RICK MORRISON

As new author of his first children's book entitled, The Hug Store, Rick widened this sphere of his services to include families, children and single parents everywhere. Rick is proud that The Hug Store is endorsed by several nationally recognized health care professionals and features a list of over a dozen reasons why hugs are not only healthy for our body, mind and well-being, but why they are essential for it. In addition to blogging, public speaking and facilitating hugging play-shops in and around the Los Angeles area, Rick has appeared on a variety of talk, radio and TV shows to promote his vision of conscious parenting and ultimately promoting world peace, one hug at a time. Besides food, wine, hugs and music, Rick s other passions include fitness and overall well-being. Rick enjoys charity work as well as giving back to his community. Some of the charities that are particularly important to him are Cystic Fibrosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Cancer, Meals on Wheels and Macular Degeneration. Lastly, Rick s ultimate joy and inspiration in life is spending time with his co-author of The Hug Store and most huggable one, daughter Shana.

TESS CACCIATORE

Tess is a Multimedia/Interactive Creator and Producer with 25+ years in the entertainment/technology and philanthropic arenas.

Tess is also the Founder and CEO of GWEN Global LLC a for-profit company dedicated to social impact & positive change in the entertainment arena, which also emcompasses Global Women’s Empowerment Network (a 501c3).

Tess is a best-selling author, award-winning producer/filmmaker/songwriter, as well as a Director, keynote speaker, and social entrepreneur who has dedicated her life to advocating for “Transforming lives through the power of storytelling!”

In 2003, Tess was awarded the Fete d’ Excellence within the Sub-Commission for Human Rights at the United Nations (Geneva, Switzerland) for her work in edu-tainment. Throughout the years, Tess has been honored with multiple awards, including in 2011 she won Mobile Excellence Award for the GWEN Alert, FREE downloadable safety app with video-cloud private storage to protect those in need.

Tess is currently working on an original, scripted series called “The Wright Turn” as co-creator, co-writer and Director.

This multi-cultural cast reflects true stories from the Gwen community in a scripted manner, so that we can continue to put forth healing through storytelling, “trauma to transformation.”

HE WRIGHT TURN

Here is what Tess and Terrah had to say – perhaps you can relate. We got tired of people saying NO! We got tired of an industry that says, “you’re too OLD!” We got tired of waiting for someone to say “Hey ladies, we like you”. So instead of waiting for a seat at the table, we built our own table, pulled up two chairs and went to work.

In 2015 Tess had an opportunity to mentor female millennial directors for a network web-series competition. Although the network’s demographics were women 40-plus, the ideas that were presented were focused on the younger demographics. Realizing there was a void in the stories about women her age, Tess asked to put her hat into the ring and created a project which focused on a 50-year-old woman on her journey to self-rediscovery. In the meantime Terrah, who had made the decision to transition to behind the camera and focus on raising her three children, was

slowly returning from an eight-year acting hiatus. Tess needed an actress and Terrah was eager to act again. The network decided to shelve the competition, so Tess’ project was never submitted. Three years later, Tess and Terrah sat down, restructured the idea and story-line, and gave birth to – The Wright Turn.

The Wright Turn is based on true stories. Interviews with various women and men in the 50 plus club were underway, and knowing how the industry often type-cast actors, The ladies sat down with their actors to find out what types of roles they’ve always wanted to play but have been denied the opportunity. They found a way to incorporate each actors’ ideas, which made the character fun to portray. The series also features product lines by cast members and others as a way to support entrepreneurship.

What is The Wright Turn? It’s not a comedy or a drama, it’s a whole bunch of life’s shit, mushed together, and served to us as our individual journeys. From career/romance/motherhood to homelessness/sex trafficking/mental illness and more.It has been a journey to say the least. The idea of creating, and executing 8-forty-five minute episodes independently, was a surmountable feat, but for these two multi-hyphenates, both directors, writers, producers, editors, actors… It was a challenge worth taking on.

I am Mike Partain, a co-founder and public spokesman for an organization called "The Few, The Proud, the Forgotten."  From 1953 until 1987, the base water supply for Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, was highly contaminated with industrial chemicals. For the past decade I have served as a community representative to the estimated one million Sailors, Marines and their families potentially affected by the Camp Lejeune contamination. I have testified twice in Congress and I am recognized as an expert on those issues.  I was invited as a special guest to the White House in 2012, for the signing of the Janey Ensminger Act into law. Much of our fight for justice was chronicled in the award winning documentary "Semper Fi: Always Faithful."

Spiritual Counselor, Holistic Healer, Writer

JP SOTTILE is a freelance journalist, published historian, radio co-host and documentary filmmaker. His credits include a stint on the NewsHour news desk, C-SPAN, and as a newsmagazine producer for ABC affiliate WJLA in Washington. Joseph “JP” Sottile is a two-time Washington Regional Emmy Award Winner. Documentary film credits include: writer, director, producer of The Warning and various production and photography credits on other public interest films. His weekly show, Inside the Headlines w/ The Newsvandal, co-hosted by James Moore, airs every Friday on KRUU-FM in Fairfield, Iowa. He is the Newsvandal.

Belinda J. Womack is a spiritual counselor, teacher and author of Lessons from the 12 Archangels: Divine Intervention in Daily Life, Bear & Co. November 2015. She is also a regular contributor to OMTIMES Magazine.

A scientist by training, with dual master’s degrees in microbiology and environmental science (Indiana University), Belinda was called into service by the 12 Archangels while working in a medical university lab as she was doing a stem cell experiment. For nearly 25 years since that meeting, Belinda has had an active spiritual counseling practice, working with the 12 Archangels, to support individuals, couples and families with seemingly impossible problems to solve.

The 12 Archangels of the Central Sun (Soul) of the Universe are all-powerful and all-loving energies that pour forth from the Heart of God like flowing rays of singing sunshine. These energies are similar to the music coming from a perfectly tuned orchestra where it is difficult to distinguish one instrument from another. From the sacred music and light of the Central Sun, the 12 Archangels created Earth, an amazing schoolroom established so that Oneness (ALL THAT IS) can dream a dark dream and experience the reality of fear and the illusion of being separated from the Creator.

According to Belinda, “We are here to learn, through our experiences and choices, that we are children of the Divine.” Belinda’s new book, Lessons from the 12 Archangels is a treasure chest of channeled angelic wisdom that offers clear strategies for transforming the wounds trapped within the deep subconscious that block us from experiencing positive change. The guided imagery exercises integrate the healing-power from our batteries of spiritual energy (chakras), together with the unconditional love of the 12 Archangels of the Central Soul of God. This facilitates a vibrational super shift that moves us from focusing on our suffering here on Earth to receiving Heaven’s abundance and joy.

Penny Kelly is an author, teacher, speaker, publisher, personal and spiritual consultant, and Naturopathic physician. In 1979, while working as a tool and process engineer for Chrysler Corp, she experienced a full, spontaneous awakening of kundalini that completely changed her life. She left Chrysler and returned to school to study the brain, consciousness, perception, cognition, intelligence and intuition. This was followed by over a dozen years of work as an educational consultant specializing in the brain-compatible and accelerative teaching techniques of Dr. George Lozanov. 

In 1987, she moved to southwest Michigan and for 25 years has operated Lily Hill Farm and Learning Center. Today she travels, lectures, and teaches a variety of classes and workshops including Developing the Gift of Intuition, Organic Gardening, and Getting Well Again Naturally. She maintains a large consulting practice,writes books and poetry, raises chickens, beef cows, and grows organic vegetables and small fruits.

For some years she has been involved in scientific research and investigations into consciousness at Pinelandia Laboratory near Ann Arbor, MI and has been the subject of some research as well.

She holds a degree in Humanistic Studies from Wayne State University, and a degree in Naturopathic Medicine from Clayton College of Natural Health. Penny is the mother of four children and has written six books.

The Evolving Human - A True Story of Awakening Kundalini

The Elves of Lily Hill Farm – A Partnership With Nature

Robes - A Book of Coming Changes

Getting Well Again, Naturally – From the Soil to the Stomach

Consciousness and Energy, Vol. 1 – Multi-dimensionality and a Theory of Consciousness, and

Consciousness and Energy, Vol. 2 – New Worlds of Energy

Penny lives, works, and writes in Lawton, MI, the far southwest corner of Michigan.

Earth Guardians Youth Director Xiuhtezcatl Martinez is a 17-year-old indigenous climate activist, hip-hop artist, and powerful voice on the front lines of a global youth-led environmental movement. At the early age of six Xiuhtezcatl began speaking around the world, from the Rio+20 United Nations Summit in Rio de Janeiro, to addressing the General Assembly at the United Nations in New York city. He has worked locally to get pesticides out of parks, coal ash contained, and moratoriums on fracking in his state and is currently a lead plaintiff in a youth-led lawsuit against the federal government for their failure to protect the atmosphere for future generations. Xiuhtezcatl has traveled across the nation and to many parts of the world educating his generation about the state of the planet they are inheriting. His message has inspired youth to join the front lines to combat the environmental and climate crisis that is impacting their future, as well as form Earth Guardian crews in over 30 countries.  His work has been featured on PBS, Showtime, National Geographic, Rolling Stones, Upworthy, Aljazeera, The Guardian, Vogue, Bill Maher, Skavlan, WE Day, AJ+, CNN, MSNBC, HBO, VICE, and many more. In 2013, Xiuhtezcatl received the 2013 United States Community Service Award from President Obama, and was the youngest of 24 national change-makers chosen to serve on the President's youth council.  He is the 2015 recipient of the Peace First Prize, recipient of the 2015 Nickelodeon Halo Award, 2016 Captain Planet Award and the 2016 Children's Climate Prize from Sweden.  Bill Mckibben of 350.org calls Xiuhtezcatl "an impressive spokesman for a viewpoint the world needs to hear.”