The Southeast Produce Council has announced its lineup of speakers for Southern Exposure: Produce Means Family taking place March 6-8, 2025, at the Orlando World Center Marriott in Florida.
The guest speakers include:
Celebrity keynote speaker – Bethany Hamilton: At age 13, Hamilton lost her left arm to a 14-foot tiger shark, which seemed to end her career as a rising surf star. One month after the attack, Bethany returned to the water and within two years had won her first national title. Since then, her story has been told in a New York Times bestselling autobiography and the 2011 film, Soul Surfer. Hamilton is involved in numerous charitable efforts, including The Beautifully Flawed Foundation, which reaches out to amputees and youth.
L-R: Bethany Hamilton, David Fikes
Industry keynote speaker – David Fikes: Fikes is the executive director of the FMI Foundation, which has the mission of supporting the food industry through a focus on research and education in the areas of food safety, health and wellbeing, and social responsibility. Fikes formerly served as FMI's vice president for communication and consumer/community relations and before joining FMI, he was the director of communication for the American Frozen Food Institute. Before the world of food, he worked for 20 years as an Episcopal priest.
Southern Roots luncheon speaker – Dominique Dawes: Owner of the Dominique Dawes Gymnastics & Ninja Academies, Dawes opened her first academy in July 2020 and her second location opened in 2023. Dawes also holds minority ownership of the Washington Spirit of the National Women's Soccer League and served as the co-chair of the President's Council for Fitness, Sports and Nutrition under the Obama administration. Dawes holds her degree from the University of Maryland and was inducted into UMD's Hall of Fame in 2022.
L-R: Jason Brown, Dominique Dawes
Good Seeds MENtor program speaker – Jason Brown: Brown studied interpersonal communications at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill while on an athletic scholarship. After graduating in 2005, he was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens. As a free agent in 2009, Brown signed a five-year contract with the St. Louis Rams, served three, and was released in March 2012. With offers on the table from the Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers, and the San Francisco 49ers, he walked away from the NFL, moved back to North Carolina, and purchased a 1,000-acre farm in Louisburg. The farm has hosted community events and collaborated with many faith and service organizations. The farm has yielded one million lbs of produce which were given to food pantries and churches throughout the Triangle area.
Register now at SEPC's Southern Exposure webpage to secure your spot.
For more information:
Anna Burch
Southeast Produce Council Inc.
Tel.: +1 (877) 720-SPEC
[email protected]
https://seproducecouncil.com/