Keynote Speakers

Monday, October 3, 2011

Terry Evanshen: Seize Each Day!

Terrence Anthony "Terry" Evanshen (born June 13, 1944 in Montreal, Quebec) is a motivational speaker and former star receiver in the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Drafted by the Montreal Alouettes, Terry went on to have an outstanding career in the CFL playing for 14 years from 1965-1978, with the Montreal Alouettes, the Calgary Stampeders, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and the Toronto Argonauts playing in nearly 200 games and scoring over 90 touchdowns.

Terry won the Gruen Trophy as the Eastern Rookie of the Year in 1965, the Most Outstanding Canadian Award in 1967 and 1971, was an all star 7 times, won the Grey Cup in 1970 and was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1984.

In 1988 Terry's life was nearly ended when a car ran a red light crashing into his Jeep. His injuries were so serious that a priest was called to perform last rites. Against great odds he survived in a coma, but when he awoke a month later he had no memory of his life before the crash. His struggles with this great loss eventually led him to become a motivational speaker. In the year 2000, author June Callwood wrote an award-winning book, The Man Who Lost Himself: The Terry Evanshen Story, which was turned into a 2005 movie for CTV, "The Stranger I Married", starring David James Elliott and Wendy Crewson and directed by Helen Shaver.

In 1994, the CFL adopted the Terry Evanshen Trophy which is awarded annually to the Outstanding Player in the East Division.

 

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Derek Hatfield: Taking Canada’s Colours To The World

It takes tremendous courage, determination and persistence to race around the world alone. Derek Hatfield is only the 126th person to ever have done it. As perspective, this is fewer than the approximately 400 astronauts who have gone into space or the over 15,000 mountaineers who have reached the summit of Mt. Everest.

It is a tremendous accomplishment under normal circumstances, but Derek’s story is truly inspiring.  Starting in September 2002 and ending in May of 2003, Derek captured the attention of sailing enthusiasts around the world as a competitor in the 2002-2003 Around Alone solo around the world race. Derek built an Open 40, a first in North America, to do the race. Despite a devastating pitch pole and dismasting near the infamous Cape Horn, Derek finished 1st in his class and became only the 2nd Canadian ever to complete the demanding race. Although Derek’s path was marked by seemingly insurmountable challenges, it was his perseverance and never-give-up attitude that were the guiding forces behind his successful drive to the finish line.

After finishing the Around Alone on such a high Derek was drawn to the next big challenge…to race around the world without stopping. The Vendee Globe is very pure in its application; you leave France and return via the 3 capes. After 50 days at sea and in the 5th day of a true southern ocean storm the boat was rolled and the mast struck the water, breaking 2 of the spreaders. Unable to affect the necessary repairs to the mast while at sea, Derek was forced to retire from the race.

Derek and his team are now preparing for the next big challenge, the prestigious VELUX 5 Oceans single handed race around the world using ECO60s. This race is the longest and toughest event for any individual in any sport. Starting in France on October 17th, 2010 the racers will navigate through a series of 5 high-pressure ocean sprints within a marathon circumnavigation.