NEWARK -- Covering such topics as photography, smoking and cake decorating, 12 Wilson Middle School eighth-graders gave speeches Wednesday at State Farm during an annual contest.

"My teachers love grading my projects," said Sabre Crow as she described her love for decorating cakes.

State Farm has "adopted" Wilson Middle School since 1993 and frequently volunteers with the school. The speech contest, presented also by speech groups Toastmasters International and Powertalk/ITC, involves employees working with students on their speaking skills for five weeks.

Photo at left: Chandler Eriksen presents a speech Wednesday at the annual speech contest for Wilson Middle School students through Toastmasters International. (Matthew Berry, The Advocate)

Read more about Wilson Middle students at the Newark Advocate.com

A Ridgewood organization is helping its members turn the nightmare of public speech into a rewarding and fun exercise with numerous benefits in professional and social settings.

PHOTO AT LEFT: President of the Ridgewood Toastmasters John Engeman, right, with his Dutch counterpart after delivering a humorous speech at a Dutch Toastmasters International meeting in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

The Ridgewood Toastmasters Club, now in its 52nd year, meets locally at the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood to work on public speaking skills. The group has 55 members, but is only one club in a global network of Toastmasters.

"In all major cities and countries around the world, they have Toastmaster Clubs," said John B. Engeman, president of the Ridgewood Toastmasters.

Engeman has been a member of Toastmasters for five years, and he described his experience with the club as a confidence builder, a sentiment echoed by many other members.

Read more about the Ridgewood Toastmasters Club at NorthJersey.com