Theme: Legacy by Design

Join us this year at the beautiful, cozy Oglethorpe Auditorium at the Savannah International Trade & Convention Center. Fifteen speakers will engage your mind and enlighten your soul as they share talks ranging from rocket science and art, computer coding for 50 million, the success and legal issues around ancestry and adoption, becoming a James Beard finalist, the research behind psychotherapy, the love and loss of being a hospice chaplain and wedding officiant and a bold new way to challenge teen homelessness and how to social activism can change history and uplift lives.
Free parking is included and lunch, coffee and nibbles will be provided throughout the day.

Savannah International Trade & Convention Center
1 International Drive
Savannah, Georgia, 31401
United States

Alicia Scott

Marketing strategist, social advocate

Alicia Scott, a native of Compton, California, holds a B.S. in Political Science from the University of Maryland and an M.A. in Diplomacy & International Commerce from Norwich University in Northfield, VT. Alicia is CEO of Introspect Consulting Group LLC, a Marketing, Public Relations and Strategic Planning firm in Savannah, specializing in “branding people, places and things.” Alicia is a co-host on Voicez in the Struggle, a global social issues radio show on FM 107.5 WRUU and says “by night, I give back to the urban community.”

Amanda Hollowell

Education specialist, social entrepreneur

Amanda Hollowell graduated from University of California at Berkeley where she received her bachelor’s degree in business communication. A Savannah resident, she is an active advocate for organ donation and women’s rights; she also owns an event planning business and urban marketing startup company. She has an extensive volunteer career that intersects technology, health, politics and culture. To date, her greatest accomplishment is being the mother of her son, Joah Cash.

Amy Paige Condon

Writer and editor

Amy Paige Condon and her husband left Miami, Florida, in 2009 and moved to Savannah, where Amy earned an MFA in writing from SCAD. She co-authored the bestselling Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook, and The Wiley’s Championship BBQ Cookbook, co-written with Wiley and Janet McCrary, was named the best cookbook of 2014 by the National Barbecue News. She joined Savannah magazine in 2012 and was named editor in 2016. In 2017, she founded The Refinery Writing Studio. Amy lives in Savannah with her husband, three dogs and a pig named Gus.

Betsy Dominguez

Art history professor, medieval iconographer

Betsy Dominguez received her PhD from the University of Virginia and is a professor of art history at the Savannah College of Art and Design. She completed her dissertation, on iconography in English Gothic choir stalls, while serving as a research fellow at the Institute for Cultural Studies at the Humboldt University of Berlin. She is the author of a book on British woodcarving that was awarded a Kress Foundation research award from the International Center of Medieval Art.

Brian Hussey

Co-founder of Low Country Down Syndrome Society

Brian Hussey was born in Savannah, educated through local private parochial schools and earned a BBA in Business Administration from Savannah State University. Brian owns and operates Bow Tie Consulting, a financial services and technology firm. In 2006, Brian co-founded the Lowcountry Down Syndrome Society, a family support group to benefit people with Down syndrome and their families through local leadership in support, outreach, education and advocacy. Brian lives in Savannah with his wife Pam and three children: Ryan (33), Brennan (27) and Sean (12), who has Down syndrome.

Cynthia Harbor

Award-winning tech professional, STEM advocate

Cynthia Harbor is an award-winning technology professional from Atlanta, a certified project manager and certified SCRUM master. She is senior technical program manager for CACI, a multinational professional services and information technology company. Cynthia is a community activist involved in several organizations working to increase the presence of women in STEM careers, amplify the voices of women worldwide through art and cultural programs, advocate for equality for women and girls, and address the images of women in the media and the workplace.

Joseph Wadas

Hospice chaplain, wedding officiant

Joseph Wadas was born in California, grew up in Alabama and went to the seminary in Louisiana, where he earned a BA in Philosophy. Following graduate studies in Rome, Italy, Joseph was ordained in 1991 and served several churches in Alabama as a pastor. In 2004 he moved to Georgia and now holds multiple positions … as a hospice chaplain, a philosophy professor for Georgia Southern University, and a wedding officiant. Joseph says his personal life is blessed with a beautiful wife, three children, three grandchildren, and two dogs.

Julie Wade

Director of emergency youth shelter, community activist

Julie Wade has a law degree from the UGA School of Law and practiced in Hawaii and Boston before arriving in Savannah to work with The Wade Law Firm and Hunter Maclean. She is on the Board of Education, the Board of Girls on the Run and America’s Second Harvest. Julie was honored by UGA’s 40 under 40, and as a Rising Star by Savannah Magazine. Julie serves as the Director of Park Place Outreach, a youth emergency shelter in Savannah.

Karla Jennings

Public speaking instructor who incorporates TED talks in her classes

Karla Jennings teaches public speaking and communication at Georgia Southern University's Armstrong campus and enjoys helping students overcome their fears. Karla became interested in TED Talks while preparing to teach an advanced public speaking class for graduate students and has since become a self-described “TED Talk enthusiast.” She has written a chapter about using the TED model in “Raising our Voices: Communicating Our Existence,” an e-text for millennials and has presented locally and regionally on TED’s influence on public speaking.

Karla-Sue Marriott

Rocket scientist, artist, SSU professor

Karla-Sue Marriott holds a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry and serves as Professor and Interim Chair of the Chemistry and Forensic Science Department at Savannah State University. She is also a self-taught freehand nature-inspired painter. As a chemist, she collaborated on NASA research that launched Space-X 3 and Falcon 9 Rocket’s Dragon Capsule and was awarded a chemical patent in 2017. As an artist, she exhibited “Dancing with Nature: Being Human” in 2015 at SSU’s Fine Arts Gallery.

Matthew Raiford

James Beard finalist, sustainable eating advocate

Matthew Raiford has a Bachelor’s of Professional Studies degree in Culinary Arts from The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York and a certificate in Ecological Horticulture from UC Santa Cruz and The Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. Returning home to Brunswick, Georgia in 2011, Matthew is now the 6th generation farmer on his family’s land, Gilliard Farms, and is co-owner of The Farmer and The Larder, a culinary mix use space specializing in E.A.T. – educational adventures in taste.

Max Howell

Developer of Homebrew, open source software used by 50 million

Max Howell has a master’s degree in chemistry, but after a year in the profession, abandoned it upon realizing chemistry is “super boring”. He began exploring open source coding. After working at Last.fm, then TweetDeck, Howell created Homebrew, an open source software manager that is today used by about 50 million people. He also authored a tweet about the interview process in the software industry that has been viewed more than 3 million times. Last year, he and his wife started a mobile app development company in Savannah.

Ravi Gondaliya

Aeronautical engineer, Toastmaster

Ravi Gondaliya is a materials and processes engineer at Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation in Savannah. He holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Ravi is a researcher, investor and a start-up enthusiast. His previous work experiences include engineering at Spirit Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Ravi enjoys public speaking and is a member of Toastmasters International. During his free time, Ravi enjoys running and reading books.

Tina Nelson

Experimental psychologist, comparative cognition researcher

Tina Nelson was a high school dropout and mother at age 16, never expecting she’d be much more than “a statistic,” though she liked working and helping people. Each new job brought opportunities for personal growth, yet she realized her lack of formal education gave her little chance to advance. At age 40, Tina left the workforce to pursue a formal education; she will graduate Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Psychology with an emphasis on Experimental Psychology in May 2018.

William Gladden

Lawyer, activist, DNA sleuth

William Gladden’s passion for lifelong learning began when he was adopted and raised by two educators. He has been a Peace Corps volunteer in Nepal, a lawyer, and a certified financial planner to more than 1,000 Savannah clients. Now retired, he is busier than ever as a mediator of legal conflicts and discussion leader on TED talks and international affairs. He is the married father of three who lives in Ardsley Park.