PHILIPSBURG:--- On Thursday, June 12, 2025, Cupecoy Sunset Toastmasters Club is set to celebrate 10 years of existence with a festive ceremony. The event will be held at the AUC School of Medicine in Cupecoy on June 12, at 6:00 PM, and will feature guest speakers and a surprise guest artist.
It will also feature some of the previous presidents and board members from past years.
“This marks ten years that Cupecoy Sunset Toastmasters has been a vital launchpad for countless professionals, fostering high-performance habits that extend far beyond our meetings. This milestone isn't just a look back; it's a reaffirmation of our commitment to nurturing future leaders and innovators for the next ten years and beyond." - president Damien Schmidt.
Persons interested in joining Toastmasters and joining the Cupecoy Sunset club specifically are welcome to join the free event to network and enjoy the festivities. The registration link can be found here: https://das.eventcube.io/events/73272/cupecoy-sunset-10-year-anniversary.
"As a fairly young club on the island, which also caters to upcoming professionals and experienced professionals, the club is always open to new visitors who are interested in becoming members.
If you want to get fit, you go to the gym, and if you want to improve your speaking and leadership skills, you join Toastmasters. And if you're a young professional in St. Maarten eager to explore and grow, you join Cupecoy Sunset Toastmasters Club." - Rholdyne Lake, Vice President of Public Relations.
The theme for this past year has been “Creating High Performance Habits”, and as such, the club has organized events and collaborations along this theme; some of which include the International Women's Day celebration featuring a panel of prominent women in the community, such as MP Ludmila de Weever, Sabrina Charville manager at Grand Case airport and Amanda Vital-Bedminister from The Rising.
April featured a collaboration with the Soualiga Fatherhood Association, which featured another panel of guest speakers, all fathers, including the president of the Soualiga Association, Gregoire Dumel, Former Minister Plenipotentiary, Rene Violenus, and Christian Grannum.
Other meetings the Toastmasters club hosted this year featured Vice President Valérie Damasaeu, MP, and former Minister of Finance, Ardwell Irion, and the Trending SXM duo Janelle Presentacion and Kimberly Meyers. The club also opened up the year with an active session about health and wellness with Gilda “Gigii” Parisot from BodybyGigii, fitness coach and nutritionist. Stephie Gumbs, writer and cultural preservationist, was also present for the St Martin's day meeting in November.
This year the club has also organized a set of Chasing Sunset events, which are signature Cupecoy Sunset events, that bring Toastmasters out of the meeting room and onto the beachside of Kim Sha Beach.
"We have come a long way, done a lot this year, and we are looking forward to closing off our year with a big bang," shared Vice President Education, Melissa Harrisson Grinuva.
As the Toastmasters year runs from July to June, this event will also mark the close of the Toastmasters year.
However, the club will be organizing a Speechcraft session in September 2025. The Speechcraft is a special four-eight-session training that will boost participants’ confidence and improve their communication, public speaking, and leadership skills—all within a safe Toastmasters environment.
For more information and to pre-register for the speechcraft persons can do so via this link:
https://das.eventcube.io/events/86431/cupecoy-speechcraft
