man that invests in you and brings out the best version of you”
WHAT IS FEMINISM? TM SARA TAHER
Number 3. Feminism is NOT “Women hating each other”. Every single one of us is unique just the way she is. We need to stop the jealousy, comparison and competition. If there is a woman among us who is shining, then we should be inspired by her and if YOU are a shining woman then you should empower and inspire other women. We are one together and we should rise together. A team will never win if it suffering from within. Michele
Obama
once
said “The measure of any society is how it treats its women and girls”. From my point of view “The measure of any society is how its women and men treat each other, because a healthy society is the one that rise on the shoulders genders”.
of
both
VICIOUS CYCLE TM MOHAMMED TARADDAH
Edgar Alan Poe once said “Insanity is doing the exact same thing repeatedly, expecting things to change.” That is crazy. The first time someone told me that, I thought they were kidding. Eventually, I did what any sane person would do, I left them. Despite how right that person was. However, I started seeing it everywhere I looked, and everywhere I looked, all these people were doing the exact same thing over and over and over again, thinking that this time will be different. No no no, this time is going to be different. That is the definition of insanity. To me though, I’ve been living in this insanity almost my entire life. Doing things for people, pleasing them, feeding them, paying for them, following their orders. It both drove me insane and got me in trouble numerous times. And all these times where I was doing these things for them, it felt like I wasn’t good enough for them, like I had to try harder and exhaust myself even more just to put a smile on their faces. The most recent thing that happened to me was dropping out of university. I’ve spent the last 8 years in University, I’ve been there so long, I changed my major 3 times, first it was IT then computer engineering and that didn’t last very long from how hard the major was for me, then I did marketing and management, spent half a semester of my second year at an institute that my dad put me in so that I get trained to get a job but that didn’t work out so well mainly due to how difficult it was for me to keep up with the work they gave me at the time and the job interviews I went to, but alas, it ended and i didn’t get a call for another interview from the company I was going to work in and the job position I was supposed to do.
VICIOUS CYCLE TM MOHAMED TARRADAH So I went back to university, made “friends” and these “friends” were so condescending and horrible that I was too blind to see it, either that or I’m just as dumb as a bag of hammers for being so nice in the first place for meeting them. Then there were the “friends” I met outside of university. The things I did for these people, the time I wasted, the insanity I went through just to please these people… Thankfully and I mean that seriously THANKFULLY it all ended on somewhat of a good note, some of them graduated from uni, some left, and some well… not so much new things happened to them, and I’m happy about that, I’m happy that now I’m all alone and happy without these leeches sucking me dry from happiness and joy. And this better place is what I like to call my man-cave because it is my room where I have everything i need. Think of the life you are living now, and no matter how hard you try to fix its cracks, it won’t be the same as it once was. You can try moving forward in your life, but sometimes it just doesn’t matter as much because the damage is already done. See, that’s the thing about insanity, you live through doing the same thing over and over again, the less the rules apply to you. It’s a vicious cycle. And in the end, you could not live with your own insanity, where did that bring you? Back to me…. Did I ever tell you the definition of insanity?
FAREWELL JITHIN OH, THE PLACES HE'LL GO! TM Nada Qamber Jithin, brother! You've always been the wise one in the club, and I am always in awe of how the right words just come out while you're on stage. You're an inspiration to us all. I can't be more than happier for how the universe brought you two together. May miracles follow you everywhere you go.
TM Maram Al Aradi There are a few people who possess a talent and that talent is that when they speak, you want to listen to them forever. Jithin had always ALWAYS had his own unique extraordinary way with words and the way he puts them together is just simply fascinating. He's an exemplary storyteller, a vocabulary guru, an eloquent speaker, a visionary man, a close friend, a brother and most of all AN ENGINEER who will be greatly missed. May the blessings of God be with you whenever you decide to venture and Congratulations on finding Mrs. Jithin Shaji.
TM Mohammed Tarradah Heeeeeyyy buiuudddyyyy, just wanted to say how thankful I am to have had you be part of the club and how lucky you are to have a family like us, good luck with the wedding and have fun with your wife
TM Duaa Alaali As sad as I am to see you leave, I am glad that you are moving on to greater things in life! I am so happy to hear about your wedding and know that wherever you are in life, you will always stay positive and make the best of it. Good luck and we will all miss you!
FAREWELL JITHIN OH, THE PLACES HE'LL GO! TM Najla Hameed Hey Jithin.....happy your getting hooked...all.the very best and hope to see you some day..take care
TM Sara Taher I wish i joined YAT earlier to spend more time around him!. He's a man with a kind heart who's willing to help everyone ☹ !! He deserve the best and that's is why he got the great opportunity. As YAT we support our ex members wherever they are!. And the women he is married better know she's lucky!!!. Best wishes Jithin
♥
TM Mustafa Mohammed Well I’m glad I got to see you even if for a brief two meetings. Best of wishes in your future endeavors and congratulations on the wedding!
A MOMENT OF INSPIRATION WHAT INSPIRES YAT MEMBERS THE MOST
Never lose hope
To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow - Audrey Hepburn
TM Sara Taher
TM Maram Al Aradi
Success is no accident. It's hard word, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing.
- Pele
It's now or never
TM Najla Hameed
TM Nada Qambar
TM Mohamed Tarradah
You could not live with your own failure, where did that bring you? Back to me
- Thanos
Mistakes are proof that you are trying
TM Duaa Alaali
20TH SEP 2019
YAT @ THE BLOOD DONATION CAMP AT KING HAMAD HOSPITAL
9TH OCT 2019
YAT HOLDS A PUBLIC SPEAKING WORKSHOP AT AMERICAN STUDIES CENTER IN THE UNIVERSITY OF BAHRAIN!
18TH OCT 2019
YAT @ THE BOWLING TOURNAMENT AT OZONE SITRA MALL
20TH NOV 2019
CLUB CONTEST YAT held a club level contest and the winners were: TableTopics: TM. Maram Alaradi, TM. Akbar Khan, TM. Najla Hameed Evaluation: TM. Sara Taher, TM. Akbar Khan, TM. Duaa Alaali
29TH NOV 2019
YAT @ THE BEACH CLEAN UP AT PRINCE KHALIFA BIN SALMAN PARK
17TH DEC 2019
YAT WINS SECOND PLACE AT THE NATIONAL DAY FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT!
MEMBER HIGHLIGHT TM MUSTAFA ALKHADRAGI
Why did you join Toastmasters? I joined toastmasters to actively go out of my comfort zone and create experiences with people. How is the journey so far? It’s been a great discovered much acquire through am very eager endeavor.
experience! I have more of what I can toastmasters and to continue this
Are you ready to take on more speeches and projects? Definitely. I must say I am more excited and interested in speeches rather than roles, however some roles are interesting to take on from time to time. Are there any speakers who inspire you in this journey? The thing is, to me the journey really isn’t about speaking so I am not really inspired by someone as a ‘speaker’, maybe a person that qualifies as an answer would be Jordan Peterson.
MEMBER HIGHLIGHT TM LUAY HASAN
Why did you join Toastmasters? To improve my speaking skills How is the journey so far? Great, learning along the enjoying the challenges.
way,
Are you ready to take on more speeches and projects? Yes, definitely Are there any speakers who inspire you in this journey? From the club, I get inspired by Khalid & Maram
MEMBER HIGHLIGHT TM OSWIN FERNANDES
Why did you join Toastmasters? To improve my public speaking skills and get more confidence to stand in front of crowd and express yourself. How is the journey so far? I always enjoy being in Toastmaster’s meeting.
Are you ready to take on more speeches and projects? Absolutely! Are there any speakers who inspire you in this journey? Within the club Khalid, Najla, Nada, Maram, outside the club Mohammed Qahtani, Dhananjay Hettiarachchi.
MEMBER HIGHLIGHT TM MOHAMMED ISMAEL
Why did you join Toastmasters? To improve as a person and develop my public speaking skills as i am aware of my weaknesses. How is the journey so far? Great, i've noticed drastic change in my speaking capabilties; when i present i no longer get the jitters, i can speak more loudly and confidently. The whole atmosphere of the club is heartwarming, it's more of a family than a club. Are you ready to take on more speeches and projects? Yes, i am. However, for now i'm struggling with exam since its exam season. Are there any speakers who inspire you in this journey? Yes! Duaa, Maram, Ahmed Albasri, Khalid, Nada.
CLUB OFFICERS REPORTS the Executive Committee, made up of the 7 elected Officers and the Immediate Past President, handles business on behalf of the club I am really happy to start this new term with all of the new and veteran members mixed together to make up an amazing group of individuals that can, have and will do amazing things in and outside of the club. The last few years were a dark time for the club where we really thought we were going to close. Membership dropped due to members moving away, yet YAT managed to move past this thanks to the enthusiasm of both past and current members. Together we start a new term where we continue to learn, talk, lead and inspire.
TM Najla Qamber President
Level4
Level3
Level2
DTM Khaled Ismaeel VP of Education
TM Akbar Khan VP of Membership
TM Duaa Alaali VP of Public Relations
TM Sara Taher Secretary
TMÂ Maram Al Aradi Treasurer
Sailing through unknown waters resembles me in terms of finances and treasury. But, with the help of an excel expert (a.k.a DTM Khalid Ismaeel) I managed to get a hold of steering wheel and lines. We started the term with a small amount of cash from last term and with my great persuading powers and charms, I managed to collect the membership due on time and pay TMI fees on time as well granting us 1 DCP point. Currently we are staying a float with the cash in-hand however, it is projected that we will be in deficit by the end of the term if the venue and membership growth does not change. We have been considering other venues for a while but we are unable to officially relocate yet due to some minor issues. As for membership, the sun will come out tomorrow and I believe we will be victorious in expanding our YAT family.
ribbons Sufficient number available
n pe TMÂ Mohamed Taraddah Sergeant at Arms
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Sufficient number available & in working condition
na me pla tes In excellent condition
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Up to date and & sufficient number of pages available
The Public Relations Team TM Duaa Alaali Editing & Design DTM Khaled Ismaeel Content