Ceylinco Life Toastmasters Club forges ahead to 8th year

The eighth installation ceremony of Ceylinco Life’s Toastmasters Club was conducted virtually recently, during which a new executive committee was appointed, new members were welcomed, and the achievers of the past year were honoured.

The event culminated in the appointment of Mr Milinda Peiris, Manager – Training and Development at Ceylinco Life as the new President of the Club to head the executive committee comprising of Mr Dileepa Delwala (Vice President, Education), Ms Keshani Samarakoon (Vice President, Membership), Mr Mohammadhu Riham (Vice President, Public Relations), Ms Ruvini de Silva (Secretary), Mr Nalin Dhanushka (Treasurer) and Mr Ravi de Mel (Sergeant-at-Arms).

Furthermore, Mr Chulaka Kumarasinghe who is the Chairperson of the Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI), a Past Area Director and Past President of the Club was honored at the installation for winning the ‘Distinguished Toastmaster’ award, the highest recognition bestowed by Toastmasters International.

Eight members were also recognized this year and inducted for completing Toastmasters Pathways learning experiences, a newly-launched education programme with emphasis on personal and professional development. Mr Milinda Peiris completed the ‘Presentation Mastery’ Path and Mr Gayan Alwis completed the ‘Dynamic Leadership’ Path. Meanwhile, Ms Ruvini de Silva, Mr Samitha Hemachandra, Mr Gayan Alwis, Mr Milinda Peiris, and Mr Chulaka Kumarasinghe were presented the ‘Triple Crown Award’ under Pathways for earning three awards in the Toastmasters Programme within a year.

The eighth installation ceremony also included the induction of six new members to the Ceylinco Life Toastmasters Club which had 44 registered members. As a testament to its prowess in communication and leadership of its members, the club has been accorded ‘Distinguished’ status every year since it came into being.

The club has produced Toastmasters who have won at Division and Area level speech contests, an achievement that surpasses that of many other clubs. The club was awarded the prestigious ‘Golden Gavel’ by Toastmasters International, the highest accolade any Toastmasters Club could win, in 2015.

Additionally, three Ceylinco Life Toastmasters, Shyamala Arulanandam and Chulaka Kumarasinghe who are Past Presidents of the Club, and Gayan Lakmal Alwis have won Division and Area Level Speech and Evaluation contests, a commendable feat for a relatively new club.

The Ceylinco Life Toastmasters Club was chartered in September 2014 and has been part of all events hosted thereafter by Toastmasters International in Sri Lanka.

Toastmasters International is a world leader in communication and leadership development with a membership of more than 358,000. Members improve their speaking and leadership skills by attending one of the 16,800 clubs in 143 countries that make up the global network of meeting locations. By regularly giving speeches, gaining feedback, leading teams and guiding others to achieve their goals in a supportive atmosphere, leaders emerge from the Toastmasters programme. Since its founding in October 1924, the organisation has helped more than four million men and women give presentations with poise and confidence. The communication and leadership projects designed by Toastmasters International are devoted to the development of the art of speaking, listening and critical thinking among its members.

Ceylinco Life has close to a million lives covered by active policies and is acknowledged as a benchmark in the local insurance sector for innovation, product research and development, customer service, professional development, sustainability, and corporate social responsibility.