Toastmasters International -Smedley Fund Assists Malaysia YLP

An elderly man in a suit sits at a desk with papers and a typewriter, looking off to the side with a framed map on the wall behind him.

Money from the Toastmasters Ralph C. Smedley Memorial Fund^® helped improve the communication skills of a group of young students in Malaysia. The Sutera Utama Toastmasters Club used the funds to run a Youth Leadership Program (YLP) at a local school.

The club applied for and received funds to cover the costs of YLP materials and resources, a move approved by the Toastmasters Board of Directors. The Sutera Utama club, located in Johor Bahru, Johor, the southernmost state in Malaysia, conducted the 2025 YLP for students ages 15 to 17. Toastmaster Ying Yii Leong coordinated the program, held at the Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Skudai school.

Yves Tan Wei Zhi, DTM, a past Club President of Sutera Utama, said of the program’s success: “We have excited parents who witnessed their children transform into better young communicators.”

The Smedley Fund, honoring Toastmasters’ founder, Dr. Ralph C. Smedley, was established in 1965 to ensure everyone has access to the benefits of Toastmasters.