With organizers moving ahead and ticket sales zooming, the theme “Driven” for this year’s Chatham-Kent TEDx conference seems more than appropriate.
Spokesman John Lyons said the event is 60 per cent sold out, speakers are lined up and everyone is counting down to the Oct. 20 date.
“There is a lot of buzz about the event,” he said. “Chatham is notorious for being a last-minute kind of town but if you wait too long, there won’t be any tickets.”
He said enthusiasm for the event is driven by the last two events, “Small Town, Big Ideas” and “Food for Thought.”
“We have quality themes and speakers,” he said. “These people are informative, entertaining and inspirational in their lives and presentation.”
“TED” stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. The “x” is a tag to indicate the event is independently organized.
TED events are organized around the world and focus on the concept of “ideas worth spreading.”
Lyons said organizers Peter Martin, Fannie Vavoulis, Cathy Hoffman and Alysson Storey put a lot of work into the one-day event.
“It’s really a labour of love,” he said. “The feedback from the community is amazing and we all learn something as well.”
The non-profit event will be held at the John D. Bradley Centre. Tickets are $100, including lunch.
So far, eight of the 16 speakers have been named.
Alan Gertner is the co-founder and CEO of Tokyo Smoke, a modern lifestyle business that is inclusive of cannabis.
Alan most recently led a $100 million plus organization at Google Asia Pacific. Alan is a proven leader in strategy and operations, including as a founding member of Google’s first Global Business Strategy team in California.
He will speak on the potential for Canada to become the first nation to take advantage of changing attitudes toward marijuana’s medicinal and recreational uses.
Adam Ludolph is a financial advisor, heading the local branch of Co-operators Insurance at age 27.
He is a member of the United Way Board of Directors and a previous member of Chatham-Kent Toastmasters.
He is also one in five adult Canadians who has faced a mental disorder.
His story of overcoming depression, which affects 2.5 million Canadians, is titled “I just want to be happy.”
Matthew Oldridge has been a mathematics teacher for 15 years and believes changes in the way math is taught will help open students’ eyes and abilities. He will share his theory that math classrooms should be places of surprise and wonder.
Lisa Dadd’s presentation, “The two most liberating words you’ll ever say” describes how she transformed her life from career-centered to one of personal fulfillment.
She shares what made her leave a successful, 15-year career in the corporate world. She shares the biggest catalyst she discovered for making significant, sustainable change and dares her audience to consider what it means for our own lives.
Sam White is an award-winning theatre producer and entrepreneur. Only a few weeks after her hometown filed for bankruptcy in 2013, she pioneered the first-ever Shakespeare company there, called Shakespeare in Detroit, with a ground-breaking performance of Othello. Since then, her work has been featured on the BBC, and several national media outlets.
Dr. Christopher K. Hersh will talk about choice points in life. A lifelong learner, the orthopaedic surgeon and U.S. Navy veteran discusses his battle with cancer and the loss of both of his parents to the disease only two years apart. Those radical changes have inspired him to treat life as a series of conscious choices that result in a cumulative outcome.
Chathamite Emily Hime will discuss the power of unity. At 18, Hime was already an experienced humanitarian in Ghana, Africa. She later used her drive to found and operate an orphanage. She is the founder of the non-profit organization Hime For Help, as well as the founder and director of Maison Ke Kontan Children’s Home in Port Au Prince, Haiti.
Richard Coffey is a Grade 12 high-school student from Toronto who was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome, a form of high-functioning autism when he was four years old.
He is now a baseball umpire, performs on the piano and trumpet and serves as vice-president of his school’s student advisory council.
His presentation “Asperger: not being afraid anymore” details his journey.
For full biographies and ticket information visit
