2015 TEDxMcAllen Program

ARTURO
CASTAÑEDA
RAZOR
DAVE
DEBORAH
TOMAI
FRANCISCO
GUAJARDO
Arturo Castaneda left
Mercedes, Texas for
New York City. People
took notice of his fashion
sense which landed him a
job as a stylist for Ralph Lauren. Since then,
Arturo went on to become co-founder of Cielo
Brands a personal styling and interior concept
design company which styles Larry Fitzgerald,
Demaryius Thomas.
TOM
TORKELSON
Seventeen years ago
Tom Torkelson and
JoAnn Gama began
what would become IDEA
Public Schools as an after
school program at Donna ISD. In 2017 IDEA
Public Schools is planning to expand to over
60 schools including elementary, middle and
high schools. IDEA has school all over the
Rio Grande Valley, Austin and San Antonio. It
boast the fact that every high school senior
they have graduated has been accepted into
a college or university. Tom and IDEA Public
Schools have been featured in US News and
World Report Best High Schools and The
Washington Post.
RazorDave is a rock
guitarist and founding
member of the band
Black Tora. He has shared the
bill with renowned acts such as Motley Crue,
ZZ Top and Twisted Sister, and is a seven-time
veteran at one of the largest rock festivals in
the United States, Rocklahoma.
In addition to touring North America with
Black Tora, RazorDave has toured overseas
with Latin Grammy artist, Elida Reyna.
Black Tora’s debut album has seen distribution
in Japan through international label Spiritual
Beast and continues to receive rave reviews
through music publications and social media
around the world
FABIAN
MORENO
By combining his love
for astonishment with
elements such as classic
literature, film, modern
day culture, and an innate
sense of humor Fabian
entertains audiences of the highest caliber
with his own personal style of magic. He has
performed for celebrities, CEO’s, universities,
politicians, America’s finest physicians and
attorneys and is the only magician to have ever
performed for a seated grand jury during their
official courtroom proceedings in the state of
Texas.
After the birth of her
son Ben in 2011, Deborah
was desperate to find
some kind of community
for children with Down
syndrome and their parents. Her
efforts lead to meeting with seven families that
would go on to co-find the Rio Grande Valley
Down Syndrome Association. They first met
in March of 2012 and organized themselves as
a preschool playgroup. Today the RGVDSA is
thriving with over 200 families. Its community
includes newborns to adults. Its mission is to
build relationships, advocacy, and support for
individuals with Down syndrome and their
families.
Francisco Guajardo is
a founder of the Llano
Grande Center. Started
in the early ‘90s as an
initiative to stretch student’s
expectations on their own
college success. The Center has evolved
into an educational laboratory outside of the
classroom. The Center has trained students,
educators, and community development
agents locally, nationally, and internationally on
how to find, tell and use their story to achieve
community change. Today Francisco continues
his work with the Llano Grande Center and is a
professor at the University of Texas Rio Grande
Valley.
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