Discover Your Talent–Do What You Love

Jeremy Barnhart experienced a successful career in finance, but he worked long hours and traveled extensively. Frankly, he wasn’t passionate about the work. He “retired” and started a company for something he cared about–assisting schools in fundraising. He is a co-owner and vice president of franchise development at Apex Foundation Co. The concept incorporates a character building and leadership program for students that culminates with a student “run” to raise donations for the school.

Gini Dietrich had her sights set on law school and becoming a sports agent. Then her mother needed her help to overcome a life-threatening illness, so she took an entry level position at a public relations agency. Passing out samples of cranberry juice at PR events was an unexpected detour on her career path. Gini is the founder and CEO of Arment Dietrich, an integrated marketing communications firm.

Vince Kramer is a thirty-seven-year airline and military pilot with over 20,000 hours in aircraft and flight simulators. In the U.S. Air Force he was a pilot, instructor & evaluator. He is a combat veteran with over one hundred combat hours during Desert Storm. He has flown for United Airlines and American Airlines as an airline transport pilot, has held positions in management and as an instructor/evaluator at United Airlines, and currently is an active pilot at United Airlines.

Jake Ballentine was already on academic suspension by the end of his first college semester. He was tempted to say, “I didn’t really care about college anyway!” Self-consciousness about his dyslexia, he believed he was only good at sports and music, but his life was about to be transformed. Jake is a national award-winning motivational speaker and musician who inspiries audiences with his unique brand of motivation, music and positivity.

PJ Jonas faced criticism when she left an engineering job to be a stay-at-home mom. Soon her problem-solving skills and creativity were fully put to use. As an undergrad at the University of Virginia, stuff made from goat’s milk was nowhere in her plans. What started out as a means of getting good milk for her children produced a wide range of unanticipated discoveries, and a thriving family business.

Brian Kurtz has been a serial direct marketer for the past 40+ years. He’s never met a medium he didn’t like, and he spent the first 34 years of his career helping Boardroom, Inc., become a state-of-the-art direct marketing and publishing company. As founder of Titans Marketing, he now advises many of the most admired direct marketers in the world and writes and speaks regularly on direct marketing.

Erica Reiner is a former environmental science professor using her expertise in sustainability and green living to transform spaces and the interior design field using her cleaner, greener Method. 4 years ago she started Eco Method Interiors making people feel happier, healthier, less stressed and more confident at home or work. When she's not working she's planning her next trip down under with her Australian husband, or at the dog park with Hank, her mutt.

Jay Block’s credentials include not knowing what he wanted to be when he grew up and being fired by his best friend.  Soon after this humiliating event, he began working harder on himself than anything else. And it was this single transformation that would forever change his life and his career. Today, Jay is recognized as America’s motivational career and rapid employment expert. He is also a best-selling McGraw-Hill author of 12 titles, including 5 Steps to Rapid Employment.

Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott leads one of the largest sheriff’s departments in the Southeastern U.S., and is one of the regularly featured law-enforcement agencies on A&E’s television series LIVE PD. In 2010, Lott traveled to Iraq at the invitation of the Iraqi government to help that country establish its first-ever female police academy. Under Lott’s leadership, RCSD was the first LE agency in the nation to establish a pre-PTSD conditioning program for deputies.

Kaia Alexander is an award-winning author and filmmaker. Her novel, WRITTEN IN THE ASHES, is the untold story about the burning of the Great Library of Alexandria, Egypt, and the life of Hypatia, the world’s first female mathematician/philosopher. Kaia’s new documentary feature film CHALICE: WOMEN LEADERS RISE, explores how and why women were written out of history, how this has influenced the treatment of women globally, and the exciting rise of women leaders today.

Tommy Baker helps dreamers, visionaries, and entrepreneurs bring those dreams to life and create a life they can't wait to wake up for. He’s the author of UnResolution: How to Ditch Resolutions Forever, Live Life by Design, and Achieve Your Dreams; The One Percent Rule; and, The Leap of Your Life: How to Redefine Risk, Quit Waiting For 'Someday,' and Live Boldly. Tommy believes living up to your potential is what we're here for. His podcast spreads the message of his Resist Average Academy.

Tom Shepansky is one of the three Founders of Rethink, a creative agency in Canada. Rethink has just celebrated its 20th anniversary and was named Agency of the Year. Tom is transitioning to a governance role with the company allowing the business to remain independent. He’s also active in the community on two non-profit boards. Tom loves cycling, hiking, skiing and has recently taken up bass guitar. He plays in a band called “Never Too Late.” Tom lives with his wife Roxanne on the North Shore of Vanc

Carey Gillam is a veteran investigative journalist with more than 25 years of experience covering corporate news, including 17 years as a senior correspondent for Reuters international news service. She is the author of “Whitewash—The Story of a Weed Killer, Cancer and the Corruption of Science,” an expose of corporate corruption in agriculture. The book won the coveted Rachel Carson Book Award. Gillam works now as Research Director for the non-profit U.S. Right to Know.

Kirk Deis has been featured on Forbes and podcasts and radio shows throughout the United States. He is CEO and founder of two companies, Treehouse 51, a digital agency based in Newport Beach, California, and The Bug Squasher, a universal web app that helps you diagnose website issues. Driven by an early passion to write screenplays, he found his own creative niche and brought together creative people he met along the way.

Dr. Erica Blank graduated from medical school at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1996. She then completed a residency in internal medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. She moved to New Hampshire in 2012 where she worked at Exeter Hospital and developed an interest in Lifestyle Medicine. She realized that all of her training in medicine up to that point was about treating disease and she never learned how to promote health. Erika became board-certified in Lifestyle Medicine in 2017.