Canadian born Father Brian Kolodiejchuk joined the Missionaries of Charity Fathers at the time of their foundation on 13 October 1984.   He was ordained in 1985 in the Ukrainian Catholic Church of St. John the Baptist in Newark, New Jersey, USA, by the late Metropolitan-Archbishop of Winnipeg, Maxim Hermaniuk, C.Ss.R.

Father Brian received a B.A. in Philosophy from St. Michael’s College of the University of Toronto, Canada, in 1977 and an M.A. in Philosophy from the University of Manitoba, Canada, in 1981 and a M.Div. in Theology from St. Joseph’s Seminary, Dunwoodie, New York, USA He received his Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology from Saybrook Institute, San Francisco, USA.   

He was appointed Postulator of the Cause of Beatification and Canonization of Mother Teresa of Kolkata, 19 March 1999. and became Director of the Mother Teresa of Calcutta Center, 18. June 2004.  He is author of a soon to be released book on Mother Teresa’s interior life, "Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light" (Published by Doubleday, September 4, 2007).

Shannon Lee - Actress and daughter of martial artist and actor Bruce Lee
Info: Shannon Lee is an American actress and daughter of Bruce Lee and his widow Linda Lee Cadwell. Shannon's brother was the late actor and martial artist Brandon Lee.  Shannon's father, Bruce Lee, was an American-born martial artist, philosopher, instructor, and actor widely regarded as the most influential martial artist of the 20th century.

Shannon was born in Los Angeles, California, the second child to Bruce and Linda Lee. Shannon and her family lived in Hong Kong from 1971 to 1973, after which her mother moved back to the United States following the death of her father. She has Chinese, German, Swedish and English descent.

Graduating from The Chadwick School in 1987, Shannon then attended Tulane University in New Orleans, where she studied voice and graduated in 1991. She moved back to Los Angeles in 1993 after her brother's death to pursue acting. She married lawyer Ian Keasler in 1994, and they have one daughter, Wren, who was born in 2003.

As a young girl Shannon learned basic fighting forms from her father and has since trained under Tae-kwondo Master and Kung Fu Superstar, 'Flashleg' Tan Tao Liang AND World Kick-boxing Champion Benny 'The Jet' Urquidez!

Shannon has acted in films in the 1990s such as Cage II (1994), High Voltage (1997) and Enter the Eagles (1998). She also had brief appearances in her father's biopic Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (she was the one singing "California Dreaming" in the dance scene at the Hollywood producer's house as Bruce and Linda dance), the film Blade and the television series Martial Law which starred Sammo Hung. In 2000 she appeared in the science-fiction television film Epoch which aired on the Sci Fi Channel.

Shannon was also the television host of WMAC Masters for the first season.  You may have recently seen her host Enter The Dragon on Spike TV and also briefly interviewed on Spike's UFC Championship Fight series.

Shannon has also sung on the band Medicine's album The Mechanical Forces of Love in 2003 and a cover of "I'm in the Mood for Love" for the movie China Strike Force (2000), which starred Lee Hom Wang and Aaron Kwok.

Shannon and her husband Ian currently run The Bruce Lee Foundation, which is dedicated to educating, inspiring and helping others understand the attributes and virtues of courage, tolerance, persistence, creativity, intelligence and creativity that Bruce Lee cherished and exemplified during his life.

Jack Lalanne - The Godfather Of Fitness
Info: Jack La Lanne turns 93 on September 26, 2007, and is often called the "Godfather of Fitness".   He gained worldwide renown for his success as a bodybuilder, as well as his prodigious feats of strength such as doing a 1000 pushups in 22 minutes or being handcuffed and swimming treacherous ocean currents while towing 10 boats filled with people. He has won numerous awards, including the Horatio Alger Award from the Association of Distinguished Americans, and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Jack admits it was not always this way. "As a kid," he flatly states, "I was a sugarholic and a junk food junkie! It made me weak and it made me mean. It made me so sick I had boils, pimples and suffered from nearsightedness. Little girls used to beat me up. My mom prayed… the church prayed." It was at the age of 15 when he heard pioneer nutritionist Paul Bragg speak at the Oakland City Women's Club in the San Francisco Bay Area that Jack finally realized he was addicted to sugar. Bragg promised Jack if he would exercise and eat a proper diet he could regain good health. Jack listened attentively and was fiercely determined to walk away from that lecture ready to build a totally new Jack La Lanne.

 He discovered that the Berkeley YMCA had a set of weights and began experimenting with them and before long, Jack was able to attain the muscular, healthy body of his dreams. "I became a voracious reader and I absorbed everything that would help me to improve myself. Gray's Anatomy was my bible. During college, I studied pre-med to become a medical doctor and I also went to chiropractic college and graduated; however, I was more interested in helping people by convincing them to take preventative measures, before they became ill." Resolving to help others find the secrets to health and fitness, La Lanne opened the nation's first modern health studio in 1936 on the third floor of an old office building in Oakland, California, paying $45 per month for rent. Jack was a mere 21 years old. "I was 40 years ahead of my time," he said, "but by then I knew more about the workings of the muscles in my body than most doctors. People thought I was a charlatan and a nut," Jack says. "The doctors were against me - they said that working out with weights would give people heart attacks and they would lose their sex drive. Women would look like men and even varsity coaches predicted that their athletes would get muscle bound and banned them from lifting weights. I had to give these athletes keys so they could come in at night and work out in my gym. Time has proven that what I was doing was scientifically correct - starting with a healthy diet followed by systematic exercise, and today everyone knows it. All world class athletes now work out with weights, as do many members of the general public, both male and female."

Over time, Jack began to formulate a basic approach to physical fitness and nutrition. His methods would be scientifically sound as he developed the first prototypes of exercise equipment presently available in contemporary health spas. His inventions include: the first leg extension machine and the first pulley machines using cables, and the first weight selectors. He was the first to have women work out with weights and he also encouraged the disabled and elderly to exercise for health. "There are 640 muscles in the human body," Jack explains, "and I take every one of them into account as I plan each exercise routine."

Jack's reputation began to spread and by the early 1950's, he was given the opportunity to utilize the new medium of television to reach even more people. Ever the innovator, Jack used television to reach out to millions of Americans everywhere with his gospel message of get out of your chair, work out and feel better. He was magnetic and the public responded! His motivational message spread across the country like wildfire and his show was an instant nationwide hit! Jack La Lanne believes in daily, vigorous, systematic exercise and proper diet. "My top priority in life is my workout each day." Jack lives by what he says to others, and he has been doing it for over 75 years. Much of what Jack has advocated through his teaching and beliefs has become common knowledge today. Today's doctors and fitness experts all acknowledge daily systematic and proper diet as the principle keys to a longer healthier life.

Jack's wife, Elaine, has written four books including Dynastride, Fitness After 50 and Fitness After 50 Workout, as well as a juicing book called Total Juicing. Jack has millions of fans all over the world who have followed his philosophy and have benefited from his teachings. Jack's book, Revitalize Your Life, is geared toward improving your looks, health and overall well being.

===========================
Info: Jack LaLanne is an American fitness, exercise and nutritional expert, celebrity, lecturer, and motivational speaker. LaLanne has been referred to as "the godfather of fitness."

LaLanne gained worldwide renown for his success as a bodybuilder, as well as his prodigious feats of strength. He has won numerous awards, including the Horatio Alger Award from the Association of Distinguished Americans, and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Born in San Francisco, California, the son of French immigrants, Jennie Garaig and John La Lanne. LaLanne admits that as a child he was addicted to sugar and junk foods. He was very troubled and prone to rages, which led to his attempting to burn down his family's house, as well as chasing his brother with an axe. At age 15, he heard Paul Bragg give a talk on health and nutrition. Bragg's message was very simple, but had a powerful influence on the troubled boy. LaLanne decided to focus on his diet and exercise habits. He studied Henry Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body and concentrated on bodybuilding and weightlifting, which, in the 1930s, was uncommon.

LaLanne originally planned to enter the field of chiropractic health care to become a Doctor of Chiropractic,  but in 1936 decided to open his own health spa in California and encourage clients to better themselves through weight-training. He designed the first leg extension machines, pulley machines using cables, and weight selectors, equipment which is now standard in the fitness industry. He was the original inventor of the Smith machine. He also encouraged women to lift weights (in spite of the fact that at the time, it was thought that this would make women look masculine and unattractive). By the 1980s there were more than 200 health clubs bearing his name. LaLanne eventually licensed all his health clubs to the Bally company, and they became known as Bally Total Fitness. Today he is no longer associated with any gym but is still actively pumping iron.

Between 1951 and 1984, LaLanne presented fitness and exercise advice on television. "The Jack LaLanne Show" was the first ever television program devoted to exercise. Critics said the show would be off the air in six weeks, but it lasted 34 years. He has also published books and videos on fitness and nutrition, appeared in films, recorded a song with Connie Haines and marketed exercise equipment, a range of vitamin supplements, as well as two models of electric juicer.

Jacks' feats of strength are legendary and include herculean labors at every decade of his life such as being handcuffed and towing 10 boats full of people for several miles through strong ocean currents or doing a thousand chin-ups in 22 minutes.

The recipient of numerous health and fitness awards and profiled on ESPN and interviewed on NBC's Today Show by Katie Couric, Jack remains as physically fit and active today with his lovely companion and wife Elaine. 

Tyler Mane - Actor/Stuntman/Wrestler
Now playing everywhere at a theater near you is Rob Zombie's filmversion of John Carpenter's classic "Halloween".  The role of the masked psychopathic knife-wielding stalker known as Michael Myers is played by Tyler Mane.

Mane grew up in Saskatoon, Canada. Reportedly something of an underdog, who suffered from relentless bullying as a child, he took this mistreatment and spun it into determination, with an aggressive immersion into all forms of martial arts - including karate, judo and tae-kwon do. Then wrestling beckoned; Mane trained from the age of 19 on, first in Calgary, Alberta, then in Los Angeles. From 1986 through 1999, this Canuck import assumed the characterization of Big Sky (in a tag team with Kevin Nash) and as Nitron, and competed in professional wrestling tournaments around the world for the WCW and UWF.

Tyler Mane turned to acting in 1994, making appearances in "Bandit: Bandit Goes Country", a syndicated TV-movie based on the 1983 feature film "Smokey and the Bandit", and the Fox drama "Party of Five". That same year, the 6-foot-10, 275-pound Mane, whose real name is Daryl Karolat, also co-starred in a musical comedy about wrestling at San Diego's Lyceum Space, choreographing the hilarious show's "main event".

Mane's enormous size and expertise in karate made him a natural choice to play Wolverine's foe Sabretooth in the big-screen version of the Marvel comic "X-Men". The eagerly anticipated flick was released in the summer of 2000 and had Mane acting opposite the likes of Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen during his feature-film debut.

Indeed, it was for his skills as a former professional wrestler that Mane was first approached by producers at 20th Century Fox and Liberty Productions regarding his availability for stunt work.

Mane explains: “[They] wanted me to come in and discuss doing some stunt work for the film. Bryan Singer (X-Men’s director) had seen my picture and wanted to meet me. So when he did see me he was like, ‘oh my God! It’s Sabretooth!’

“So instead of me going to discuss doing stunts, I ended up playing Sabretooth!

He followed that up with a small role in the David Spade comedy "The Adventures of Joe Dirt" (2001).

"Halloween" film director Rob Zombie actually had Tyler in mind for the part of Michael Myers, when he wrote it.  Tyler took the part as an acting challenge.  Though it is not his first villain, it his Mane's most purely vicious. "This is the first time I played a psycho killer so the research you do and the whole thought process is totally different than preparing for a comic book character or a period piece like Troy. Everything is a little different. You just want to bring something a little different and hopefully give the people a little something more than they've seen in the last eight."

Tyler's portrayal did not disappoint audiences, as "Halloween" debut broke previous Labor Day weekend theater records with $31 million earnings.
 

Aidan Delgado is a former soldier in the 320th Military Police Company of the United States Army, best known for having become a conscientious objector in April 2003 during his deployment to Iraq and for disclosing information about Abu Ghraib.

Delgado states that he joined the Army Reserve while he was also investigating Buddhism. He signed his enlistment contract on Sept. 11, 2001. He began a year-long tour in Iraq in April 2003, he was openly questioning whether he could participate in the war in Iraq good conscience, due to his newfound dedication to the principles of pacifism espoused in his faith. He filed for conscientious objector status and continued to serve in Iraq while it was processed.

As the only member of his company who spoke Arabic, Delgado was in frequent contact with Iraqi civilians.  The son of a diplomat, Delgado grew up in various countries, including Thailand, where he was introduced to Buddhism, and Egypt, where he learned Arabic. When his colleagues learned that he spoke some Arabic and enjoyed meeting Iraqis, they made use of him but also began to mistrust him. As Delgado witnessed more and more American racism, arrogance, and abuse of unarmed Iraqis, his opposition mounted. Concluding that war ran counter to his Buddhist principles, he sought conscientious objector status and, after finishing his tour of duty, was honorably discharged in April 2004.

Delgado is actively involved in the anti-war movement. He has participated in numerous peace activities across the country, and led the 70-member "Florida For Peace" group to Washington, D.C., on September 24, 2005 to participate in the rally organized by United for Peace and Justice. He has also given many presentations on the abuses committed at the Abu Ghraib prison, at which Delgado was stationed for six months.

Delgado sparked considerable controversy when, upon his release from the Army and his return to the United States, he asserted, in an interview with The New York Times columnist Bob Herbert, to have witnessed egregious cases of abuse perpetrated against Iraqi civilians by American soldiers. After the Bob Herbert interview, Delgado provided a sworn statement and copies of photographs taken at Abu Ghraib to Army CID and IG investigators.

Aidan's new book 'The Sutras of Abu Ghraib' (Beacon Press 2007) details his transformation from Army Reserve volunteer to Buddhist conscientious objector and critic of the war in Iraq.

Fr. Roy Bourgeois was born in Lutcher, Louisiana in 1938. He graduated from the University of Southwestern Louisiana with a Bachelor of Science degree in geology.

After college Fr. Roy served as a Naval Officer for four years--two years at sea, one year at a NATO station in Europe, and one year of shore duty in Vietnam. He received the Purple Heart.

After military service, Fr. Roy entered the seminary of the Maryknoll Missionary Order. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1972, and he went on to work with the poor of Bolivia for five years before being arrested and forced to leave the country, then under the repressive rule of dictator and SOA grad General Hugo Banzer.

In 1980 Fr. Roy became involved in issues surrounding US policy in El Salvador after four US churchwomen--two of them his friends-- were raped and killed by Salvadoran soldiers. Roy became an outspoken critic of US foreign policy in Latin America. Since then, he has spent over four years in US federal prisons for nonviolent protests against the training of Latin American soldiers at Ft. Benning, Georgia.

In 1990, Roy founded the School of Americas Watch, an office that does research on the US Army School of the Americas (SOA), now renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation or WHINSEC, at Fort Benning, Georgia. Each year the school trains hundreds of soldiers from Latin America in combat skills - all paid for by U.S. taxpayers.

The School of the Americas Watch, located just outside the main entrance of Fort Benning and in Washington, DC, informs the general public, Congress and the media about the implications of this training on the people of Latin America.

Roy has worked on and helped produce several documentary films, including 1983's "Gods of Metal" about the nuclear arms race and 1995's "School of Assassins." Both films received Academy Award nominations.

Fr. Roy was the recipient of the 1997 Pax Christi USA Teacher of Peace Award.

In December of 1998, Roy testified in Madrid before Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon seeking the extradition of Chile's ex-dictator General Augusto Pinochet.

From 1999 to the present time, Roy has and continues to travel extensively, giving talks at universities, churches, and other groups around the country.

Please Visit: https://soaw.org/home/

Julia Butterfly - Environmentalist and Founder of Circle of Life Foundation

Info: Julia brought international attention to the plight of the world’s last remaining ancient forests when she climbed 180 feet up a 1000 year-old Redwood tree and refused to come down.

Her historic 738-day protest of the environmental destruction caused by clear-cutting ancient redwoods culminated with a negotiated agreement that provided permanent protection for the tree (“Luna”) and a nearly 3 acre buffer-zone.

Julia is a writer, poet and activist. She is author of the national best seller The Legacy of Luna and co-author of One Makes The Difference, both published by HarperSanFrancisco.

The Legacy of Luna, based on Julia’s personal account of the Luna tree-sit, will soon be made into a major motion picture. Julia and the film’s producers, Baldwin Entertainment, have publicly stated their commitment to setting a “green set” standard for the film industry with this project.

Julia speaks regularly at universities, has addressed the UN, lobbied congress, and continues to stand on the front lines of environmental and social justice issues worldwide. Her message of hope, empowerment, love and respect for all life has inspired millions of people worldwide.

I am many things to many people but mostly a Mindset Coach and Business Strategist to entrepreneurs who want to live powerful passionate lives. I am also a speaker, NLP Practitioner, Hypnotherapist, Author to Amazon best-seller to Vitality Knocks, creator of Mind Your Business Class, Mind School & Ah-ha! Academy for entrepreneurs, 21 Day Journey to Success and various other programs for business and leadership success. As Hypnotherapist and Travel creator of “Getaway to Find Your Way” Anita executes programs and destination getaways and online programs that build your mindset and strategies for business and leadership success.

My Motto is “Instill an internal legacy to live life fully and to your true potential. Learn, experience and love”. I live this in my life and business everyday and love helping others.

I created tools and programs to create ah ha! moments for entrepreneurs in their business that bring the riches and freedom they desire. I was a 27 year pro corporate management advocate that had the bottom pulled out from under me. I knew then at that ah ha moment what I was made of. My mindset and strategies created the business I am leading, and the financial freedom and time I desired. I am never looking back. I have the tools I share in all my programs so you can have all you desire as well.

I bring true joy and passion to what I do. I love seeing the successes of my amazing entrepreneurs. You are what you think and do.

RE-WIRING THE RULES OF LOVE FOR SINCERE WOMEN AND MEN SO THEY CAN HAVE AND KEEP A LOVING, LASTING EXTRAORDINARY RELATIONSHIP. 

Dr. Gary Salyer speaks to audiences across the country as a featured expert, inspirational speaker on how to create the love we all deserve. He is an expert in Attachment Theory, the science of relationships, Bert Hellinger's Family Systems approach and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). As a master transformational relationship coach, Dr. Gary helps people re-write the rules for love in their brains.

Dr. Salyer is the creator of the Safe to Love Again™ Workshop and the Extraordinary Couples™ and Extraordinary Singles™ Retreats. He is also a highly sought after guest on various podcasts, TV and radio shows such as The Aware Show on Hay House Radio.

Smart, savvy, professional women in their thirties, forties and fifties who are tired of the heartache in their love lives are resonating with the message of ‘safe to love again.’ Gary’s biggest passion is to help both singles and couples discover how they can have a loving sweetheart lying beside them at night, rather than a lonely pillow or a frustrated, distant partner.

Among Dr. Salyer’s strongest gifts is his ability to help clients stop making themselves wrong, no matter what painful patterns are happening in their relationships. Because of his innovative new theory on how to change people’s brain ‘wiring’ for love, both singles and couples experience deep shifts with lasting results that happen in an easy, natural way.

FREE GIFT: "Love Notes with Dr. Gary Salyer” - A collection of short, heartfelt and practical 3-4 minute videos that are designed to help both singles and couples find and create the love they deserve.  One engaged couple in Oregon claims these videos saved their engagement and they are now happily married after implementing the insights and tools that are taught in these videos.

Each brief video will both inspire and show how you can create more real love in your life now, delivered to your inbox twice a week.  Go to http://garysalyer.com/; scroll down and fill out the form in the section called “Love Inspirations.”

RICK NAHMIAS

He’s spoken internationally on food justice issues, and his work has been profiled in dozens of publications including The Guardian, Sunset Magazine, and the Los Angeles Times. Rick has been named a regional delegate to the Slow Food/Terra Madre Conference in Torino, a Ralph M. Parsons Fellow, a Good Food Champion by LA City Council, and was a solo presenter at the 2014 SXSW Eco Conference. A 2010 winner of the LA Social Venture Fast Pitch, in 2015 Nahmias was chosen from over 135 past participants to represent Los Angeles in the inaugural National Fast Pitch competition in Austin, TX and was awarded the Innovation and Audience awards. In 2016 he received an inaugural Trailblazer Award from the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Rickwas named a 2017-18 Senior Fellow at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Policy. He serves on the Leadership Board of the LA Food Policy Council and the Steering Committee for the Los Angeles County Food Recovery Initiative. When he’s not in the kitchen or up a tree, he’s learning steel guitar with his trusty Catahoula Leopard Dog, Rufus, by his side.

Laura Poitras is a filmmaker, journalist, and artist. CITIZENFOUR, the third installment of her post-9/11 Trilogy, won an Academy Award for Best Documentary, along with awards from the British Film Academy, Independent Spirit Awards, Director’s Guild of America, German Filmpreis, Cinema Eye Honors, Gotham Awards and others. Part one of the trilogy, MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY, about the U.S. occupation of Iraq, was nominated for an Academy Award. Part two, THE OATH, focused on Guantanamo and the war on terror, and was nominated for two Emmy awards.

ASTRO NOISE (2016), her first solo museum exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art curated by Jay Sanders, is a series of immersive installations and new work, including: ANARCHIST; O'Say Can You See; Bed Down Location; Disposition Matrix; November 20, 2004; and Last Seen. 

Her film RISK premeired at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. Her collaboration with Henrik Moltke, PROJECT X, screened at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

Her reporting on NSA mass surveillance based on Edward Snowden’s disclosures won the George Polk Award for national security journalism, and shared in the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.

In 2006, the U.S. government placed her on a secret watchlist and, through 2012, she was detained and interrogated at the U.S. border each time she traveled internationally.  In 2015, the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a FOIA lawsuit against the U.S. government to obtain her FBI and other government files. Over 1,000 pages have been released.

She has received many honors for her work, including a MacArthur Fellowship, Guggenheim Fellowship, Creative Capital grant, and a Peabody Award. She has attended the Sundance Institute Documentary Labs as both a Fellow and Creative Advisor. She is on the board of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, and is Co-Creator of the visual journalism project Field of Vision.

ALEX NESTER

Alex’s bout with cancer has helped shape her unique sound filled with messages of love, faith, positivity, and healing while channeling the retro soul artists of the 60’s and 70’s… Which only makes sense as she is currently touring with Salvador Santana, recently toured with Tito Jackson (of Jackson 5 fame), and has opened as a solo artist for such acts as Earth Wind & Fire, Chicago, The Rascals, Evelyn “Champagne” King, The Stylistics, and Dave Mason. Most recently she has added multi-platinum selling artist Rachel Platten to that list as well. Her resume already includes 12 albums, countless jingles, and over 25 theatrical productions, as well as working with established musicians such as Carlos Santana, Stevie Wonder, The Four Tops, The Fifth Dimension, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Desi Arnaz, Jr., Alphonse Mouzon, Brandon Fields, and Eric Marienthal.

As the music industry settles for what’s “safe”, Alex will continue to push the boundaries of music making. Her songs are a musical testament of loss and hope, failure and triumph. It is a promise to the listeners that her music will never be anything less than sincere and honest. And most importantly, it’s 100% Alex Nester groove!

Anne Rice (born October 4, 1941) is a best-selling American author of gothic and
later religious themed books. She was born Howard Allen O'Brien. Best known for her Vampire Chronicles, her prevailing thematical focus is on love, death, immortality,
existentialism, and the human condition. She was married to poet Stan Rice for 41 years until his death in 2002. Her books have sold nearly 100 million copies, making her one of the most widely read authors in modern history.

She completed her first book, Interview with the Vampire, in 1973 and published it in 1976.  This book would be the first in Rice's popular Vampire Chronicles series, which includes 1985's The Vampire Lestat and 1988's The Queen of the Damned.

In 1998, after spending most of her adult life as a self-described atheist, Rice returned to her Roman Catholic faith, which she had not practiced since she was 18. In October 2005, as she reaffirmed her Catholic faith, Rice announced in a Newsweek article that she would "write only for the Lord." She called Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, her first novel in this genre, the beginning of a trilogy that will chronicle the life of Jesus.  Christ The Lord: Out of Egypt is being made into a feature film that will release in the near future.

BETH BELL

Beth Bell is known as a Flower Whisperer, International entrepreneur, author and Radio Show Host. After 15+ years in her corporate career she left her high heels, corporate suits, and luxury high rise living for flip flops, helmet hair and the rice fields of Bali to pursue her mission to be “Pollinating the Planet with Love”.

Beth founded Blossom B.L.I.S.S. Bali, an empowering line of products including inspirational jewelry, flower affirmation cards and flower photography.  Her love of observing and photographing flowers provides her a deep connection to mother nature that’s lead her to channel messages from the flowers. She’s captured the 4 life lessons she’s learned from flowers that provide simple, yet profound insights. Her book “Flower Power 4 Pure Love” was recently launched in Australia just in time for spring and is available on Amazon.

On the Beth Bell Radio Show she interviews guests living their passions to empower listeners to know pure love & purpose. Beth along with her guests share how they took intuitive risks and big jumps to get to where they are today. She believes through sharing personal life journey lessons and pearls of wisdom we gain along the way, we empower others to live their passions and life’s purpose.

Beth currently resides in Bali, Indonesia and travels globally sharing the life lessons she’s learned from flowers along with her personal life journey lessons and pearls of wisdom.  

JESSE CAMPBELL

An International recording artist who sings heart-felt Universal music with soul. Born in Chicago, IL, Jesse Campbell’s voice emerged at the age of sixteen when he began leading songs with the church choir where his father, Bishop W.J. Campbell is Pastor.

Jesse broke out of his gospel roots in 1994, signing a recording contract with Underworld/Capitol Records.  During this time, he recorded and released his first hit single, When You Cry, I Cry, from his debut album, Never Let You Go.  He also recorded the smash hit, Where Is The Love, from the movie soundtrack Dead Presidents, which sold over 500,000 copies, and was certified gold.

Jesse has performed for many of the world’s renowned speakers and has performed both LIVE and in-studio with some of the most successful recording artist of the music industry. During season two of NBC’s “The Voice”, the stars aligned and Jesse was invited to join the hit reality show, giving the world a glimpse of his profound vocal talent. His story and live performances were featured on commercials, movie screens and other promotions. After wooing the hearts and mutual respect of Industry peers / celebrity coaches Christina Aguilera, Adam Levine, Cee Lo Green and Blake Shelton, along with 40 million viewers, Jesse’s fan base drastically increased and continues to grow worldwide via social media and jaw dropping live performances. Since then, Jesse has performed as the guest celebrity on “The Voice” Vietnam, and has worked in partnership with many companies and big name corporations including McDonalds, Apple, Spirit & Cellardoor Winery.

During Jesse’s career he has also made many personal appearances and live performances on national television shows including: The Tonight Show, WGN Morning Show, Showtime at the Apollo, BET’s Video Soul, and Soul Train. With Jesse’s vocal talent he has the pleasure of working alongside many highly respected recording artist’s including Jesse J, Mary J Blige, Christina Aguilera, The Winans, Andre Crouch and The Hawkins. Jesse has and continues to travel the world sharing his vocal prowess in South and Central Americas, UK, Eastern Europe, South Africa, Asia and many more to come.

Jesse is currently in the studio working on his next Album of World music you can feel. Jesse is one of today’s most gifted singers, whose unique, captivating vocals command attention from the first note. Jesse’s charisma, unique gift of reaching others and humble roots inspire people from all walks of life, and his amazing voice continues to catapult him to greatness.

MURRAY HIDARY

This purpose-driven approach to the Internet’s power garnered Murray considerable business success, including EarthWeb’s groundbreaking IPO in 1998, which was the third largest single day share gain in NASDAQ history at the time, and the growth and sale of several more companies including career site Dice and expert network Vista Research. In addition to his robust career in tech, Murray is an acclaimed photographer, composer, and musician with a voracious appetite for ongoing learning and adventure.

Murray has studied theoretical physics extensively; trained in the study of Aikido and the Shakuhachi (the Japanese bamboo flute) and its ancient music tradition of the Zen monks with some of the greatest teachers. Additionally, he journeyed the globe mindfully connecting with the fundamental elements that surround us. In an effort to gain deeper understanding of himself and of nature, Murray sought out experiences to simultaneously challenge and test himself physically and mentally as well as give him perspectives of natures core elements including water, rock and wind.

Climbing Mont Blanc, the Grand Teton and Mount Cook as well as countless technical rock climbing routes gave him and intimacy with the earth. Scuba-diving the Great Barrier Reef extensively and whitewater kayaking rivers allowed to ‘become’ the water. Paragliding the high mountains from Colorado to Mexico allowed him to feel and connect with the wind and understand flight. These pursuits, in addition to several marathon runs allowed him to push his mind and body connection, see what he was made of and learn how to confront, process and act in the face of fear.

Murray’s work, quest and ongoing studies remain closely entwined: he’s out to ignite transformation, to connect the seemingly disparate elements of this world, and to live in a constant dance of unfolding the hidden universe. At age 30, Murray wrote and recorded his first symphony in St. Petersburg, Russia. Moved by direct experiences that his curiosity towards deeper levels of consciousness created through music that began with his study of zazenor moving meditation with the Japanese Zen flute, Murray translated that process to the piano and began to lay the groundwork for what would eventually become MindTravel. The essence of MindTravel started as a personal practice for Murray many years ago, bringing music and visual art together, blurring the lines and pushing the edges of these mediums for direct expressions of deeper consciousness.

In bringing MindTravel to a broad audience, Murray’s goal is to create the space for people to have a powerful journey, which is at once provocative and reflective, healing and transcendent. Murray’s musical performances are a fusion of contemporary classical style, and contain a highly original expression of the avant garde, presented to audiences in concert halls, beaches, parks and beyond. For Murray, music communicates a profound coalescence of language and concept – a bridge connecting that which is hidden with that which is manifest.

Murray is involved with several philanthropic causes. He is the board chairman of the new music string quartet ETHEL, resides on the boards of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance and Four Way Books, a publisher of poetry and short fiction by emerging and established writers. He is also a member of the New York University Dean’s Advisory Council and is the recipient of the NYU Distinguished Service Award where he has given the commencement speech at Madison Square Garden.

Murray is currently touring MindTravel, composing new work, hiking and meditating in beautiful places.

THOM TRAN

Los Angeles based comedian, musician, and U.S. military veteran and advocate Thom Tran started his career as a standup comic after a combat injury ended his career as a soldier.

Thom enlisted in the United States Army at 18 years old before he even finished high school. After joining the Army, Thom spent his entire career as a Communications Sergeant as well as a Civil Affairs Sergeant within the United States Army’s Special Operations Community. In 2003, four days after crossing the border into Iraq, Thom was wounded during a firefight when a sniper’s bullet found it’s way to the back of his skull. He bandaged himself up, continued the mission, and finished his 12 month tour in Iraq. But his wounds would eventually bring an end to his military life. After redeploying to the United States, Thom was medically retired in 2005.

Post-combat, comedy saved his life. After touring the United States as a road comic, Thom moved to Los Angeles in 2008 and two years later created The GIs of Comedy Tour, a Comedic Troupe of Troops that has toured all over the United States and to 18 different countries performing to audiences both military and civilian, bringing the healing power of laughter to those who need it the most. The group has raised nearly $20,000 for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, a charity that raises college scholarship funds for the children of fallen US Special Operations personnel.

When Thom isn’t on the road he makes his home in Hollywood, CA performing at The World Famous Laugh Factory & clubs all over SoCal.

Recently, Thom’s love of rock and roll finds him back on stage playing lead guitar for a heavy metal band and cover band he co-founded called The Diver Rockstars playing bars and nightclubs in Southern California!

More About Thom Tran, SSG (Retired) US Army, Comedian – Creator – Executive Producer: The GI’s of Comedy

 Karen Kwiatkowski (ka-tao-skee) was commissioned in 1982 as a second lieutenant in theUnited States Air Force. She served at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska, providing logistical support to missions along the Chinese and Russian coasts. After tours in Massachusetts, Spain and Italy, Kwiatkowski was assigned to the National Security Agency, eventually becoming a speech writer for the agency’s director.

Col. Kwiatkowski transferred to the Pentagon, first working on the Air Staff as a political military affairs officer, then moving over to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Under Secretary for Policy, in the Sub-Saharan Africa Directorate. From May 2002 to February 2003, she served in the Pentagon’s Near East and South Asia directorate (NESA).  While at NESA, she wrote a series of anonymous articles, “Insider Notes from the Pentagon” that appeared on the website of David Hackworth, protesting neoconservatism inside the Pentagon and the pro-war propaganda being put forth by Pentagon appointees.  Kwiatkowski was in her office inside the Pentagon when it was tragically attacked on September 11, 2001.  She left NESA in February 2003 and after 20 years of service, retired from the Air Force.

In April 2003, she began writing articles for the libertarian website LewRockwell.com. In June 2003, the Ohio Beacon Journal, published her op-ed ”Career Officer Does Eye-Opening Stint Inside Pentagon” which attracted international notice. Kwiatkowski became publicly known for criticizing a corrupting political influence on the course of military intelligence leading up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Her most comprehensive writings on this subject appeared in a series of articles in The American Conservative magazine in December 2003 and in a March 2004 article on Salon.com.

Kwiatkowski has become a respected columnist for various international media outlets. She is a regular contributor to Lewrockwell.com and has had articles about her work with the Department of Defense published in the American Conservative.  She has hosted the popular call-in radio show American Forum, and blogs occasionally on Liberty and Power.  Since her retirement, she has taught American government related classes at Lord Fairfax Community College and James Madison University, and teaches information systems related classes for the University of Maryland.  She and her husband raise beef cattle in Shenandoah County, Virginia.  They have been married since 1982 and have four children.

EDUCATION:

    MA in Government from Harvard.
    MS in Science Management from the University of Alaska.
    Completed both Air Command and Staff College and the Naval War College seminar programs.
    Holds a Ph.D. in World Politics from Catholic University of America.

ON 9-11
Contributor to 9/11 and American Empire: Intellectuals Speak Out 8/23/06:  Account of Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski, Pentagon employee and eyewitness to the events at the Pentagon on 9/11.  "I believe the Commission failed to deeply examine the topic at hand, failed to apply scientific rigor to its assessment of events leading up to and including 9/11, failed to produce a believable and unbiased summary of what happened, failed to fully examine why it happened, and even failed to include a set of unanswered questions for future research.  

It is as a scientist that I have the most trouble with the official government conspiracy theory, mainly because it does not satisfy the rules of probability or physics.  The collapses of the World Trade Center buildings clearly violate the laws of probability and physics.

There was a dearth of visible debris on the relatively unmarked [Pentagon] lawn, where I stood only minutes after the impact.  Beyond this strange absence of airliner debris, there was no sign of the kind of damage to the Pentagon structure one would expect from the impact of a large airliner. This visible evidence or lack thereof may also have been apparent to the secretary of defense [Donald Rumsfeld], who in an unfortunate slip of the tongue referred to the aircraft that slammed into the Pentagon as a "missile". ...

I saw nothing of significance at the point of impact - no airplane metal or cargo debris was blowing on the lawn in front of the damaged building as smoke billowed from within the Pentagon. ... all of us staring at the Pentagon that morning were indeed looking for such debris, but what we expected to see was not evident.

The same is true with regard to the kind of damage we expected. ... But I did not see this kind of damage. Rather, the facade had a rather small hole, no larger than 20 feet in diameter. Although this facade later collapsed, it remained standing for 30 or 40 minutes, with the roof line remaining relatively straight.

The scene, in short, was not what I would have expected from a strike by a large jetliner. It was, however, exactly what one would expect if a missile had struck the Pentagon.

More information is certainly needed regarding the events of 9/11 and the events leading up to that terrible day."

Margaret Cho was born December 5, 1968 and raised in San Francisco. "It was different than any other place on Earth," she says. "I grew up and went to grammar school on Haight Street during the '70s. There were old hippies, ex-druggies, burnouts from the '60s, drag queens, and Chinese people. To say it was a melting pot - that's the least of it. It was a really confusing, enlightening, wonderful time."

Her grandfather was a Methodist minister who ran an orphanage in Seoul during the Korean War. Ignoring the traditions of her patriarchal culture, her mother bravely resisted an arranged marriage in Korea and married Margaret's father who writes joke books - in Korean. "Books like 1001 Jokes for Public Speakers - real corny stuff," Margaret says. "I guess we're in the same line of work. But we don't understand each other that way. I don't know why the things he says are funny and the same for him."

Margaret started performing stand-up at age 16 in a comedy club called The Rose & Thistle above a bookstore her parents ran. Soon after, she won a comedy contest where first prize was opening for Jerry Seinfeld. She moved to Los Angeles in the early '90s and lived in a house with several other young performers.

I moved out because I wasn't the most famous. If the Manson Family had come, I wouldn't have been Sharon Tate; I would have been one of the supporting victims, and who wants that? Janeane Garofalo moved into my old room. Anyway, 'Cho' written in blood on the wall doesn't look as cool as 'Garofalo.'

Still in her early twenties, Cho hit the college circuit, where she immediately became the most booked act in the market and garnered a nomination for Campus Comedian of The Year. Arsenio Hall introduced her to late night audiences, Bob Hope put her on a prime time special and, seemingly overnight, Margaret Cho became a national celebrity.

In 1994, she starred in a short-lived ABC sitcom called All-American Girl. Says Margaret:

There were just so many people involved in that show, and so much importance put on the fact that it was an ethnic show. It's hard to pin down what "ethnic" is without appearing to be racist. And then, for fear of being too "ethnic," it got so watered down for television that by the end, it was completely lacking in the essence of what I am and what I do. I learned a lot, though. It was a good experience as far as finding myself, knowing who I was and what direction I wanted to take with my comedy.
In 1999, Margaret chronicled her experience on the sitcom in an off Broadway one-woman show called I'm The One That I Want. The show was extremely well received, toured the U.S, and was made into a concert film and a best-selling book of the same name.

The film, which garnered incredible reviews, broke the record for the most money grossed per print in movie history. After the success of her first show, Margaret launched Notorious C.H.O. in 2001, a smash-hit 37-city national tour that culminated in a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall. Notorious C.H.O. was also recorded and released as a feature film, hailed by the New York Times as "Brilliant!" Both films were acquired by Showtime Cable Networks in 2004 and are currently airing on their channels. Margaret embarked on her third sold-out national tour, Revolution, in 2003. The tour ultimately grossed 4.4M and was heralded as "Her strongest show yet!" by the Chicago Sun Times. The concert film premiered on the Sundance Channel in 2004 and was released on DVD later that year. The CD of Revolution was nominated for a Grammy for best comedy album of the year for 2003.

In 2004, Margaret took her politically charged State of Emergency tour through the swing states of the Presidential election. Lauded as "Murderously funny!" by the New York Times, State of Emergency eventually evolved into her fourth national show, Assassin. Her most political and topical work to date, Assassin toured the US, Canada and Australia and was filmed at the Warner Theatre in Washington D.C. The concert film premiered in select theatres and on the gay and lesbian premium channel Here! TV in late 2005and is now available on DVD.

In addition to her busy touring schedule, Margaret has proven herself an established writer and blogger; her second book, a collection of essays on all subjects political and pop, I Have Chosen to Stay and Fight was published by Riverhead Books, a division of Penguin Group (2005). She has also completed her first narrative feature; Bam Bam and Celeste, written by and starring Margaret, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in late 2005 and has since played at the AFI Fest, Frameline, Fusion, and the London Lesbian & Gay Film Festival.

In 2007, Margaret hit the road with 80's legends Cyndi Lauper, Debbie Harry & Erasure along with indie faves The Dresden Dolls and The Cliks to host the True Colors Tour, benefiting the Human Rights Campaign. A true entertainment pioneer, Margaret also created and starred in The Sensuous Woman, a live variety show featuring vaudevillian burlesque and comedy, which she took for an extended off-Broadway run last fall.

This year Margaret is returning to her stand-up roots with a brand new tour, Beautiful, debuting in Australia at The Sydney Theater on February 27, 2008. This will mark the first time that Margaret has premiered a new show abroad. Margaret quips, "I love Australia! The audiences are so smart and rowdy, it's really exciting. I love that they just voted out Bush's boyfriend, John Howard. How thrilling!" Immediately following the Australian dates, Margaret will launch a national U.S. run of Beautiful, beginning on March 6 in Hawaii and running through June. Ticket and show info is available on her tour page. In describing what Beautiful means to her, Margaret explains:

I want to explore the nature of beauty. What is funny and scary about it, why we often don't feel beautiful because our society's standards are so rigid and unattainable. A DJ once asked me, "If you woke up tomorrow and you were beautiful, what would you do? If you were, blonde, blue-eyed, 5 foot 11, and weighed 100 pounds, what would you do?!?" Well, I probably wouldn't get up in that case, because I'd be too weak to stand. If that is his only idea of beauty then I feel really sorry for him. I want everyone to feel beautiful and I want to do it with laughter. Why not feel good about ourselves?

Margaret was the recipient of the first ever Best Comedy Performance award at the 2007 Asian Excellence Awards. She also recently received the First Amendment Award from the ACLU of Southern California, and the Intrepid Award from the National Organization for Women (NOW). She has also been honored by GLAAD, American Women in Radio and Television, the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF), the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), and PFLAG for "making a significant difference in promoting equal rights for all, regardless of race, sexual orientation or gender identity."

I didn't mean to be a role model. I just speak my truth. I guess speaking from your heart really creates a huge impact, and if I can encourage people to do that, then I would love to be a role model. If I could encourage people to use their voices loudly, then that's my reward. I don't care about winning an academy award; I don't care about mainstream acceptance, because it's never going to be what I want it to be. I just want to do my work and love it.

Lincoln Davenport Chafee is a former United States Senator from Rhode Island. Running as a Republican, he lost his re-election bid in 2006 to Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse. In the summer of 2007, he left the Republican Party and became an independent. He is currently a visiting scholar at Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies.

A Rhode Island native educated at Phillips Academy and Brown University, Chafee worked as a professional blacksmith for seven years before entering state politics in 1985. He was a delegate to the Rhode Island State Constitutional Convention, a member of the Warwick, Rhode Island city council, and later the mayor of Warwick. Chafee was appointed to the United States Senate in 1999 upon the death of his father, Senator John Chafee, and in 2000 was elected to a full six-year term.

A political iconoclast, Chafee was the only Republican senator to have expressed support for same-sex marriage; the only Republican to vote in favor of reinstating the top federal tax rate on upper-income payers; the only Republican in the Senate to have voted against authorization of the use of force in Iraq; the only Republican to vote for the Levin-Reed amendment calling for a nonbinding timetable for a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq; and the only Republican to vote against Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito. Chafee favored increased federal funding for health care, supported affirmative action and gun control, supported women’s reproductive rights, and endorsed federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. Sometimes referred to by conservatives as a RINO (Republican in Name Only), Chafee turns the tables on the right and asks why it has enabled Bush Jr. to pull the GOP and the nation away from traditional principles of fiscal conservatism, respect for our environment, and aversion to foreign entanglements.  

Chafee's book, AGAINST THE TIDE: How a Compliant Congress Empowered a Reckless President, is an unabashedly frank, memoir recounting his political journey from small-town mayor to a voice crying from the congressional wilderness. It offers a forward-looking assessment of what comes next for the Republican and Democratic parties, and he also addresses the potential rise of a third party within the void created by bipartisan extremism. Most important, Chafee sounds a wake-up call to his Party, and to all Americans, by challenging our government to strive, as Abraham Lincoln once articulated, “to elevate the condition of men.”

Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) served in the United States Senate at a time when his Republican Party drifted so far right it no longer stood for its mainstream principles. In the face of his party's wrongheaded direction under George W. Bush, Lincoln Chafee became, even more fiercely, what he had always been...his own leader. Chafee’s ideological positions make his voting record among the most liberal of the Republicans in the Senate. And it's no surprise that he has an eye-opening story to tell about his 7-year journey in national politics, from small-town mayor to a unique national voice.