News Room

• Chicago Area Groups Returning For Live Meetings After COVID

  February 8, 2023

  FreeSpeakers.org in Chicago receives hundreds of requests for speakers each year from groups and organizations throughout the Chicagoland area. With records starting in 2016, FreeSpeakers.org can demonstrate the trends influenced by COVID-19.

  The highest number of requests through the speaker’s bureau in Chicago was 1,070 in 2017, dropping in half to 582 during the pandemic in 2020. However, requests are up to 700 in 2022. (more…)

• Free Speakers Chicago addresses climate with new category

  August 12, 2021

  The United Nations-appointed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a new report Monday, August 9, 2021, summarizing the latest scientific information about the climate.

  While the U.N. was developing its report, local Chicago area climate experts joined FreeSpeakers.org, a pro bono speaker’s bureau.

  “Climate” is a new category in FreeSpeakers.org. To date, there are nine climate speakers and several topics about climate and climate change. (more…)

• FreeSpeakers.org Goes Virtual With Offerings – Kane County Chronicle

  May 13, 2020

  Many of the speakers who belong to FreeSpeakers.org are willing and able to present topics virtually.

  In fact, some speakers have updated their topics to reflect the financial and health crises due to COVID-19, a news release stated.

  The community service project, FreeSpeakers.org, is a pro bono speakers bureau serving the region’s clubs and organizations for nearly 25 years. It was started in Hinsdale, IL.

  FreeSpeakers.org normally serves the community through live, in-person seminars and speaking engagements. Rarely do the speakers engage in virtual meetings. However, a lot has changed due to the coronavirus.

  (more…)

• After Some 250 Gigs, Larry Bergnach Retiring From the Free Speech Circuit

  October 15, 2018

  Larry Bergnach was giving a presentation about Riverview Park, the old Chicago amusement destination that closed in the 1960s, when an elderly man in the audience chimed in with his own memories of Riverview.

  The talk was at an elder care facility, and Bergnach later learned the man was in an advanced stage of Alzheimer’s disease and had not spoken at that length “on any topic for four years,” Bergnach said.

  Those kinds of experiences were why Bergnach, of Oak Lawn, worked the pro bono speakers circuit.

  “After I would do a speech, the people were so appreciative,” he said. (more…)

• Pro bono public speaking is an effective marketing tool – Business Ledger

  October 12, 2016

  Whether you love it or dread it, public speaking is a fabulous marketing tool for your business, product or service. The post-talk objective is to have a line of people waiting to shake your hand and ask for a business card or two (or three).

  Many people find that public speaking yields wonderful advantages both personally and professionally. First, it’s a great form of networking; second, it’s terrific public relations; and third, if it’s a pro bono presentation, it’s goodwill and community service. (more…)

• Free Speakers Bureau Celebrates 20 Years of Growth

  March 11, 2016

  To celebrate two decades of service to the community, Free Speech Speaker’s Bureau has undergone a major update – a new name, logo and many more opportunities for both speakers and the hundreds of groups who use speakers. Free Speech is now FreeSpeakers.org – A Pro Bono Speakers Bureau.

  “All speakers present programs at no cost – nada, nothing, zip,” said Andy Richardson of Naperville, director of FreeSpeakers.org. “There is no charge to any group. Ever. Not from the speaker and not from the bureau.” (more…)

• Talk is not cheap, it’s free, with Hinsdale speaker service – Chicago Tribune – Doings

  February 15, 2016

  Jan Blum was looking for a topic to present to para-professionals at Hinsdale High School District 86 when she stumbled across FreeSpeakers.org.

  “I think I hit the jackpot,” said Blum, an administrative assistant at Hinsdale South High School. “They had such a variety of speakers and topics. And I found out they are right here in Hinsdale.”

  What she found was a pro bono service which has linked public speakers with organizations and businesses for 20 years. (more…)

• Not Much in Life Free, But Speakers Bureau has Been for 20 Years

  January 31, 2016

  When Gayle Heldmann searched for a guest speaker to address her church support group, it was no easy task. With meetings every week – and no budget – it quickly became a daunting task.

  “Our group was always looking for local speakers to come in and talk to us about a variety of topics,” said Heldmann, of Naperville. “It was always very difficult to find someone who was willing to do it for a nominal fee or for no fee at all, and we didn’t have funds for it,” she said.

  Heldmann started searching online, and found a website touting professional speakers that were willing to donate their time and talents. It seemed “too good to be true.” (more…)

• Free Speakers Service Proves ‘Good Free Stuff’ is Real

  January 24, 2016

  FreeSpeakers.org offers 150 Chicago-area experts willing to give talks without a fee on more than 220 topics.

  The 150 Chicago-area speakers with profiles on FreeSpeakers.org really offer their expertise without a fee in a community service project that has been growing for the past 20 years.

  “This service is a win-win,” Richardson said. “The speakers have a lot to share and are giving back to their community and they’re also doing networking and marketing and being known as an expert. And the groups have a tremendous need for speakers and to bring new knowledge into their organizations.” (more…)

• Free Speakers Bureau Matches Speakers to Groups

  January 4, 2015

  What started with a single telephone call 15 years ago has grown into something that Free Speech Speakers Bureau founder Ginny Richardson of Burr Ridge could never have imagined.

  Richardson, founder and president of Ginny Richardson Public Relations in Hinsdale, received a phone call one day from a local Rotary Club. The club wanted a speaker for an upcoming meeting, and turned to Richardson and her connections in the community for help.

  “I made a few phone calls,” she said, and found a local banker willing to take on the job, free of charge. (more…)

• Ginny Richardson a matchmaker of speech, need – Suburban Life

  June 4, 2014

  As Ginny Richardson puts it, her entire world is matchmaking.

  “It’s blank newspaper pages and client news and stories,” said Richardson, president of Hinsdale-based Ginny Richardson Public Relations.

  And with her side project based on community service, Free Speech Speakers Bureau, it’s the same concept.

  “I just feel it is an extension of that matchmaking  – a speaker and empty podium,” Richardson explained. (more…)

• Bureau celebrates 10 years of matching groups with speakers – Suburban Life

  September 6, 2006

  For 10 years. Burr Ridge resident  Ginny Richardson had been dispelling the myth that nothing in life comes for free.

  The president of GR-PR public relations firm in Hinsdale founded the Free Speech speakers bureau after a colleague asked if she had any contacts who would speak for free at a club meeting.

  Enjoying this new role as  a matchmaker between organizations looking for an interesting speaker and people who love to talk, Richardson decided to take the next step. In summer 1996, she formalized Free Speech after typing up a list of names – come clients, some friends – and a short description of each person’s topic. she mailed out this listing, at her own expense, to various clubs and organizations in the suburbs – mainly DuPage County. (more…)