District 30 NE Division Area 62 Contest on March 17

Graeme Kirkwood of UOP Toastmasters won the Feb. 18 Table Topics contest and will compete in the next International and Table Topics Speech Contest on Mar. 17 . All are invited!! Doors open @ 5:30 p.m. Jane Simpson from UOP will also compete in the International Speech Contest.

The 2015 Spring International Speech and Table Topics was held at the UOP, 25 E. Algonquin Road, Building D, Conference Room D- 2035/D-2036 S in Des Plaines on Feb. 18.

For someone who had never given an impromptu speech before, but enjoyed public speaking, winning the first place meant a lot. Kirkwood is a Career Development Program (CDP) engineer at UOP and is on a one-year training here. He plans to return to Guildford in England in August to join field operation services at the UOP office there.
“I enjoy public speaking,” Kirkwood said. “I’ve never given an impromptu speech before and I wanted to get right out of my comfort zone,” Kirkwood, who just returned from a trip to New Orleans, where he celebrated Mardi Gras,” said.

Clint Vericker, who took the second place in the table topics contest, is also a CDP engineer at UOP.
“I didn’t know about Toastmasters before I joined here, and until one of my colleagues told me about it and I really enjoyed here,” Kirkwood remarked.


The UOP Toastmasters club meets every first and third Wednesday of every month from 11: 45 am- 12: 45 pm in the UOP Building D, Conference Room D-2035 S/D- 2036S at 25 E, Algonquin Rd, Des Plaines campus.

If you are not an employee of UOP, please enter the building’s lobby and sign in using the guest registry. A club member will meet you 10 minutes prior to the meeting’s start time to bring you to the meeting room. Please contact Area Governor Sue Chudasama at Sue.Chudasama@UOP.com, areagov62@gmail.com, or 608-658-0103 for more information.

Toastmasters International recently celebrated its 90th anniversary.

Location: UOP Building D, Room I-200N, 25 E. Algonquin Road, Des Plaines, IL 60017