Our COVID Stories

From lockdown to learning: District 112’s COVID journey

Member stories and district data showing what changed — and what helped clubs survive and grow.

COVID-19 Locks New Zealand Down, March 2020

There was growing alarm internationally between December 2019 and March 2020, about a virus originating in Wuhan China. Dubbed COVID-19, this flu-like virus spread quickly around the world, killing people in its path. The Director-General of the World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 to be a public health emergency of international concern on 31 January 2020, and declared it was a pandemic on 11 March 2020. The first New Zealand case of COVID-19 was announced on 28 February 2020. Our international borders were closed on 19 March 2020, to all but returning NZ citizens. On 25 March 2020, New Zealand went into its first lockdown, Alert Level 4. (“1.1 Timeline of key events”)

Four Alert Levels

The four Alert Levels in 2020 affected Toastmasters in District 112, as it impeded the clubs’ ability to meet in person. At Alert Level 4, everyone was instructed to stay at home in their household “bubble” other than for essential travel and exercise in their local community. (“3.1 Lockdowns”) Public venues were closed and in-person gatherings cancelled. Only essential services and businesses were allowed to remain open. Even schools had to move to remote learning methods. District 112 Toastmasters clubs either moved online or went into hibernation. Some of the hibernating clubs never re-opened.

Five weeks later, on 27 April 2020, New Zealand moved to Alert Level 3. People were allowed to expand their “extended bubble” to include close family, caregivers or to support isolated people. Schools re-opened for voluntary attendance. Businesses re-opened for contactless service. Gatherings were limited to 10 people for weddings, funerals and tangihanga, so Toastmasters clubs could not meet in-person.

New Zealand moved to Alert Level 2 on 14 May 2020, allowing a further softening of restrictions. Gatherings were permitted gradually, provided that people maintained physical distancing, record-keeping for contact tracing and hygiene measures such as mask-wearing and hand sanitising. District 112 Toastmasters clubs tended to stay either fully online or moved to hybrid meetings (a combination of in-person and online). The country moved to Alert Level 1 with no restrictions on 9 June 2020.

Auckland Lockdowns August 2020, February-March 2021

Auckland returned to Level 3 on 12 August 2020, and the rest of the country moved to Alert Level 2, in the first regional Lockdown. It was downgraded to Alert Level 2.5 on 30 August 2020.Social gatherings were limited to 10 people but could increase to 50 for weddings, funerals and tangihanga. The whole country returned to Level 1 on 8 October 2020.

In February and March 2021, Auckland moved in and out of Alert Level 3 lockdown several times, making it disruptive for clubs. In June 2021 Wellington had a week at Level 2.

Delta Lockdowns August-September 2021

The COVID-19 virus had many variants. The Delta variant was more serious and more easily transmitted than its predecessors. On 17 August 2021, the whole country was back at Level 4 lockdown due to a community case thought to be Delta. After two weeks, only Northland and Auckland remained at Level 4. On 7 September all regions outside of Auckland moved to a modified Alert Level 2, where mask wearing was compulsory in public and gathering sizes were reduced.

Auckland continued to be at Alert Levels 3 or 4 for 7 weeks, and Northland was cut off from the rest of the country. The Government moved from its elimination strategy to a minimisation and proptection strategy, a “traffic light” system, as most of the population had been vaccinated and lockdown fatigue was making even the more compliant public feel restless.

Traffic Lights & Vaccine Passes

On 3 December 2021, parts of northern, central and eastern New Zealand entered the Red setting of the new Covid-19 traffic light system, while the rest of the country began at Orange. (Beehive)

At Red, people were required to carry vaccine passes, either on paper or in the NZ COVID Tracer app. Public facilities could open with limits of up to 100 people, 1-metre physical distance and mask-wearing, while vaccine certificates were mandatory for events. (“RNZ Traffic Light Explainer”)

At Orange, gathering limits were lifted wherever vaccination certificates were used, although other public health measures remained in place. There were differences in how these rules affected Toastmasters clubs, because each club had to follow the requirements that applied to its specific venue and whether or not vaccine certificates were used.

Covid-19 and Pathways Impact on Toastmasters District 112 Membership

The total District 112 membership dropped from 6,510 members in 2018-2019 year to 4,981 in 2021-2022 year, a drop of 23.5%. New members dropped from 1,477 to 853 in the same period. Distinguished clubs fell from 75 clubs to 45 clubs, a 40% drop. (Source: District 112 Statistician)

Our anecdotal evidence shows that it wasn’t just COVID-19 that impacted on member numbers, but also the introduction of Pathways education program in 2018-2020 and end of the legacy education program on 30 June 2020. While we couldn’t get a direct quote from a former member about their reasons for leaving, many members could recall similar stories. Former members who left because the dual change was too much. Moving from in-person to online, at the same time as trying to move from the Competent Communicator / Competent Leaders books to an online learning management system (LMS). The 2018 version of Pathways used pop-up windows, which were blocked by most browsers unless you knew how to override them, the menu system was not intuitive, and you couldn’t access higher Levels until you had completed the Level you were working on.

The number of District 112 clubs held up in the early Covid years increasing from 170 to 178 clubs in 2020-2021 year, then it fell sharply. To 164 clubs in 2021-2022 year and then to 133 clubs by 2024-2025. (Source: District 112 Statistician)

COVID-19 and Pathways impacted on individual participation and growth first. Then as club memberships declined below sustainable levels, the closures and suspensions increased.

Suspensions recorded in the COVID years include (examples):

2019–20: Vodafone Club, Corkers Toastmasters Club, Seabreeze Paihia
2020–21: TVNZ Toastmasters, Auckland Airport Toastmasters, Ingram Micro Toastmasters, Marsh Toastmasters, AUT Toastmasters, City Early Start, Top-Notch Toastmasters
2021–22: Top Start, Speechcraft Club, Papamoa Toastmasters, Countdown To Speech Master (chartered 2021 then suspended 2022)

Also, many clubs show membership collapsing to near-zero between 2019–20 → 2020–21 (which usually signals “effectively inactive” even if still listed that year).

Corporate clubs appear to be more severely affected than community clubs. Corporate clubs were more sensitive to COVID-related workplace disruption (WFH, restructures, budget/HR changes, office closures), whereas community clubs had more flexibility to keep meetings online. Important caveat: “corporate vs community” isn’t an explicit column in the District 112 Statistician’s spreadsheets — this is inferred from club names (so treat the below statistics as directional, not perfect).

Comparing 2019–20 → 2020–21 for clubs present in both years:

Average membership change (Total to Date):

Community clubs: **~ -7.5%**
Corporate/Institution clubs: **~ -47.9%**

Suspensions in 2020–21 also skew corporate:

Community: ~1.3% suspended
Corporate/Institution: ~26% suspended

New Toastmasters Clubs Formed to Fill a New Need

It’s not all doom and gloom for District 112 Toastmasters clubs. Multiple clubs chartered during the Covid years, including corporate/institutional clubs and explicitly online clubs. Some clubs grew rapidly during this time, taking advantage of their technology and lowering barriers to inclusion.

Examples of District 112 Clubs chartered in/around COVID:

EROAD Toastmasters (Charter 08/01/19)
Datacom Toastmasters (Charter 02/25/20)
Kura Korero O Microsoft (Charter 05/04/21)
Training and Coaching Online Club (Charter 06/30/21)
Dial-Up Toastmasters (Charter 06/17/21)
Commercial Bay Toastmasters (Charter 12/11/21)

Some of these new/online-enabled clubs grew fast:

Ponsonby Toastmasters: 12 → 38 members from 2019–20 → 2020–21 (+216%).
Kura Korero O Microsoft: 33 → 59 from 2020–21 → 2021–22 (+79%).
Training and Coaching Online Club: 20 → 35 from 2020–21 → 2021–22 (+75%).
Dial-Up Toastmasters: 20 → 37 from 2020–21 → 2021–22 (+85%).

Emerging from Lockdown

As the country emerged gradually from the string of COVID-19 Lockdowns, most Toastmasters clubs resumed meeting though not all in the same way. A small number of clubs did not reopen, either because of financial difficulties faced by their corporate hosts or because enough members chose not to return.

“During later parts of Level 2: trying to run hybrid meetings in a way that the people online could participate with the people in the room. Our club decided, after a few attempts, to drop the hybrid format and focus on in-person meetings.“ Anonymous

Some of the changes introduced in 2020 to 2021 have endured. As I write this in December 2025, many clubs continue to meet online or hybrid. This allows members to attend their club meetings while unwell or travelling. Online members use “jazz hands” to silently applaud speakers, and there are a variety of emoji reactions. Club leadership training and district leader training now takes place both online and in person, reflecting a more flexible and accessible model shaped by the pandemic years. We can celebrate how Toastmasters District 112 endured a time of global upheaval, demonstrating resilience, courage, and creativity.

Works Cited

Beehive. “Beehive Release – Traffic Light Levels Announced.” Beehive – Traffic Light Levels Announced, 29 November 2021, https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/traffic-light-levels-announced. Accessed 30 December 2025.

“Explained: What the traffic light system is and how it works.” RNZ, 23 November 2021, https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/456303/explained-what-the-traffic-light-system-is-and-how-it-works. Accessed 30 December 2025.

“1.1 Timeline of key events.” NZ Royal Commission Covid-19 Lessons Learned, 2025, https://www.covid19lessons.royalcommission.nz/reports-lessons-learned/main-report/part-two/1-1-timeline-of-key-events. Accessed 28 December 2025.

“3.1 Lockdowns.” NZ Royal Commission Covid-19 Lessons Learned, 2025, https://www.covid19lessons.royalcommission.nz/reports-lessons-learned/main-report/part-two/3-1-lockdowns-introduction. Accessed 28 December 2025.

– Serena Irving DTM, Orakei and Silver Service Toastmasters clubs