Theme: RE:Loaded

In this age of idea and community growth, we have to RE:think and RE:vision our old mindsets. TEDxAntioch 2015 is looking at old ideas in new ways that will help us to RE:Load our perceptions. Get ready for a fun time challenging ourselves and our old ways of thinking!

Lakeshore Community Church
5434 Bell Forge Ln E
Antioch, Tennessee, 37013
United States

Ami Mattison

Poet, Perfomer, Teacher

Touring professionally since 2002, Mattison has performed at various art venues, festivals, conferences, colleges, and universities throughout the US and Canada. In 2013, she received the Fellowship of Southern Writers’ Spoken Word Award. Acclaimed Southern writer, Dorothy Allison, writes: “Always [Mattison] speaks for the despised in verse that hallows grief and embodies joy. The world is larger, wider, fuller for the people she brings alive in words.” Mattison served as a writer-in-residence at Inside Out in Detroit, Michigan and taught poetry and creative expression in the Detroit public school system. She also taught at Emory University, Georgia State University and Antioch College in Ohio before pursuing writing and performing on a full-time basis. She currently resides in Alabama.

Antoinette Welch

Founder, Hannah Project

Antoinette Welch, former ADA in Nashville, TN, is the founder of a program called The Hannah Project. It is a program used to screen for victims of sex trafficking as well as help women stuck in the cycle of prostitution with options of treatment and counseling. The Hannah Project has been in 5 documentaries and one best-selling book written by Pulitzer Prize winner, Nicolas Kristoff on the subject of sex trafficking. Mrs. Welch spent 8 years as an instructor at Nashville's John School.  A program aimed at getting 1st time offenders of soliciting prostitutes to understand the full ramifications of their behavior and to prevent further occurrences.

Elaine Husted

Artistic Director, HustedDance & Choreographer

Elaine takes great pleasure in the choreographic and teaching process. She finds creating shapes, movement, and rhythms, and giving these to others to perform, a profound and rewarding experience. Elaine grew up dancing in upstate New York and has lived in the Nashville area since 2001. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Dance from S.U.N.Y. Brockport and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Arizona. Elaine has taught at several universities and private studios and is now the Artistic Director of HustedDance.

Jazzy Sdlihc

Poet, Spoken Word, Author

Jazzy Sdlihc is an Author, Poet, and Certified Life Coach. She has been writing poetry (and various literatures) since the young age of eight. Growing up shy and very reserved, she rarely shared her poetry writings with anyone. Her courage finally came in 2009, at the age of 31, when she performed in front of a live audience at a Nashville open mic event. Since then, she has been featured at various workshops, networking events, music venues, local schools, and community/charity functions. Alongside of her performances, Jazzy has also recorded and released her poetry as songs. In 2013, she became a self- published author of the book titled “Poetry Expresso”. Because of her desire to uplift and inspire, her focus and mission is to empower with her words and motivate others to discover their own voice.

Jeni Calhoun

Spoken Word / Hip Hop Artist

Jeni Calhoun is a classically trained Vocalist/Spoken word artist with strong ties to the local community. Jeni sparked a love for music and poetry as young girl growing up in Detroit Michigan. She would spend days in her room reading the works of literary scholars like Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston. She made her debut as a Solo Hip Hop Artist in 2008 with the release of her album "Real Artist Please." She has since merged her appreciation of classical music with her love of a good base line and a rhyme. Each of her works speak intricately about the power of love, redemption and self-actualization. Through the lens of a young woman in pursuit of purpose. Jeni also uses her platform to help raise awareness about sexual and domestic abuse. She works with several local Non- profit organizations and helps facilitate community outreach programs. "If music is the soundtrack to life, then each day is a note in our own Magnum Opus”. – Jeni Calhoun

Jeremy Rochford

Author & Weight Loss Expert

Jeremy Rochford is the founder of The Nashville Wellness Academy as well as the author of his personal weight loss memoir, in which he tells his story of losing 200 lbs., "The Gospel According to Chubby." Jeremy has pioneered a cutting edge approach to weight loss which focuses on meeting the emotional and psychological needs of the individual while addressing nutrition and exercise programming - an approach he calls “Weight Loss Mentorship”.

L.T. Kirk

Performer, Producer, Director, Survivor/Chronic Illness

L.T. Kirk is a performer trained in classical voice, opera, and theater. He is also a long term survivor of Cardiomyopathy, a form of heart failure. Living with a life threatening chronic illness has taken L.T. on a physical and emotional journey of self discovery and re-discovery of life. While his health greatly limits what he can do on stage, he has discovered new outlets for his passion behind the scenes. He co-founded KB Productions, a theater company, and serves on the board of HustedDance, a summer intensive program for college aged students of modern dance. L.T. has received award recognition for directing and producing, and his company was nominated by the Nashville LGBT Chamber of Commerce for their Leadership in the Arts award for 2015. He lives in Nashville, TN with his husband and their seven rescue dogs.

Teri Pugh

Grief Specialist & Author

Author, Mom, and Grief Specialist, Teri Pugh is dedicated to helping folks make sense of life’s hiccups and crossroads. Through her program Transcending Turbulence she helps folks navigate loss to reconnect and reclaim their peace of mind, happiness and balance and discover the gift in grief. Teri sees clients in private practice and travels the country facilitating workshops and seminars on this personal freedom. In addition she teaches her program to inmates at a local Maximum Security State Prison. With over 2 decades in this arena, Teri knows the domino effect of unresolved grief, pain and anger. It not only weighs heavy on the heart and mind, over time can result in a state of “dis-ease”, showing up in a variety of discomforts in our physical, as well as emotional and mental states.