Governor Proclaims May 4-9, 2026 Toastmasters International Week

When Ralph C. Smedley formed the first official Toastmasters club in 1924, he sought to create a collaborative learning environment where young men could learn the art of public speaking. A century later, nearly 8 million members (of all genders) in 148 countries/territories throughout the world have worked on bettering their communication and leadership skills thanks to Smedley’s vision of a club environment where members prepare and deliver speeches, respond to impromptu questions, give and receive constructive feedback and learn leadership skills by filling roles within their clubs, areas, divisions, districts and regions.

Today Toastmasters International (“TI”) has almost 13,000 clubs with approximately 300,000 members throughout the world and organized globally into 14 regions with over 100 districts within these regions.

District 30 Toastmasters (“D30”) is one of those districts, situated exclusively in Illinois, parts of which are also in Districts 8, 54 and 103. In D30 there are 90+clubs that have been started by both by businesses, as corporate clubs, and communities, as community clubs.D30 clubs are in Cook, Lake, McHenry, and DuPage counties in Illinois.

On April 8^th, 2026, JB Pritzker, Governor of Illinois, proclaimed May 4-9, 2026, as Toastmasters International Week in Illinois and in his proclamation, the Governor noted:

1. Effective communication and leadership skills are essential to civic engagement. workforce development, and strong communities throughout the State of Illinois.

2. Toastmasters International is a non-profit educational organization founded in 1924 that empowers individuals to develop public speaking, communication. and leadership skills through a supportive, experiential learning environment.

3. Toastmasters’ clubs across Illinois provide inclusive spaces where individuals are encouraged to share ideas, experiences, and perspectives while building confidence and leadership capacity and,

4. Toastmasters District conferences held across Illinois…are open and accessible learning opportunities that bring together individuals from throughout the state to share ideas and strengthen communication and leadership skills.

For over 40 years now, Deerbrook Park Toastmasters club has been your local community club for Bannockburn, Deerfield, Highland Park, Northbrook, and Riverwoods. In keeping with the overall goal of TI, Deerbrook Park Toastmasters strives to help members become confident, and effective communicators and leaders. And Toastmasters can also help those whose first language is not English to improve their English language skills. The club’s meeting format includes two meetings per month: the first Wednesday of each month is in-person at the Deerfield Public Library as well as by Zoom while the third Wednesday of each month is by Zoom only. Finally, as TI Distinguished Club for 10 years in a row, all can be assured of high-level communication skill development and quality leadership training.

Come see what Toastmasters is all about and how it can help you become a more confident and skilled communicator and a more effective leader. Just go to Deerbrook Park’s website at https://deerbrookpark.toastmastersclubs.org/ and, on the left-hand side of the Main Menu, click on "Contact Us" and fill out the form. Someone from our Club will promptly contact you and give you information on how to attend a meeting as a guest, which are always welcome.