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May: New Meeting Location
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Still searching for the perfect space
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Design Offices has new owners, and they informed us at the end of March that, as of 1 May, they will no longer offer us a reasonable rental price. As we cannot afford the price they have offered (450€ per night), we are actively searching for a suitable new location. We need your help – if you have any venue connections in Bonn or know of any places that you think would work, even as temporary solutions, please let us know ASAP (email: officers@bonn-international-toastmasters.de).
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BIT team meets World Toastmaster Champion at Area Contest 2026!
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1,500€ raised for Area Contest!
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On March 21st, the District 95/Area 3 contest took place at Eventmanufaktur in Bonn with 76 attendees, including 17 contestants. Saby Sengupta, the 2025 Toastmasters World Champion, dazzled the crowd twice with speeches in the German and English contests. How did our BIT members do???
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Jonas von Oertzen took 2nd place in the German Prepared Speech category and 2nd place in the English Prepared Speech category.
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Stephen Wagner took 3rd place in the Table Topics category.
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Congratulations to both of them!
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This event was made financially possible by 43 donors, plus 430€ from SWB! A huge thank you to all of you, your friends, and your family who contributed to making the event a huge success.
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What’s next? The division contest will take place in Bochum on April 25th at 09:30am in Bahnhof Langendreer e.V. (Wallbaumweg 108, 44894 Bochum). It’s free to attend, you can see the winners of all area contests competing their way up to the next level, and you can learn about the organization of such a contest by taking an active role. Register your interest here.
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Ask the World Toastmaster Champion Saby
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Curious about becoming a World Champion?
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During the Area 3 contest, our BIT VP Education Svetlana Semenova had the chance to interview the World Champion of Public Speaking Saby Sengupta on the stage. Below are a few insights from the interview:
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“Tell us about your journey to become the World Champion for Toastmasters in 2025.”
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“My journey to becoming the 2025 World Champion of Public Speaking wasn’t overnight, it was the result of many years of learning, experimenting and growing within Toastmasters. I have been competing for the past decade in speech contests and even in 2024, I came second at club level. I embraced my natural style using humor and storytelling which allowed me to connect more genuinely with audiences. In preparing my speeches, I focused on building the core message and ending first, leaving the opening for later, and I constantly tested my material in front of live audiences to see what truly resonated. Mentally, I learned to detach from the outcome and focus only on what I could control (my preparation, my delivery, and my energy on stage) while also visualizing success long before it happened. In the end, this journey was about persistence and self-awareness.”
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Cologne-Bonn Toastmasters Club visits
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Mark your calendars
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It’s fascinating to visit another Toastmasters club to see how they do things a bit (or a lot) differently. With different people, vibes, and traditions, the meetings are familiar but new. If you’ve been thinking of visiting a different club, here’s a chance to try it together with a group of BIT members.
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Tuesday, April 28th at 18:30 – BIT members and guests are invited to visit the Cologne Toastmasters English evening in Mainzerstr. 30, 50678 Cologne.
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In exchange, Cologne Toastmasters are invited to attend our regular BIT meeting in Bonn on Thursday, May 28th (address TBD).
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Will you join our group trip to Cologne on April 28th? Please let Monica know, so she can inform them about what to expect and we can arrange ridesharing.
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BIT Bingo Winner
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Jörg takes the trophy 🏆
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Taking on different roles at our weekly meetings keeps our meetings running smoothly. And it provides an opportunity to practice different skills. That’s why we introduced the BIT Bingo contest – whoever took on the most roles during the contest period won. There’s no actual trophy involved, but we extend our congratulations and gratitude to Jörg for consistently and proactively participating in BIT meetings. May he be an inspiration to us all!
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Welcome to our newest VP Public Relations – Adrian
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In March 2026, our member Adrian Tirtea indicated his willingness to serve as Vice President, Public Relations, covering for Aastha during her maternity leave. During a club meeting in March, BIT members unanimously voted in favor of Adrian as VP PR, and the Board of Officers is happy to welcome him on board. Congratulations, Adrian, and we look forward to working with you in the next 3 months! We wish Aastha all the best in her new role as mommy and thank her heartfully for her tireless work so far.
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May 21st – Officer Elections
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Do you feel the calling?
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Each July 1st, a new group of volunteer officers begin their journey to manage all club affairs for a full year. There are seven roles to choose from, each with different responsibilities. You can read about them here, but if you are curious and interested in exploring the possibility, reach out to this year’s officers directly. It’s fun and rewarding work, and you are guaranteed to build your network and improve your leadership, interpersonal, and other useful professional skills in the process. Elections will take place on 21 May 2026. If you’d like to run for an office, talk to an officer ASAP to explore which role is best for you.
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Joint meeting with Magenta Voices (Telekom Toastmasters)
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Meet our sister club in Bonn
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Did you know that there are three Toastmaster clubs in Bonn? BIT, Redefluss, and Magenta Voices, which is the only “corporate club” in District 95. It’s reserved for Telekom employees and usually meets during business hours. Even though our paths may not often cross, we thought it would be nice to get to know each other a little better. So we’ve arranged a special meeting together, at the Telekom campus accross the Rhine (Landgrabenweg 151) on Thursday, June 18th. The only catch is that you must arrive BEFORE 18:00 to complete the required guest registration. Doors open at 17:30. We hope you can join!
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Member Survey Feedback
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Takeaways for BIT’s future
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Way back in November 2025 we sent all BIT members a survey to learn more about everyone’s goals and hopes for their participation in our club. We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all our members who took the time to share their thoughts through the recent club survey. Your input is truly valuable and helps shape the future of our meetings. From your responses, it’s clear that there is a strong interest in making our sessions more engaging, supportive, and tailored to individual growth goals. We are excited to take these insights forward and will be actively incorporating your suggestions into upcoming meetings and initiatives to ensure our club continues to evolve in a way that benefits everyone. Check out the news section at the end of this newsletter. We will also get back individually to some of you who asked for support.
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Reminder to all
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Record your speeches on Pathways!
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Visit your Pathways account to make sure all the projects you’ve finished are marked as complete. Here’s what we need by June to get the full points this year (and an extra ribbon to add to our flag!):
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Announcements & Upcoming Events
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| • | 16 April: Special Club meeting “The art of finding work”
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| • | 25 April: Division A contest in Bochum, register here
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| • | 28 April: BIT group visit to Cologne Toastmasters – English evening
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| • | 21 May: BIT officer elections
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| • | 28 May: Group visit by Cologne Toastmasters to BIT evening
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| • | 18 June: Joint meeting with Magenta Voices Telekom (Landgrabenweg 151). ARRIVE 17:30-18:00 (entrance closes at 18:00!)
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officers@bonn-international-toastmasters.de
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bonn-international-toastmasters.de
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