Speakers Bank

The Division is working to compile a bank of speakers with approved programs. Contact Shannon Pogones at 515.281.3426 or Pogones@IowaABD.com if you are interested in submitting your program or for contact information for the below speakers. 

Speakers

Steve Ford

Steve Ford spent several years living at America's most famous address, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and also 25 years as an actor in Hollywood working on such films as When Harry Met Sally, Transformers and Blackhawk Down. Steve will share the lessons he learned as the son of President Gerald R. Ford and also his iconic mother, Betty Ford. How the Ford family dealt with their mother's bouts with alcoholism and the legacy she left in the treatment community. Steve will also share his own journey to 16 years of sobriety and the tools he uses today.

This session takes you on a wonderful journey of rethinking your life with inspirational stories about your own personal character and daily choices. Within all of these lessons Steve lets you in on the behind the scenes life of a family in the White House and also his life in Hollywood.

To read more about Steve Ford or make a booking inquiry visit the Midwest Speakers Bureau

J. Michael McCoy

Mac McKoy is a syndicated TV and radio talk show host based in Des Moines, Iowa. Mac is a successful 30-year broadcaster who used his broadcast platform to energize, enlighten and entertain.  Mac’s unique vision of the world is shared through his ”Macisms” which are best described as, simple sayings to help people get through the challenges of daily life. Mac’s own design of the ‘Belief Clock’ will get you started on transforming your world.

About the Belief Clock:

In The Project Belief Clock, you will learn to ” Make decisions with ice water in your veins, and THEN carry them out with emotions.” (Macism #5)

The Belief Clock teaches us, to start our decision making process with our beliefs, not our feelings.  The Belief Clock teaches us that if we start with what you WANT to happen, not what you feel should happen, your success rate on relationships will amaze you!

• You will begin to operate from a place that allows you to build on a foundation of your core beliefs.
• You will learn how to communicate with other people because you’re not communicating based on emotion, you are communicating based on beliefs.
• You will learn how to start from a position of facts and circumstances, not feelings and consequences.
• You will learn to take responsibility for your actions as a learning experience rather than a judgmental approach to taking responsibility.
• You will learn that actions speak louder than words.
• You will learn the Belief Clock system and how it will change the way you look at YOUR world.

Your projects, passions and relationships will be great sources of inspiration to you, rather than disappointment and resentments. You will invest less money and time, and see greater rewards for your efforts!

Here are just a few of the Macisms Mac’s Shares with you. 

When you understand the mechanics of the Belief Clock, it will change how you look at life and challenge every single decision you make…Why do you want to do this ?…

Tune in daily, and read his blog at MacsWorldLive.com. Mac’s unique story can be modified to fit any need, having been a bar owner in the Des Moines area and his own personal struggles with alcohol can be conveyed to your audience by understanding the four main components of the belief clock, actions, results, feelings and beliefs. 

Sarah Panazu

Sarah's Journey - Not many people get to walk throughout life and impact people by telling their story, I'm just blessed to have that opportunity.

On August 23, 2003 I was in a near fatal car accident which changed my life forever.  On the road, I was clinically dead and was given a 0% chance of survivability. I did not have a blood pressure or a pulse and was no longer bleeding.  A policeman (who was on an East St. Louis over-pass picking up shell casings from a shooting the night before) and an ambulance crew (that was returning to Illinois from a transfer) just happened on my accident. While I was lifeless on the road, considering calling the coroner, they witnessed an agginal breath, and I was immediately intubated.  I was stabilized and air lifted by helicopter to St. Louis University where I lived the next 6 weeks.  2 weeks in a coma and 4 weeks in intensive care and on a ventilator. 

 But after near 40 surgeries, I am here to tell my story.   It was a miracle that I survived the accident.  I was out with my friends (the people I thought really cared about me.)  These so called friends let me get into my car with a blood alcohol level of 0.308. That is almost 4 times the legal limit in the state of Illinois.

Prior to my accident, I only lived for today.  I lived like I would never die.  I had turned my back on my family and I had very little purpose in life.  I had quit school, and gave up a full ride volleyball scholarship.  A two-time all American Volleyball player to bartender!  I had no direction in life. My life has totally changed and I have started public speaking to teens and young adults about drinking and driving, making good decisions, what is important in life, and the importance of parents and family.  It is a presentation of courage, determination, and the celebration, that emphasizes making the right choices in life. 

I am speaking to area junior high and high school students concerning underage drinking. I just recently signed with Anheuser Busch to be apart of the AB speakers Bureau. AB will allow me to take my story from coast to coast.  My presentation is not like any prevention lecture ever given.  All in all, I have given my presentation to 90,000+ area teens and young adults. I would LOVE to continue to share my story, “Sarah’s Journey”, to young and old alike because if it can affect just one person, I will have considered my life a success.

Read more about Sarah on her website at: http://www.sarahsjourney.com/story.html

Adam L. Bloomberg, M.D.

 Adam L. Blomberg, M.D. completed his training at Brigham & Women's Hospital, a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School in Boston in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine. During his final year of residency, he served as Chief Resident.

After overcoming a Traumatic Brain Injury that he suffered in a motor vehicle crash as a senior in High School, he is now committed to public safety awareness.  A volunteer at the William Lehman Injury Research Center in Miami since 1998, Adam co-founded "Driving Responsibly in Vehicles Education", or D.R.I.V.E. for short.  The Lehman Center, headed by Dr. Jeffrey Augenstein, is a national model for car crash research and education.  D.R.I.V.E. is designed to provide a coalition of injury prevention initiatives.  The first program under the D.R.I.V.E. coalition is "Adam - A Survivor's Story."  This comprehensive multimedia program is based on his personal experience and depicts the dangers of not following simple safety precautions in a motor vehicle.  After having tremendous success with this program in Miami, Adam is now working with other national Injury Prevention programs to broaden the audience base on a national level.

In addition to his speaking about "Driving Responsibly", Adam also can speak to any organization about his recovery and how to overcome adversity in his program "The Journey."

Dr. Blomberg can be reached via email at: ablomberg@drivingresponsibly.com & read more about Adam on his website at: http://www.drivingresponsibly.com/

Linda Dutil, R.N.

Linda Dutil grew up in the town of Stockbridge Massachussetts. As a teenage and college student, she watched the lives of close friends altered by poor choices involving drugs and alcohol.

Eventually she moved to the state of Maine where she met and married her husband Brian. Her long time fascination with science and medicine finally brought her to nursing school.

While her children were young, she completed her nursing degree. She soon discovered her love and fascination for emergency room medicine. "I found that making a difference in someone's life was a tremendous personal reward," Linda stated.

Fifteen years ago, a local Deput from the Sheriff's Department called and asked for Linda's assistance in a local school. He asked her to share her personal stories to show the students what happens as a result of poor choices. The response to this first presentation was tremendous from both staff and students.

By sharing her experiences as an ER nurse, Linda helps students consider the consequences of poor choices and enables them to develop healthy attitudes about life. "The emergency room is the last place anyone wants to visit," Dutil states. "I hope to make a lasting impression on young people across the country. I want to empower them with the skills that they need to make good choices to stay safe. Read more about Linda's message at http://www.dose-of-reality.com/.