ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, September 5, 1996 TAG: 9609050112
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: N-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MARY JO SHANNON SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES
Retiree Frank Morris joined Toastmasters about 18 months ago; he quickly moved through the ranks to become president of his local club ... and third-best speaker in the world
Only 18 months after John Downie, a fellow choir member, talked him into joining a local Toastmasters Club, Frank Morris has moved ahead with amazing speed. On Aug. 24, this multitalented 70-year-old - known in the Roanoke area for his singing, fashion show commentary and calligraphy - delivered a speech in St. Louis that won him third place in the international competition.
Morris competed against seven regional winners from the United States and one from New Zealand, winner from the 59 other competing countries. His speech was on "The Terrible Too's."
The New Zealand speaker took first place, and second place went to a speaker from Texas, who won third last year. This encouraged Morris, the oldest person in the international competition, to look forward to another try in 1997. He has already selected a topic.
"Of course," he said, "I must win at all preceding levels to have another chance at the world championship. This has already been one of my most thrilling accomplishments, after five years into geriatric doldrums."
A buyer and merchandiser for 28 years with Sidney's ready-to-wear, Morris retired five years ago.
His Toastmasters competition began in his local club, Roanoke Toastmasters Club. Success there took him to area competition, which included the five Roanoke clubs and one in Lynchburg.
He won the area, then the division, which extends to Charlottesville, Danville and Blacksburg, then the state district.
In July, Morris captured the regional championship in Raleigh, becoming the first Virginia champion to do so since the state was designated a district 34 years ago.
The circumstances surrounding that winning speech make Morris' regional victory all the more remarkable. Seven hours before he was scheduled to speak, he fell and sprained his ankle.
"I spent three hours of those seven hours in the emergency room," he said, "then hobbled to the podium on crutches to speak."
Despite his physical discomfort, the speech, "My Mother's Legacy," took top honors.
"My mother was a self-educated woman," Morris said. "At social events ... she would listen intently to the conversation. If she heard a word she did not understand, she would excuse herself to the ladies' room, retrieve a small note pad from her bra and scribble the word down, to be looked up at home and added to her vocabulary."
Morris' mother also saw that her son learned to master the language.
"Each morning she would give me a sentence," he recalled, "and I was required to 'translate' that sentence - giving it back to her that evening without using a single one of the original words.
"Toastmasters has helped me to build on the legacy of my mother - the love of language. I have had the opportunity to hone my skills."
Toastmasters has 8,000 clubs worldwide, with 175,000 members in 60 countries. The United States leads with 7,000 clubs and 150,000 members.
Toastmasters requires members to speak at local meetings on specific topics. These are evaluated, and the speakers progress through several levels of membership. Members are also required to give speeches to groups other than the club, and Morris has spoken to several church groups. He praises Toastmasters enthusiastically for the leadership skills and confidence it builds in members.
"Two young men who joined about the time I did have made remarkable progress in their careers since joining," he said. "When you learn to speak with confidence, you learn to inspire people. And that constitutes leadership."
Having served as secretary of his club, Morris is now the president, and welcomes anyone interested to "come, visit, observe, and join, if they like." He may be reached at 342-1294.
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Alan Spearman. Toastmaster Frank Morris took third placeby CNBin the international competition recently in St. Louis. color.