Page 27 - 2016 December Voices

World Champion Ryan Avery
Because I started to believe the doubters I put
my passion of elocution on hold for years, till I
saw a great speaker. I had come to understand
that maybe they were all right, that I needed
to stop pretending to be a presenter. That this
was a talent that one was born with and that I
couldn’t be cultivated or enhanced. Until I saw
a YouTube video of Ryan Avery, the 2012 World
Champion of Public Speaking for Toastmasters.
I was impressed by his presentation skills and
was surprised to know that he was from Oregon.
After I did some more research I found out that
his Toastmasters club was conducting meetings
at Concordia University campus which was
right around the corner from my house at the
time. The fact that he was local and one that he
won the world championship over hundreds of
contestants ignited my passion again for public
presentations.
Born Again
After feeling reborn, I statted looking for
a club of my own. The Concordia University
campus Ryan Avery had attended, didn’t fit in
my schedule at the time. I discovered that there
was another club that conducted meeting at my
business school DeVry University campus. I
attended one meeting and fell in love.
I had asked about other clubs, as to
know which was the best
and most exciting. New
VOLUME 3 ISSUE 6 DECEMBER, 2016
Horizons Toastmasters Club in Tigard came up
in the discussion.
New Horizons Toastmasters
New Horizons has been the most helpful
and encouraging environment I have ever been
around. One of the reasons why I had issues
preforming well was due to lack of exposure and
practice. Whatever you don’t use you will lose
as far as skills go. Toastmasters International
through New Horizons has nurtured my speaking
ability. It has given me a new found confidence in
myself. It has allowed me to be a leader amongst
my peers. It has elevated me to more speaking
engagements and added promotions. It has
allowed me to shun the naysayers of this ability
to speak and to prove them wrong. Toastmasters
International through New Horizons has allowed
me to follow my dreams of presentations. It has
allowed me to let those awkward butterflies of
nervousness fly in formation.
Charles Shambry joined New Horizons Toastmasters
in 2014. He is a motivation speaker, entrepreneur, wealth
management consultant, author and writer, YouTube Page:
charlesshambryjr
27