Jennifer Trudrung has come a long way from when she used to pray for thunderstorms to get out of presenting campfire programs in front of people when she worked as a Park Ranger in Canyonlands National Park.
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Gregg Levoy, author of Callings: Finding and Following An Authentic Life (Random House) and Vital Signs: The Nature and Nurture of Passion (Penguin), is the former "behavioral specialist" at USA Today and a regular blogger for Psychology Today.
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Amanda Anne Platt has been described as "easily one of the best songwriters coming out of Western North Carolina these days" (Martin Anderson, WNCW), with a voice that "sings like Carolina farmlands after a rainstorm" (Harvey Robinson, Monkeywhale Productions). She is the songwriter, lead singer, and producer of the Asheville-based Americana group The Honeycutters.
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Lonnie Holley was born on February 10, 1950 in Birmingham, Alabama. From the age of five, Holley worked various jobs: picking up trash at a drive-in movie theatre, washing dishes, and cooking. He lived in a whiskey house, on the state fairgrounds, and in several foster homes. His early life was chaotic and Holley was never afforded the pleasure of a real childhood.
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Sybil Rosen is an award-winning novelist, short story writer, and playwright.
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Jonathan Kirby is a record collector, author, and producer with the esteemed reissue label, the Numero Group. A native of Winston-Salem, he is an authority on music recorded in the Carolinas, and has amassed thousands of independently produced records from the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s, spanning all genres from doo-wop to hip-hop, folk to funk to rock.
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Josh Tickell is a Sundance Award Winning film director, bestselling author and thought leader in the fields of youth, climate and alternative energy. In 1997, Josh’s vividly painted “Veggie Van” made headlines across the United States as it picked up used frying oil and turned it into fuel. His subsequent movie, FUEL, went to theaters globally and was shown in the White House. He is author of the books KISS THE GROUND and THE REVOLUTION GENERATION. He is the co-director and producer of the upcoming documentaries entitled KISS THE GROUND and THE REVOLUTION GENERATION.