Our president, Bobby Buckley, opened the meeting and referred to three well-known icons who have recently passed away - Kris Kristofferson, Maggie Smith, and Mary O’Rourke all rest in peace.
Michael Cronin, as MC for the evening, conducted the meeting with his usual ease and charm.
Amanda Conway gave a very confident presentation of a charming poem, ‘My Favourite Place To Be’.
Well-being of the individual and of our planet were themes running through Thursday’s meeting. In her speech, ‘Just An Email’, Rachel Liston shared her positive and enlightening experience of working under the guidance of a mentor, in spite of her initial reservations.
Paul Corcoran described his absolute delight in acquiring his ‘new best friend’ in his speech, ‘A New Journal’. He certainly convinced many in the audience of the joys and benefits of keeping a journal.
In his enthralling speech, Don McSweeney introduced us to the model of ‘The Doughnut’. The area between the two rings of the doughnut is considered a safe and just place for humanity and the planet to live. Living within these boundaries, all people’s basic social needs would be met and the safety of our planet would be secured. Right now, this model seems to offer us the best hope of a healthy future.
Helsa Giles, Brendan Foley, and Marie Fitzpatrick all gave positive and insightful evaluations of the respective speeches.
In a lively and very enjoyable topics session, Noel O’Connor posed questions about native plants that are under threat in Ireland, prejudices about drivers of electric cars, and opinions on what is an ideal holiday. Some aspired to an ecologically ethical holiday with Manchán by train, while others looked forward to braving the Greenways! Many opinions were exchanged in a respectful and often humorous way.
We left the meeting with plenty of food for thought and the prospect of the next meeting to look forward to on the 17th of October. This should be a very entertaining evening with a contest of Humorous Speeches and Table Topics.
Everyone Welcome!
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| Toastmaster: Michael Cronin, President: Bobby Buckley, Topicsmaster: Noel O'Connor |
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| Evaluators: Helsa Giles and Marie Fitzpatrick. |
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| Speakers: Paul Corcoran, Rachel Liston, and Don McSweeney |
