Orient Express is a toastmaster club founded in 1996 within the Chinese Community in Thousand Oaks. It was chartered in May 1997 and since then has become a formal member of Toastmasters International. After five years of growth, it is now a full-fledged club with a pool of talent. It has made many contributions to the community and is well recognized by mainstream society.

Toastmasters International offers a set of tools and wisely developed programs to its member clubs. The clubs help men and women learn the arts of public speaking, listening and thinking, which are vital skills to promote self-actualization. The mission of Orient Express is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every member has the opportunity to develop communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.

As I think back to when the club was founded, a smile naturally emerges on my face, heartfelt warmth and satisfaction fills my inner world. The club has truly come a long way. I am proud to share some of our experiences with friends like you. We started meeting at Chinese School. During the summer time, we were able to utilize a room of Thousand Oaks Chinese Christian Church. As the membership grew, the club needed a large formal room to conduct efficient meeting and the need for a change was pressed. Fortunately, we were able to secure a conference room at Amgen. Presently, we meet at Santa Barbara Bank and Trust in Thousand Oaks at 7:30 pm on the first and the third Mondays each month.

I can clearly recall the stiffness in my delivery of my Ice Breaker speech, the stutter and nervousness from other members. With continuous practice and evaluation feedback from the club members, each and every of us has made tremendous progress in our speaking. On the communication track, we learn to convey our thoughts in an organized manner. We become skilled at controlling our speaking voices and mastering our body language. We are trained to enunciate words and speak fluently. On the leadership track, we discover our potential in motivating others and abilities to promote the club’s interest. After a few years participation in the club and Toastmaster Internationals’ activities, many of us have realized incredible personal growth.

To continuously enhance toastmaster’s speaking skills, Toastmasters International holds several contests each year. Orient Express has sent representatives to compete in the area contest. Beginning this year, Victor Lin from our club won second place in the International Speech Contest. This was a significant milestone in the club’s attempt to grow bigger and stronger. The expansion of membership is attributed to the symbiotic club culture as well as the energetic meetings packed with humor and excitement.

The club welcomes anybody to visit. Currently, the club consists of members from throughout the community. In addition, we have several mentors who consistently give the club guidance. All of the mentors are very experienced toastmasters. Many of them have earned the status of Distinguished Toastmaster. That is the highest level of designation for the communication track. They also generously lend a hand whenever a member asks for their advice. Recently, International Director of Toastmasters International, Mary Jones-Williams, joined Orient Express. Stimulation and inspiration from her is greatly anticipated. I must say that the hesitation and struggle of being a member of Orient Express is now transformed into a true privilege.

My friends, we all share the same cultural background. Despite the fact that is English being our second language, we have strong desires to get along well with others and advance in our adopted country. Above all, we wish to narrow the gap in communicating with our children. If you share my thoughts and like to know more about Orient Express, please call Li-mei at 818-879-9264.