WHEELING — As the summer Olympics are underway, Toastmasters welcomes a former Olympiad.

Amy Gamble had the honor of representing the U.S.A. at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea. She became Marshall County’s first Olympian when she competed with the U.S.A. Women’s Handball Team. Earlier, the U.S.A. Women’s team was crowned as champions of the Pan American Games.

She was an All-American High School Basketball player from John Marshall High School and went on to play college basketball at the University of Tennessee and the University of Arizona. In 2004, Gamble was inducted in the O.V.A.C. Hall of Fame.

In 2014, Gamble began speaking publicly about her journey with bipolar disorder. She teamed up with NAMI — the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Greater Wheeling — to raise awareness in the community on mental illness. Through her talks and presentations Gamble brings mental illness out of the shadows and gives hope to her audiences that recovery is possible.

Gamble joined West Liberty Toastmaster’s to improve her speaking skills and learn from other club members. She is hoping Toastmasters will help her reach her goal of becoming a national speaker.

To contact Amy for speaking engagements you can reach her by phone at 304-281-4494 or email at amygamble64@gmail.com. Visit Amy at her Toastmasters Club which meets at 5:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Monday of each month at the West Liberty University Highlands Center. The club is open to all interested parties. For more information, call 304-830-1202

Toastmasters International is a nonprofit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of meeting locations.