Mahmood Thompson started coming to our Toastmaster club meetings, initially, to accompany his mother who was thinking about joining our club. He never spoke or interacted with any of our members and sometimes seemed preoccupied or distracted. Then Mahmood started to come to the meetings without his mother, still very quiet, but seemingly interested in our club dynamics.
Much to our surprise, Mahmood joined our club, at first just observing and leaving quickly at the end of each meeting. Then bravely, he stepped forward to give his first speech, and introduced us to a person that none of us ever anticipated encountering at a Toastmaster meeting. We discovered from his Ice Breaker, that he had Asperger Syndrome, a rare form of Autism, characterized by difficulties with social interaction, repetitive speech and awkward mannerisms. Persons with this syndrome often find interacting with others very overwhelming, and we saw that in his next couple of speeches. Sometimes Mahmood would stand frozen in his thoughts before he could continue with his speeches. But, bravely, he continued to volunteer to give speeches, each time gathering more confidence. Not only did Mahmood raise our awareness about this rare condition, but he increased our understanding, patience and tremendous admiration for someone who pushed through his difficulties like no one we had ever seen in our Toastmaster club history.
Amazingly, Mahmood has soared in his participation and interaction with others in our club. He regularly volunteers for roles and recently he just brought the house down when he delivered his speech from the humorous manual. He continues to grow in leaps and bounds, and Capitol City Legacy Builders continues to embrace every challenging moment he encounters on his incredible journey. Mahmood has achieved his ACB and has participated in Club Contests. We know that, thanks to Toastmasters, “The Professor,” as we have dubbed him, will continue to educate us, uplift us, and amaze us with his growth and personal development.
We applaud you Mahmood Thompson for your bravery and determination to move beyond your fears and challenges!
Submitted by:
Pauline W. Mansfield
Capitol City Legacy Builders
Club Secretary