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Richmond-based speaker campaigns to be a top toaster

Margaret Page runs for VP of International Toastmasters
Page toastmaster
Margaret Page, a Delta resident, is a member of Spotlight Speakers, one of about 20 Toastmaster clubs in Richmond.

A Richmond-based Toastmaster is making a run at becoming vice-president of the international branch of the public speaking organization.

Margaret Page, a Delta resident, is a member of Spotlight Speakers, one of about 20 Toastmaster clubs in Richmond. 

Her bid to become a VP of Toastmasters International concludes with a campaign speech and upwards of 100 interviews at the Toastmasters International annual conference in Chicago on Aug.21.

“I’m very honoured. I didn’t envision this when I joined (15 years ago),” said Page, who said she ran several small businesses prior to becoming a business coach and trainer.

Page is up against four other candidates from around the world.

Toastmasters International, said Page, has 16,726 non-profit clubs around the world and is growing quickly outside the West, including in China, which is seeing 10 per cent growth annually over the past few years, on average.

Page said Toastmasters includes people of all types, from ages 18 to their mid-seventies.

She said becoming a better speaker helps with people’s family life, their community interactions and to become a better employee.

“In the past the ability to speak in front of groups has curtailed their growth. They’re ready to do something about it by overcoming fear and becoming an effective communicator,” she said.

The vast majority of clubs are in English, however Toastmasters operates in eight different languages globally.

One club in Richmond is in Mandarin, and includes many non-Chinese members hoping to get the upper hand on a new language.

To find a suitable club, an online search can be performed at Toastmasters.org