Theme: The Big Picture

Without thinking much about where you’re really heading, it’s very easy to get wrapped up in the details of our projects, goals, and even our whole life. If we get caught up in the details, nothing is going to change. We adjust our course in light of new developments and changing territory, we widen our horizons, and step out of our comfort zone to make monumental changes.

Black Box
20402 Newport Coast Dr, Newport Coast, CA 92657
Newport Coast, California, 92657
United States

Dr. Mark Crear

Former Olympian / Motivational Speaker

Scaling high hurdles and jumping through life’s hoops are second nature to Mark Crear. Before jumping any "hurdles" on the track, Mark had plenty of hurdles to jump off. Growing up in a single family home and being a victim of physical and emotional abuse, Crear early on knew that life was not fair and had plenty of reasons and excuses to quit and give up. However, "quitting" was not a part of Dr. Crear's DNA. Instead, Mark relied on God and hard work to carry him from his life of abuse, abandonment, and rejection, to #1 in the world. Born in San Francisco, young Mark enrolled at Mt. San Antonio College. He enjoyed early success as a world-class track and field athlete, becoming a two-time Olympic Medalist, reigning as the world’s No. 1 110-meter high hurdler three times, becoming a Goodwill Games champion. He went to win the 1996 Olympic Silver Medal with a broken arm and the 2000 Olympic Bronze Medal with a double hernia.

Jim Abbott

Motivational Speaker / Professional Baseball Player

Jim Abbott was born September 19, 1967, in Flint, Michigan without a right hand. He was an All-America hurler at Michigan; won the Sullivan Award in 1987; was the pitcher for the Gold Medal Olympic Team in 1988; and threw a 4-0 no-hitter for the New York Yankees versus Cleveland (September 4, 1993). Jim played for 10 seasons on 4 different teams and ended his big league playing career in 1999. Abbott has worked with The Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) on several initiatives encouraging businesses to hire people with disabilities. Today, in addition to often being a Guest Pitching Instructor during Spring Training for the Los Angeles Angels, Jim Abbott is a motivational speaker. Jim lives in California with his wife, two children and their dog. His parents still live in Michigan. Jim and his family take the summer off each year to stay at the lake and visit with family and friends. Jim has a younger brother.

Karina Hamilton

Director of Dalai Lama Scholars Program at UCI / A Founder of Sage

Karina Hamilton currently serves as the Director of the UCI Dalai Lama Scholars Program. She graduated from Stanford University and received her law degree from Boalt Hall School of Law at UC Berkeley. She then practiced corporate law for 10 years, first at the law firm of Allen Matkins, and then as corporate counsel for Pioneer Electronics. In 1996, Karina decided to pursue a career in education and worked with a small group of entrepreneurial individuals to launch Sage Hill School. She served in a variety of roles in taking the school from dream to reality. She has served as a trustee since 1999. The school opened in fall 2000. From 1999 to 2011, Karina has worked at UC Irvine. She founded the SAGE Scholars Program that provides training, internships, mentoring and financial support to motivated undergraduates from economically-disadvantaged backgrounds.

Stanton Rowe

Corporate Vice President at Edwards Lifesciences

Stanton J. Rowe has been a chief scientific officer at Edwards Lifesciences since 2008 and also serves as corporate vice president, advanced technology. He joined the company in 2004 when Edwards acquired Percutaneous Valve Technologies, a company he helped to found in 1999 and of which he served as president and CEO. Previously, Rowe was corporate vice president of business development and strategic planning for Datascope and was vice president of business development for Johnson & Johnson's interventional systems division (JJIS) in New Jersey. Rowe held a variety of positions, including heading the company's business development, advanced technology, worldwide clinical research and marketing groups. He is also on the board of directors for the Discovery Science Center in Orange County, as well as on the advisory boards for the engineering or biomedical engineering schools at UC Irvine, Georgia Tech and Brown University, and received a bachelor's degree from the University of Alabama.

Stuart Palley

Photographer

Stuart Palley is a Los Angeles based photographer specializing in environmental, editorial, commercial, travel, documentary, motion/video, and fine art subject matter. Born and raised in Southern CA, Stuart has photographed for National Geographic Magazine, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, and other publications. His work has appeared TIME Magazine, New York Magazine, and The Washington Post. His recent work on wildfires, Terra Flamma: Wildfires at Night, has been featured in TIME Magazine’s Light Box, Time Magazine’s Photos of the Week, Time's Top 100 Photo of the Year The Washington Post, New York Magazine, The Today Show, The Wall Street Journal, and newspapers and magazines worldwide. Stuart originally funded the project by running a successful Kickstarter campaign where he raised 260% percent of his original goal. He was able to envision, fund, execute, and complete the project totally independent of any publications or institutional funding.