Vulcan Voices Toastmasters to mark 70 years at Sapphire Jubilee

The Vulcan Voices Toastmasters club in June will be celebrating its 70th anniversary with an event called Sapphire Jubilee.

The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. on June 12 at the America’s First Federal Credit Union branch at 1112 Montgomery Highway in Vestavia Hills. It will be much like a regular club meeting, but past members are being invited to celebrate the anniversary, said Jim Daniell, the club’s sergeant at arms.

The public is invited to come learn more about the club, whose goal is to help people improve their communication and leadership skills. Typical meetings include two to three people giving planned speeches, an impromptu speaking session and an evaluation time during which club members provide one another with feedback, Daniell said.

Some people need help overcoming the fear of public speaking, while others just need help sharpening their skills, said Austin Hatch, president of the club. The group wants to help people increase their confidence, build critical thinking skills and become effective listeners, he said.

The Vulcan Voices Toastmasters club, chartered in 1947, is the oldest Toastmasters club in Alabama. It has about 20 active members from across the metro area, with about six to 14 people at an average meeting, Daniell said.

The Vulcan Voices club is in District 77, which has 84 corporate and community Toastmasters clubs across Alabama, southeast Mississippi and the Florida Panhandle. Toastmasters International is headquartered in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, and has more than 345,000 members in more than 15,900 clubs in 142 countries.

The Vulcan Voices club for many years has met at the Vestavia Hills Board of Education office but in May started holding its meetings at America’s First Federal Credit Union. The group meets every Monday night at 6 p.m., and each meeting is open to the public.

For more information, go to vulcanvoices.toastmastersclubs.org.