TedX event goes off a year late

After being forced to wait a year due to the Coronavirus pandemic, The 2021 Goshen Tedx was given the proverbial “greenlight” to move forward with their independently organized ted talk, which was held in the Goshen High School’s Roy Reese Auditorium, on Saturday, June 5.

Suitably given the tagline “fountain of truth”, the event struck an inclusive tone, featuring speakers from an array of different backgrounds, professionals and students alike. Some of the speakers, such as Areyanna McCarthy (“What Time is it”), took a more abstract route with their talk, encapsulating one of her points by saying “In a world where the present doesn’t exist, we must recognize that the beauty is the unknown”. Master Sergeant Sara Pastorell (Our Tools) combined stories of personal loss, national service, and even historical examples such as the deadly Mann Gulch fire to explain that sometimes we have to drop what are usually perceived as being “heavy life saving tools” when they become a burden. Other speakers, such as Dominick Inger (“A God Moment”), took to telling the stories of several friends/associates who were able to turn around their lives, creating an emphatic connection between them, his own experiences, and the audience as a whole. Jason Orzell (“1,000 Points’’) spoke about his experience as a youth volunteer for the “Thunderbolts’’, one of Orange County’s Special Olympics Team, of which, his brother Eric is a teammate of; towards the end of Orzell’s talk, his brother Eric and he shared a heartwarming hug on stage. Fred Miles (‘’Defining Success”) described his transformation, all the way from struggling academic teenager, to soldier of the U.S. Army, to Goshen High School teacher, and of course, a loving father. The actual talk concluded with a gracious bow from all the guest speakers. Attendees of the talk were treated to free refreshments during various points of the event by a group of multitasking volunteers.

Full list of speakers in order of appearance (via provided program): Areyanna McCarthy, Megan Kincaid Kramer, Sandra Carretero-Fuentes, Andrew Rampulla, Ysabela Paneto, Master Sergeant Sara Pastorell, Regina Clark, Dominick Igneri, Jason Orzell, Ashlynn Crasa, and Fred Miles. The Master of Ceremonies for the night was Jill Gurda, with it’s head organizers being Eric Harris and Jonathan Redeker.

There were multiple tables set up by various entities in the hallway leading to the auditorium as well. More information, the names of the entire Goshen Tedx team can be found on their website “tedx goshen”. They hope to have videos of the speakers up on YouTube relatively soon.