Reminder: Sooke Talks showcases eight remarkable local speakers this Friday
After a memorable debut early this year, Sooke Talks is back on Friday, Nov. 2 from 7 to 9 pm to showcase a second fraction of the fascinating people living in our midst.
Some are familiar faces locally, others less so. All are donating their time for the second in a series of special fundraising evenings on behalf of needed upgrades to the EMCS Community Theatre.
Finding your passion and sparkle is the theme that unites the latest group of Sooke Talks presenters. $15 tickets are available at Shoppers Drug Mart, the Stick in the Mud Coffeehouse and at the EMCS Society office at Edward Milne Community School.
The line-up includes a charming 9-year-old artist featured at this year’s Sooke Fine Arts Show and an EMCS grad who discovered much about himself on an epic cross-Canada cycling trip.
Other speakers include the co-founder of the legendary Sooke Harbour House; a Journey Middle School teacher who creates customized sneakers for sports heroes and pop stars; and a psychologist who understands how mythology can serve us in reclaiming our own power following life’s inevitable losses.
Tania Ehman will return as the evening’s Master of Ceremonies. A veteran coach with Sooke Harbour Toastmasters, she and her colleagues have worked with the speakers to fine tune their presentations over the last few months. Toastmasters is gain co-presenting the evening with the EMCS Society.
Introducing Sooke Talks #2 speakers in alphabetical order:
Layton Engwer ~ What happens when you don a white fur-trimmed red jacket and matching hat? Magic, that’s what. Layton, a health care professional and East Sooke emergency responder, had the requisite beard and personality to be the perfect choice for the jolly holiday role on family day at a local restaurant. Expect to be surprised, charmed and moved by his experiences.
Melody Kimmel ~ Melody will share insights from neurological science that reveal how movement and body awareness can make our brains “sparkle.” Mel is a registered massage therapist in Sooke with a life-long passion for dance that these days finds her leading fun and invigorating classes locally.
Frederique Philip ~ Food is a double-edged sword that can be a “medicine” or a deadly weapon. Co-founder of the legendary Sooke Harbour House and a Governor General’s Award winner, Frederique has had a long, pleasurable relationship with food dating back to her childhood in France. Reflecting on society’s fast food obsession, she’ll ask: “Why are so many of us overstuffed yet undernourished?”
Gord Phillips ~ It doesn’t get much more Sooke than this popular local singer-songwriter. The night’s “audience energizer” has a proven knack of connecting with hearts, minds and stomping feet via his rootsy rhythms and storytelling lyrics. He’s got a few stories to share and something special up his Cowichan sweater sleeve.
Janet Rayner Thorn ~ Life’s transitions and traumas can leave us feeling lost, bewildered and confused. An accomplished local artist and registered Clinical Social Worker, Jan will reveal how time-honoured mythological stories — in this case the Russian tale of the Baba Yaga — can help us rekindle our personal light and hope as we find our way forward again.
Kaidyn Robertson ~ You may have met this Grade 3 student at the Sooke Country Market selling the medicinal herbs he grows himself at his family’s Silver Cloud Farm. He’s studied Leonardo da Vinci and hums Mozart concertos in his head. Now he’s discovered miniature art. What’s his secret? “I’m not afraid of rejection yet,” he says with a delightful grin.
Zac Vine ~ Discover how Journey Middle School‘s athletic director went from restoring kids’ sneakers as an inner-city youth educator in Toronto to creating custom-designed pairs for the likes of pop superstar Drake, rock group Def Leppard and New York Yankees’ pitcher Aroldis Chapman. Nowadays he’s bringing “sneakerhead” culture to Sooke students through his Fresh SOLES program.
Quinn Yates ~ Unfulfilled with what he was learning in college, Quinn Yates wanted to foster his own education through travelling, adventure, and diverse peoples and cultures. His travels have taken him throughout South America, Scandinavia and the South Pacific. He’s travelled down the Amazon by boat, into the mountains of Patagonia on foot, down the Western seaboard of the United States by car, and now, across Canada by bicycle. Quinn will relate how his travels have helped him reflect on the formation of his own ideas and ideals.
MC Tania Ehman is a gifted speaker and coach herself for Vancouver Get Inspired Talks and TEDx speakers as well as private and corporate clients. She finished in the top-20 among more than 30,000 competitors at the World Championship of Public Speaking in Washington, DC. in 2016.
About the Co-Presenters
Sooke Harbour Toastmasters is part of a world-wide network of local and international groups that provide a supportive and positive learning experience in which members are empowered to develop communication and leadership skills through public speaking. That results in greater self-confidence and personal growth. All are welcome to drop-in to weekly Wednesday night meetings from 7 to 8:30 pm at the Sooke Hospice, 6669 Goodmere Road.
EMCS Society Programs is the link between Sooke’s community school and a wide range of individuals and organizations in the region that utilize school facilities. Society staff manage the Community Theatre, host the annual Play & Learn Summer Camp, offer life-long learning programs, and oversee both the Sooke Region Literacy Project and the newly opened Sooke Makerspace.
Sooke Talks is organized by Frank Antonsen, Marlene Barry, Jeff Bateman, Rosanne Day, Tania Ehman, Triston Line, Lindy Philip, Roger Temple and Tracy Waters.
Click here to buy your ticket online!
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