Monday, December 2, 2019

9:30 – 10:30 ENVIRONMENT

Connecting with Mother Nature’s Other Children

Speaker: Holly Jorgensen, Author and Photographer

Have you spoken to a deer and had it answer back, or had a friendship with a wild sunfish? Jorgensen loves to share her connections with and deep reverence for animals. Through her photography, stories, and readings from her book, Enchanted—Reflections from a Joyfully Green and Frugally Rich Life, Jorgensen will inspire you to find your own path to enchantment.

10:45 – 11:45  EQUALITY, EQUITY, and JUSTICE

Freeing Minnesotans from Payday Lenders

Speaker: Sara Nelson-Pallmeyer, Executive Director of Exodus Lending

Payday loans trap thousands of Minnesota borrowers in a cycle of debt from which it is almost impossible to escape. Exodus Lending has saved primarily minority and women borrowers hundreds of thousands of dollars by refinancing these loans so that they can pay the principal back gradually. It also works for long term political solutions to usurious lending.

11:45 – 12:00 ANNOUNCEMENTS

12:00 – 1:15   LUNCHEON

1:15 – 2:15 THE ARTS

My Experiences as History Theatre Director

Speaker: Ron Peluso, Artistic Director, History Theatre

In Peluso’s words: “Over the past 25 years, I have had the opportunity to commission, develop, and collaborate as a director on over 90 original plays and musicals. I will share with you our process and stories about the creation of many of these works and why we are passionate about our mission.

“History Theatre creates and produces work about real people who have made a difference, for better or worse, in Minnesota, the Midwest, and in our diverse American landscape. We have long been committed to stories of immigration, worker rights/civil rights, and issues of social justice—we do this in the entertaining world of theater with the best professionals in the Twin Cities market.

“I will also share with you all the nature of leading a non-profit organization, working with a board of directors, and keeping the organization financially stable while working with a mission that is innately precarious at best.”