For Area Speech Contest in English, District 67, January 17th, 2026
Good afternoon, fellow Toastmasters, ladies and gentlemen. Have you ever been to a surprise birthday party in person? The birthday star was in tears and laughter when hearing a room of people shouting "surprise". Today let's have an unprecedented living funeral for Distinguished Toastmaster Sherry Li, to your surprise. Being the Toastmaster of the living funeral, I am honored to read the eulogy. (standing in the center on stage with four empty chairs behind, dressed in a Toastmaster T-Shirt, a Toastmaster Cap, with a big file of eulogy)
First Chair:
Sherry Li was was born in October 1955 in a military community in Chia-Yi. Both her parents came from China, her father from the north, and her mother from the south. They got married in Taiwan, raised four children, Sherry is the eldest. Sherry became interested in communication when she was six years old. She was the only child from Mainlanders parents at a Taiwanese elementary school in her neighborhood. To survive, she had to acquire Taiwanese fast to mingle with other young kids. Guess what? Sherry eventually married a man from a native Taiwanese family in Chia-Yi subconsciously and successfully.
Second Chair:
Sherry joined Grand Toastmasters Club when she was 28, just coming back from the US with her master degree in Microbiology and Immunology. While working at Ministry of Health during the day, she taught English at a cram school at night. When she was invited to Toastmasters by her boss, the President of Grand Toastmasters Club. “Imagine when your boss tells you to do something, what do you do? You say, ‘Yes, boss.’ Sherry had been enjoying Toastmastering till she got married at 31. Sherry rejoined Grand when she became the Secretary General of Taiwan Pharmaceutical Association at 36, because she was desperate to hone the leadership skills. When She was the Vice President Education and the President, Grand was prosperous because the meetings were held at the big conference room of her office free of charge.
Third Chair:
Sherry is passionate about Toastmastering. She chartered the first Japanese speaking in Taiwan in 1998, and became the Charter President of Kyoto Toastmasters Club in year 2000 while she was an exchange student at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto. At age of 45, Sherry started her FIRE life, financially independent and retirement early. Whenever sherry traveled abroad, she visited local Toastmasters club, in New Zealand, Italy, just to name a couple. She flew to Mongolia in January with the temperature 30 below to help charter the first Toastmasters Club in Mongolia.
Fourth Chair:
Sherry is a polyglot. She speaks many languages. Being a septuagenarian, she is active with several on line reading groups, two in Japanese, two in English, including Toastmaster magazine reading group. She will be teaching Korean at Taipei City Library from March, with the aim to charter the first Korean speaking Toastmasters Club in Taiwan.
Many congratulations to Sherry for finding her purpose in life as a Toastmaster. Let’s give her a big round of applause for her legend in District 67. (take off the T-shirt, show the under sportswear)
~~
Thank you all for attending my living funeral by surprise. I have attended many Toastmasters' funerals in the past four decades, but never a living one. It’s a serendipity you attend mine here today. If you don’t know me before, now you know me. I am grateful to Toastmasters for making who I am. Time to say Goodbye to Sherry of the past.
Oops, it is a taboo to say goodbye at a funeral in Taiwan. The reason is obvious, funeral is for people to say sorry, funeral is to grief over the loss of a loved one. But what if a living funeral, a happy gathering for family and friends to cherish the good time with the person who is still alive.
With much being said, time to celebrate! let’s toast to the Toastmasters! Cheers! Contest Chair!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Postmark：https://www.toastmasters.org/magazine/magazine-issues/2025/december/build-your-speaking-confidence
After a group reading of Toastmaster magazine December 2025 “Build Your Speaking Confidence” Wednesday morning, December 17th, I'd like to follow Joel Schwartzberg’s advise to conduct a survey after my speech, to see if I successfully delivered a clear and valuable point.
The Survey after a speech
1. What did you take away from or remember most about the presentation?
2. Was anything confusing? And if so, why?
3. On a scale of 1-10, how confident did I seem?
4. What did I do that helped me hold or caused me to lose the audience’s attention?
Thank you for helping me become a better speaker in the future! Happy Toastmastering!
