Meet Lisa Bishop
Lisa Bishop uses her new-found
confidence to help others
By Julie Bawden Davis
When Lisa Bishop called to inquire about Toastmasters one night at 10:30, she expected to leave a message. She certainly didn’t think the club president would answer and graciously give her a thorough overview of the club.
“I was very embarrassed about calling so late and waking him up, but he was wonderful to talk to,” says Bishop. “He told me all about the club and made me feel really comfortable about attending a meeting.”
For Bishop, who has a mild form of autism, making that first phone call to Toastmasters was difficult. It took her two weeks to muster the courage to call, and then she did so after hours, when she thought no one would answer. Thanks to the welcoming attitude of Toastmasters, however, in just a few short months since joining, she’s found the strength to stand up to her fears and discover a confidence she never thought possible.
Bishop and her three sons all have Asperger’s Syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism with symptoms that include social awkwardness and anxiety, the inability to read nonverbal clues, sensory stimulation issues and difficulty processing information.
Up until six years ago Bishop, who lives in Litchfield, Maine, knew that she and her boys had a problem, but she hadn’t been able to pinpoint the cause. When a neighbor had a son diagnosed with the disorder, Bishop discovered that she and her sons, Christian, Daniel and Cody, all fit the profile and went for testing. Though the positive diagnosis she received could have discouraged Bishop, it energized her instead, and she decided to respond by doing something constructive.
Bishop started working in the autism field, becoming an information specialist for the Autism Society of Maine. “I decided that it was time to start standing up for my kids and myself,” she says. Eager to give presentations and workshops, she wanted to share information about autism.
“My goal is to zap the myths surrounding autism and Asperger’s disorder and be a strong advocate for the many people who have these conditions and need support,” she says. “The only trouble was that at work I wasn’t given any opportunities to do presentations, and there were no plans to let me speak in the future. At first I was hurt and ready to back down and quit my new passion, but then something wonderful happened. My husband suggested I go to Toastmasters.”
After finding the nearby Brunswick Club and finally making that fateful phone call, Bishop went to the very next meeting.
“Even though people with Asperger’s suffer from social anxiety, I have to say that I felt welcome from the moment I walked in the door,” says Bishop of her first Toastmasters meeting. “I was so comfortable that when they gave me the opportunity to do Table Topics, I took it. Even though I was shaking like a leaf, I won the [Best Table Topics] award. At the close of the meeting when they asked me if I wanted to become a member, I said ‘definitely!’”
Bishop joined in January of 2006 and since then has blossomed through her Toastmaster involvement. As soon as she got her membership kit, she started working on her Icebreaker speech.
“I was very nervous, but I did my speech soon after joining, talking about how we should live our lives like an open book – letting people know what we go through so that we can help others,” says Bishop. “I was overwhelmed by all of the positive comments I got about that first speech.”
Since then she has almost completed all of the required speeches for her Competent Communicator award and has joined another Toastmaster club, Mainely Speakers, which also meets in Brunswick. Both clubs recently named her vice president of public relations.
Deb Nowak is Bishop’s mentor and a member of the Brunswick Club and Mainely Speakers. “I will never forget the first time Lisa walked into a meeting,” says Nowak. “She had a bright smile and endless enthusiasm, and I knew immediately that she’d be an asset to the club.”
Not long after Bishop joined, Nowak was asked to be her mentor. “Mentoring Lisa has been a joy,” says Nowak. “Lisa has progressed faster than anyone I’ve ever mentored, and it’s been wonderful to see her grow. Even though she was originally unsure of herself and lacked confidence, she was an eager learner and very dedicated to her cause of getting the word out about Asperger’s and autism.”
Nowak has been especially impressed by Bishop’s desire to help others. “Lisa wants to make improvements in her speaking and presentation skills so that she can help others as well as herself, which puts a positive spin on everything,” says Nowak. “She wants to share her wealth of knowledge about autism and isn’t afraid to jump in and talk about it to anyone. I’m always amazed at how she can streamline all of her thoughts on the subject and break the information down into simple pieces for the average person to understand, while at the same time promote sympathy for what she and others with the condition experience everyday.”
Dot Brooks is also a member of the Brunswick Club and Mainely Speakers and has learned a great deal about autism through Bishop’s speeches.
“Lisa’s presentations are not only educational, they’re also very creative and fun to listen to,” says Brooks.
“In one of her speeches about autism she wore an overcoat which she had buttoned and tied up. The coat represented her when she first got to Toastmasters. As she spoke about her progress, she started undoing the buttons. This provided a wonderful visual to her speech, which earned her best speaker of the night. In another speech she peeked around a corner as she spoke, describing how timid a person with Asperger’s syndrome is. I’ve seen her experience tremendous progress through Toastmasters in a very short period of time.”
Since joining Toastmasters, Bishop’s dream of speaking in public is coming true. “Doors are opening and I’m being asked to speak and participate in workshops regarding autism,” she says. “I recently spoke to a group of police officers about what to do if they come in contact with a child with Aperger’s syndrome or autism. After the presentation, many of the officers thanked me for opening their eyes to the condition and giving them such useful information.”
Besides improving her speaking skills, Bishop feels that Toastmasters has helped every area of her life.
“Toastmasters has been a lifeline for me,” she says. “The members have an understanding of who I am, and they support me, and as a result I stand up taller everyday.”
She has decided to go back to college and get her Bachelors of Science in mental health and human services and is considering continuing for her Masters degree. “I actually took a class recently and sat up front and participated for the first time in my whole life,” she says. “Before Toastmasters I wouldn’t have had the courage to try college. I ended up with a 4.0 in that class and was told that I was a wonderful student, which is a big change for someone who had a C average.”
Bishop has also found that Toastmasters has positively affected her home and work life. “My relationship with my husband, Christian, and our children has improved, and at work I’m able to stand up for myself in ways that I never thought possible. I’ve even developed leadership skills,” she says. “Emotionally I have never felt stronger or more positive, and I owe it all to Toastmasters.”
Julie Bawden Davis is a freelance writer in Southern California. Reach her at julie@juliebawdendavis.com