2026 South Suburban Cook County Master Gardener - Request a Speakers Bureau Program

University of Illinois Extension provides speakers on a wide range of gardening topics through our Cook County South Suburban Master Gardener program listed below. If you would like to request a program for your Cook County South or Southwest organization, please complete this form indicating your program preferences. All groups requesting talks should have a minimum audience of 15 people. Requests need to be made at least 10 weeks in advance in order to coordinate our volunteer' schedules.

Donations are greatly appreciated, but not required. Donations run $50 to $150 depending on how much the organization can afford. Young organizations just getting started for instance are subsidized by more established and well financed ones -- that way we can serve everyone. Please make out your check to University of Illinois Extension and mail to University of Illinois Extension-Cook South Suburban Branch office, 4747 Lincoln Mall Drive, Suite 601, Matteson IL 60443

***DUE TO A HIGH VOLUME OF SPEAKERS BUREAU REQUESTS, PLEASE MAKE YOUR REQUEST AT LEAST TEN WEEKS IN ADVANCE OF DATE OF POSSIBLE PROGRAM. TO BETTER ACCOMMODATE ALL GROUPS, WE MAY LIMIT EACH GROUP TO TWO TALKS PER CALENDAR YEAR. THANK YOU. **Please note Extension Staff and volunteers cannot sign any contracts, agreements or waivers. Please note that this registration is for South Suburban Cook County ONLY.

All publicity or promotional materials should give credit to University of Illinois Extension.
PLEASE NOTE our presentations CANNOT be recorded. Thank you.
PLEASE NOTE that Extension staff and volunteers are not permitted to sign contracts, agreements, or waivers, and do not deliver programs at private residences.
Some presentations might only be available via Zoom depending on the presentation or volunteer speaker.***
April (Earth Month) books out quickly-please consider a non-April date!

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Contact Information

First Name

Last Name

Street Address

Street Address 2

City

State

ZIP

Daytime Phone

Evening Phone

E-mail Address

Is the requested presentation to be in person or via Zoom?

In person program wanted

Virtual presentation via Zoom wanted

Please provide a second contact person and best phone number to reach them in case primary contact cannot be reached.

Name of Organization

***What is the location of the presentation? Please include address and special instructions such as parking, which door to enter, who to check in with, which side of the building, etc. IMPORTANT NOTE*WE cannot deliver in-person presentations at private homes. We need program location for our reporting purposes.

Requested Program Date

Is this date flexible? If yes, please list the alternative dates.

What is your estimated attendance?

Will you require registration for this program?

What time will the program begin? And how long would you like it to last? Please include start time and end time.

If other, what are some topics that your organization would be interested in? Please note that we cannot guarantee that someone will be available for the specific topic

Has this group had Master Gardener speakers in the past?

Yes

If yes, when and what topic?

Please check the box if the following items are available for use through your organization.

Screen (required for most programs)

LCD Projector and Computer

Microphone

Zoom registration and program link

How did you hear about the South Suburban Cook Master Gardener Speakers Bureau?

Any other questions, comments, or concerns?

I understand that Extension staff and volunteers cannot sign contracts, agreements, or waivers.

Yes, I understand.

I understand Master Gardener Speakers cannot present in-person programs in private homes.

YES, I understand.

I understand that University of Illinois Extension Master Gardener presentations are proprietary intellectual property and individuals and organizations may not photograph, reproduce, publish or post images or of the slides in the presentations. Also any presentations delivered online via Zoom, etc. must not be recorded.

YES, I understand.

I understand that in making this program request that if a cancellation is needed by the requestor, requestor will email Margaret Burns-Westmeyer mburnswe@illinois.edu AND Nancy Kreith kreith@illinois.edu at least 24 hours prior to the activities agreed upon start time.

YES, I understand.

Civil Rights Compliance - Participant Info

As part of our commitment to providing equal opportunities in our programming, University of Illinois Extension is required to collect and report overall statistics about the race, ethnicity, and gender of program participants. Your responses are voluntary and appreciated.

Gender

Ethnicity

Race