The Toastmasters of District 82 in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Association of Racing Drivers and Riders (SLARDAR) have come together to launch The Toastmasters Fun Rally – GET TO THE POINT. This exciting event will begin on 22nd October, 2017 and is set to commence from the vicinity of Independence Square and the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute (SLFI).
This initiative was the brainchild of District Director, DTM Ajantha Jayawardena and is being put forth as an awareness exercise to educate the public about what the Toastmasters are really all about. The idea is to engage the Toastmasters together with the public through a fun-filled evening. The event will include video feeds streamed from the Rally vehicles, DJ music, food, action stations and many other forms of entertainment.
‘Get to the Point’ is a fun inspired Rally which will include aspects of Time, Speed and Distance (TSD). The route will cover approximately 125km going into Colombo suburbs and will comprise of around 12 to 15 checkpoints along the way. A closing time has been allocated for each check-point and the team needs to reach the point within an allocated time. The rally is scheduled to start at 2.00pm and end at 7.30pm with refreshments available throughout. So far, 35 competitors have signed up to participate in the Rally,
However, the Rally is not simply leveraging on going about with a racing endeavour but the main highlight is to enlighten the public about what it means to become a Toastmaster and entice young adults from the ages of 18 and above to understand who a Toastmaster is and how they can come forward and join in the movement. This would be the first time such an event is taking place, where Toastmasters would reach out to the public.
“The expansion of the Toastmasters message en route will change people’s lives with an ultimate outcome which will transpire through this Rally. So, an event of this calibre is bound to add on a level of excitement and knowhow as well as inspire young adults and middle-aged individuals to come forward and learn more about the Toastmasters and what it really means to hold such a stance in today’s social sphere,” said Toastmasters International, President DTM Balraj Arunasalam.
Adding insight into the involvement of Toastmasters at a Rally, SLARDAR Vice President and Toastmaster, Kamil Hussain said, “This Rally will act as an empowering platform where it will create an environment for youth in urban areas to come forth and understand what it would mean to become a Toastmaster. There have been instances when people did not identify with what a Toastmaster stood for and the title has often been mistaken to that of a Chef or Pastry Maker and this shows that a segment of this society are not aware or know about Toastmasters in general. As a country, if more individuals adopt this movement then imagine the kind of society that we can build.”
Toastmasters receive the ability to sharpen their skills in attributes of speech, communication and leadership among other things. Becoming involved with something of this calibre ensures that this selected few would gain the right ingredients that would propel them forward and get them to excel on their quest to become good leaders.
A club can submit unlimited entries under the categories of Category 1– Jeep/ Double Cabs, Category 2– Cars/Vans – Above 1000CC and Category 3– Cars – Below 1000CC. Clubs can also combine to formteams.A team will consist of 4 Members with at least 2 being Toastmasters and the rest, non-Toastmasters. The event is set to be broadcast via SLARDAR TV and will be streamed worldwide. The event is open to all and the entry to the event premises will be allowed at a nominal fee for the public to cheer for their teams or to just attend and enjoy the event with family or friends. This one of a kind event is no doubt bound to encompass thrills and spills combined with the skills of the Toastmasters and are sure to be a treat for everyone who will be present on the day to witness the Rally unfold.
Commenting about the event, DTM Ajantha Jayawardena stated, “We see opportunities for the development of Communication and Leadership skills as a need of the hour and with the unfolding of this timely event, we believe that our objective of creating awareness and spreading the value of the Toastmaster Organization to the public would bring a lot of benefit, especially to the public in outstation locations. We want to promote the Toastmasters across Sri Lanka and the GET TO THE POINT Motor Rally will add a sense of fun and excitement in the process of spreading the message to everyone involved.”
For more information on how to join the movement and become a Toastmaster, enquiries can be forwarded to speechmasters2017@gmail.com.