How can a big club have problems?
Tony, the Southern Marin VPE, describes:
We have what you might call “good” problems. As of 02.17.2026, we have 45 active members. We frequently have guests who quickly become members because they love the welcoming and supportive nature of our membership. At first glance, that seems like a great thing, however our high member count sometimes makes it difficult to reserve a slot for a speaking role because of the high level of competition. We have a rather long meeting (1 hour and 45 minutes) so we are experimenting with adding more speaker roles. We currently have 2 speaker slots and may go to 3 to accommodate more members per meeting.
Can there be successful small clubs in a rural area?
Yes. We have the Tenacious Talkers that is in Lakeport. Lakeport is in Lake County. Lake County contains one of the best Bass fishing lakes in the USA. However its population is only 68,000 people. How do they survive? Currently their meetings are strictly online. But also, as we see with so many clubs, they have one person that is the driving force for the club. That person for the Tenacious Talkers is Greg Scott DTM, PID. He is also the District 205 District Leadership Committee (DLC) Chair. He calls Toastmasters “My Mental Vitamin.” Greg is a testament of what Toastmasters can do for one’s life and a great cheerleader for Toastmasters.
I, Ray Gowan, Division C Director, feel like Division C has had a successful year so far. My area directors have encouraged all of the clubs to have a Club Success Plan. Unfortunately, 3 of the clubs that may have needed it the most did not make a plan. That makes it difficult to get help for the club because a Club Coach will not receive any credit for their effort. This year, I hope that at least 12 of the 19 clubs will be distinguished. All of us from the Division C Council live in the Division. This really helps in a Division that is spread out as much as Division C, because we know the area’s demographics. There is a range of experience among the Directors, but we help each other and can contribute to the health of the Division C Council and the Division. Ultimately, this helps District 57.
But mostly we want each Toastmaster member to experience the Toastmasters Club Mission that “results in greater self-confidence and personal growth.”
Ray Gowan