LEADERS

Angela Aguilar

Angela Aguilar was born and raised in San Diego, California. The eldest daughter of immigrant parents, she was taught from an early age the importance of love, family and education. Angela was the first person in her family to graduate from college in the United States, earning her Bachelors in Sociology with an emphasis in Inequalities (specifically race and gender) from San Diego State University.

In life experiences, her main goal has always been the search for the ways that we are all connected and the adventures that go along with living life fully. This has led to a diverse range of work and interests including the non-profit sector (Survivors of Torture, International, Move San Diego); camp counselor for middle and high school youth; Hollywood in Film and Television Development; Director of Marketing and Admissions for a nursing and rehabilitation facility, as well as writing and releasing two music albums.

In all of these worlds, she has learned that people are so much more the same than they are different. The desire to share that love and connection is what motivates Angela to create change in the world. "I am a woman, a Challenge Day Leader, a writer, a daughter, a goofy kid, a singer and a friend. But more so than that, my purpose is to remind us that we are all little bits and pieces of everything - and because of that ANYTHING is possible."

If you really knew me, you would know…

• The highest thing that I can aspire to be is just like my mom and my grandma.
• I love being part of an organization full of passionate, incredible, funny, loving and diverse world changers. As different as we all are, our shared vision of how we can all make the world better makes me excited to go to work every day.
• One of my biggest fears is not being "enough". Every day I try to remind myself that if I walk through this world loving other people, I have to love me first.
• I love being Filipino. I am constantly learning and relearning what my culture means to me and the ways that I walk in between worlds.
• I'm the oldest of three girls and I love being their "Ate" (big sister). They are my heart and watching them grow into the young women they are today and recognizing my part in it is one of the biggest joys of my life.
• I seriously miss Southern Californian Mexican food so much it hurts sometimes.
• You'd know that I am driven to fully express myself, always. To do that, I'm the most comfortable in relaying my personal truths, whether that be in conversation, on a written page of my own words, or in a sung note in a still room.
• I really, really love cardigans.

Berenice Meza-Aguiar

Berenice was born in Tijuana Mexico where she lived until the age of 13. She moved to the United States and has lived in the San Francisco Bay Area ever since. Having been relentlessly teased for everything from her accent to her lack of knowledge of her new countries culture, Berenice found herself getting involved in gang related activities. Today, she is a powerful leader who has transformed the hurt she received as an immigrant student in the California educational system into a passion for making sure that every student feels safe, loved and celebrated in our schools.

Bernice is fluently bi-lingual and came to Challenge Day with a wide range of experience in team development, leadership and management. She is a passionate leader with a special ability to reach out to and support hurt teens.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• You would know I am passionately committed to Being the Change in every area of my life.
• You would know that I'm in love with love, I love my family and consider my friends a part of it.
• You would know that I love music, concerts, snowboarding, dancing, painting, traveling, and cosmetology.
• You would know that I'm really grateful for everything in my life, and that I loving being a Challenge Day leader and spreading love across the world.

Christopher Foster

Christopher was born and raised in Southern California, and moved to the Bay Area to attend UC Berkeley. After 3 years of study he received a Bachelors of Arts degree in Mass Communications. Since then, Christopher has worked as a video editor for a Bay Area television station.

His spirit, heart, and passion for people is displayed in his work with his church in Berkeley where he serves as Youth Pastor. It is here where Christopher implements innovative and creative programming that is designed to reach and impact everyone. He is currently pursuing his Masters Degree at Fuller Theological Seminary.

2006 was year filled with heartbreak and devastation. In the midst of this pain, Challenge Day was vital in my internal development and fortification, proving that my life has been destined to collide with Challenge Day.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I place a high premium on character and integrity.
• I am committed and have strong convictions towards anyone or anything I devote my heart to.
• I am the first recipient of any lesson that I endeavor to share with others.
• I love hard, and it is extremely difficult to get me to stop loving, once I have started.

Devon Rath

Devon was born and raised in San Francisco, California, where she attended public school. She grew up in an extremely loving, and at times volatile, family. The emotional stress and isolation Devon felt led her to get involved with a rough crowd. Through her hardships, she learned not only about herself, but also about the inequity with which people were treated at school and in the world.

At a young age, Devon became passionate about working for social justice. She began her activist career in high school with Rising Youth for Social Equity. Through her work to change the world, Devon realized that change and healing needed to start from within herself. Devon continues to use this mantra in her life today.

Although she initially doubted her ability to achieve, Devon has consistently outdone even her own expectations. Through personal and political growth work and her belief in positive change, she started dreaming big. In 1999, she studied abroad in Mexico. She graduated from Rutgers University in New Jersey in 2001, and earned her Masters in Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia in 2002. Most recently, Devon returned from a Social Work exchange program in the East End of London in the United Kingdom. She has a fiery passion for making the world a better place, and practices loving-kindness for herself and others daily.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I am grateful to have an incredible family. We have grown through many hard times and I consider myself a lucky daughter and sister.
• Being a Challenge Day Leader is my dream job and merges my passion for personal change and social change.
• At times I can be big and passionate. But if you really, really knew me you would know that it comes from a kind loving heart that aches for all people to feel love and happiness.
• I am quick and funny, and my favorite thing to do is hang out with my family and friends and snuggle and laugh.
• My favorite breakfast is bacon and eggs.

Jake Cahill

Addicted to drugs and kicked out of his house at the age of eighteen, Jake knew he had to change his life. He went on an "outdoor adventure" trip and while backpacking in New Mexico, Jake had an epiphany, decided to give up drugs and alcohol and find out why he felt sad and alone so often. Since that day Jake has been on a journey that has lead to many places and experiences he never could have imagined (leading Challenge Day's being on the top of that list). Along the way he has developed a strong background in Buddhist meditation, and Native American ceremony.

Jake has had many jobs ranging from cooking, to guiding trail rides on horses, to selling cemetery property door to door. Most recently he owned his own house painting company in Seattle, Washington. Since Jake got clean, it was always his dream to be able to work with youth. After attending his first Challenge Day, he knew he found what he had been looking for.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• One of my biggest fears is wasting my life.
• I believe everyone deserves to be listened to.
• In my life I have been willing to give up, or take on, anything if I thought I would learn from it.
• I tend to learn the hard way; but the lessons stick with me.
• My love for shoes and clothing is hard to put into words.
• The day that I die I wish to have no fear in my heart.
• I believe that Challenge Day teaches some of life's most important lessons.
• I love meditating, world travel, snowboarding, music, dancing, hiking, being out in nature, singing, and really great food.
• I have dedicated my life to service of others and spiritual practice.
• I have learned that the only thing that separates us is the belief that something separates us.

Jennifer Wilson

Jennifer has lived her life thus far in the San Francisco Bay Area. In high school, Jennifer was in many plays, musicals, and won an award for being the Class Clown. Until the age of 21, Jennifer spent her life living for others. After she realized that it wasn't serving her, Jennifer bought a one-way ticket to Spain to find herself. While in Spain, she realized everything she was looking for was within her the whole time.

Jennifer attended Challenge Day when she returned from Spain and it changed her life. From that moment on, she worked to become a Challenge Day leader. She volunteered with the Make a Wish Foundation, Challenge Day, was a Big Sister, and volunteered with Pathways Hospice, where she sat beside the dying and experienced the "A Year to Live" practice.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• You would know that my heart holds the love and space for every being on this planet.
• You would that my mother and father taught me how to love that BIG. They taught me to be compassionate, to be kind, and to love ALL beings. They taught me what true unconditional love looks like, and I feel so blessed to have them as my parents.
• You would know that I love traveling, sky diving, surfing, laughing, my friends, my family, music, LIFE, beat boxing, dancing (especially hip hop), spending time alone in nature, and falling in love.
• You would know that Challenge Day leader Vinny has had an enormous impact on my life, and I am eternally grateful for his presence in my life.
• You would know that I was born to be a Challenge Day Leader and everything in my life until now has prepared me for this. And you would also know I feel like this is only the beginning of the positive change I will make on this planet.

Jon Gordon

Jon attended St. Mary's College of California as a two sport athlete (intending to play soccer and baseball but ended up with soccer and basketball). After graduation he began working within the Television Industry as well as continuing to work with youth coaching High School Varsity Soccer and different forms of camps and retreats.

Jon went on to play professional soccer for a team in Central California. After his first season of playing professionally Jon chose to prioritize his "other interest" which was working with youth. Instead of continuing on with soccer he moved to Mexico City to live and work at an orphanage. On his return, he began working at a group home for those who were labeled as "emotionally disturbed." Along with being a senior counselor Jon trained all of the new staff members specializing in team building and the assesment and de- escalation of crisis situations. It was during recovery time from an injury suffered at the group home that Jon found Challenge Day.

Jon has over 14 years of experience working with teenagers of all ages in many different environments. (Camps, Athletics, Support Groups, Retreats, Volunteer Coordination, Team Facilitation/Building, Classrooms, Outdoor Education, etc.)

Jon grew up in the Bay Area the oldest of three children raised by their loving parents.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• My family is absolutely amazing and I love hanging out with them.
• Being a Challenge Day Leader is my dream job and merges my passion for personal change and social change.
• I have been fortunate enough to travel to many places inside and outside of our country and I believe that we are all able to have fun together regardless of differences.
• I let sports define me as a person for a long period of my life. I still love sports.
• I am a firm believer that it's not what you are doing but who you are doing it with.
• I love cereal.

Jyoti Subramanian

Jyoti was born an only child in 1972 in Joplin, MO. At age 10, she and her family moved to Wisconsin, and a few years later to California where she completed high school and college. Jyoti traveled to Africa as part of her college work and obtained her Masters in Community Development and Natural Resource Management in developing nations. While visiting India to do research for her degree, she ended up meeting the Dalai Lama and her whole life changed. Jyoti devoted herself to studying spiritual practices for the next 7 years, living in different parts of India. The last two years she focused on yoga, living in Sivananda Kutir, a yoga ashram in the Himalayas.

Jyoti returned to the US in February, 2004 and knew she was called to do service. Shortly after her return, a Challenge Day Leader asked her to be a facilitator at a Challenge Day. She attended the Next Step Community Workshop in July and knew she had found her path. She became a Challenge Day leader in September, 2004.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• If you really knew me, you would know that my main mission in life is to spread love and peace to everyone I meet.
• You would know that I believe we all have the potential to realize that our own true nature is nothing but love.
• If you really knew me, you would know that I struggle daily to maintain a positive attitude and peaceful state of mind. That I am still fighting my old habits that want me to suffer, that often get the better of me, and that I am inspired daily to fight them and transform myself into a fully awakened being.
• If you really knew me, you would know that the reason I love doing this work is that I feel empowered to not only spread love and peace but to tap the source of love and peace inside each young person I touch.
• And you would know that I get to watch the miracle unfold and it strengthens my belief that this is the reason we all come to earth.

Katie Salvage

Katie grew up in Southern California and at age fifteen, moved to the San Francisco Bay Area with her family. Growing up with eight younger brothers and sisters, Katie found herself taking on a lot of responsibility at a very young age. This led to a strong desire to separate from her family and discover who she was, on her own.

Between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four, Katie struggled through many of life's ups and downs. After deciding that there had to be a happier, more peaceful way to live, Katie went through a drastic change. She attended an eight-day retreat where she learned about unconditional love, forgiveness, and peace.

Although the road she traveled wasn't easy, she finally realized that her passion in life is in helping others. For many years, she worked to empower individuals through educational seminars from personal safety to authentic communication.

After attending one of Challenge Day's Next Step workshops, Katie knew right away that she was meant to be a Challenge Day Leader. Her desire to implement positive changes in the world is what drives her every single day.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I'm on a mission.
• I'm a huge goofball.
• Music moves me in a way nothing else can.
• I love every single one of my amazing family members.
• My friends are incredible.
• I feel most peaceful and whole when I'm in nature.
• I LOVE kids.
• I am grateful for all of the wonderful in my life.
• I see beauty in every person I meet.
• I laugh…a lot
• Sometimes, and only when it's absolutely necessary, I bust out "The Katie Dance"

Kekoa Won

Kekoa Won was born and raised in Oahu, Hawaii. He attended Berkeley University on a football scholarship. After receiving his B.A. in Criminal Justice, Kekoa worked for Boys and Girls Club of America. Over the course of his six years with Boys and Girls Clubs, he served as an Athletic Director, Director of Operations and finally as a Club Director in Martinez, Napa and East San Jose. While there, he was also responsible for several National Program Initiatives, Packard Foundation Project Learn, Lucille Packard Smart Girls Project, Intel Computer Clubhouse Project, 2001 Northern California Youth of the Year Awards Banquet as well as serving on the 2001 Pacific Region Youth Development Conference Committee.

Kekoa has also worked in Alcohol and Drug Abuse prevention/intervention for Contra Costa County as well as serving as a counselor for the Contra Costa County Youth Detention Facility.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I live every day like it's my last.
• I love my family – they are the most important thing to me.
• I believe every kid, no matter what their circumstances, experiences, struggles or issues can be successful. It's not what happens in our lives that defines who we are; it's what we do with it that defines us – our character and our legacy.
• I would say to everyone I meet, "Don't ever let anyone tell you that you're not enough. We all have blessings and gifts to share with the world."

Khayree Shaheed

A musician and producer with a passion for service, Khayree has shared his music with audiences around the world. Khayree has worked with artists such as Tupac Shakur and Tony Dewayne, and his music has been featured in a major Spike Lee film.

Khayree is most proud of his love for community service. From an early age, Khayree has had a passion for supporting youth. "I was destined to be a student, teacher, and healer," he says. Over the years, Khayree has spoken in local California high schools, San Quentin Penitentiary, and at the Omega Boys Club of Vallejo, California.

"I was one of those young persons in school that was bullied and did some bullying. I was lonely and afraid," Khayree remembers. "As a youth in high school, I was angry and lacked self-esteem. I was blessed by elders who help me become a gentle, more loving man. As the father of three daughters, I know firsthand the value of what it means to have someone be there to love and support you. My work with Challenge Day allows me to help heal the planet and myself at the same time!"

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I am a very sensitive man and I do cry.
• As a child I always felt alone because I longed for the love of my mother, who passed when I was three. Even as a grown man, I still long for my mother's love.
• Challenge Day has taken me way out of my comfort zone!
• Before Challenge Day, my life felt incomplete because I knew I was supposed to be serving people.
• I am so blessed to be working with Challenge Day.
• My wife, Carla, and my daughters, Nyaisha, Imara, and Jasmine are my everything.
• I love all people!

Mzima Scadeng

Mzima discovered a passion for facilitating and empowering youth while in high school. She volunteered for a youth crisis hotline, worked as a camp counselor, and facilitated support groups for youth through COLAGE (Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere).

While studying nonprofit management at American University in Washington D.C., Mzima continued working with youth as a tutor, a mentor, and a volunteer "Peer Educator" for the American Red Cross, teaching high school students HIV/AIDS prevention.

After college, Mzima returned to her home town of Berkeley, California and started her own business as a professional cat sitter. After the senseless murder of her best friend, Keith, Mzima regained hope by teaching peace and human-relations curriculum to fourth and fifth grade children for the Mosaic Project

If you really knew me, you would know…

• Since my very first experience with Challenge Day, I have felt certain that I have found my home, and that becoming a Leader is currently my life's calling.
• My "sisters" Amber, Brianna, and Katy inspire me to be my best.
• I felt lonely and isolated for most of my middle school years.
• I am very sensitive to any human or animal suffering, and as a child I would burst into tears when even a ladybug was stepped on.
• My mother and father gave me the gifts of unconditional love and support, and it is my commitment to pass that love on to the youth I work with.
• I love, and imagine someday I may live in, Costa Rica.

Pam Dunn

Pam grew up in the small town of Sierra Vista, AZ, about 70 miles southeast of Tucson. She graduated from Buena High School, and attended Arizona State University and New College of California.

Prior to her entry into the Challenge Day community, Pam spent much of her professional life consulting nonprofit agencies, first as part of an evaluation firm and then on her own. In addition to evaluation and documentation, she has also provided support to agencies by facilitating such processes as strategic planning, program and staff development, and conflict resolution. As a trainer for the nationally-recognized Be Present, Inc. (BPI), she has helped countless women and girls understand and develop leadership, in their own lives as well as in their families and communities. Pam has been a member of this organization for over 10 years, working locally in their Sisters and Allies Training Project, and nationally as a facilitator for retreats and training workshops. Pam also leads the evaluation efforts and provides consultation for their organizing core group with the national Board of Directors, the Executive Director, and other BPI facilitators.

In the local Bay Area, Pam is a trainer in the Family Childcare Training Project, a project that provides licensed Family Daycare Providers with peer-support facilitation, childcare business administration, and computer technology training.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I am a bicultural African American woman who grew up spanning the divide between the community and family I was born into and the predominantly white community where I lived.
• I was 17 years old when I realized that my primary attraction was to other women and I had to move away from home to learn that it meant I was a lesbian.
• Becoming a Challenge Day Leader was a gift to me from the Divine.
• I have been learning Congolese drumming for the past 3 years, and still feel like I am brand new to the voice that the drum calls out of me.
• I always felt "called" to perform, either on the stage, in film or from the pulpit.
• I have never been further away from this continent than Alaska and Hawaii and just got my first passport!

Randy Fortes

Born and raised in Livermore, CA, Randy is the youngest of two boys. Randy's father was a professional musician and Randy and his older brother followed in his footsteps with a great passion for music. In his school days, while Randy was very outgoing, music was the only way he was able to express the isolation he truly felt. As he continued to struggle with finding his place he began getting involved in drug related activities.

After graduating high school Randy began working at a job that would change his life perspective and his career path. Randy started working with children. His passion for helping others and music became a driving force in his life, helping him to gain a better understanding of who he was and how his choices affected other people. He took it upon himself to change his ways. He committed to making a positive impact on the world through his music and his actions.

Now, Randy is a member of the soulful hip-hop group "Sol Rebelz", who last year released their debut album "The Foundation". He also works with youth through a B-boy and break dancing class. For Randy, seeing the light in children's eyes and being a positive contribution, brightens his everyday. Being a Challenge Day Leader is a blessing for him. He sees that as a leader he has the ability to channel the energy that young people have towards creating something positive, opening their awareness and reminding them of their power to make change.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• You would know how much I value my family and their willingness to stay close to each other.
• You would see my passion to make a positive change in my community and the world.
• You would know how I'm turning every challenge I face into my dance.
• You would know that when I step on stage, I pour my heart out and feel completely at peace with myself. I was born to perform.
• You would know that my biggest fear is not being good enough, and that I spent a lot of my life blaming and shaming and holding myself back.
• You would know the child in me yearns for that connection.
• You would know that I see myself as a bridge between the streets and main stream America.
• You would know that I bring hope to overcome struggle because I overcame it.
• You would know that I represent a side of hip hop that is true to itself and not based on outside perception, which is exactly what Challenge Day teaches.

Ray-Ray Chavira

Growing up in Livermore, California, Ray-Ray was the oldest of four boys. "Because I was the oldest, my father expected a lot from me due to how he was raised," Ray-Ray recalls. "I grew up being teased by my family and friends because of my weight, race, and because I did not speak Spanish." Ray-Ray and his father argued and fought regularly, which "also made me take my aggression out on my brothers and others around me," he says. At a young age, Ray-Ray chose to live on his own, and got involved in drug-related activities to ease his pain.

"My life changed once I met and married my beautiful wife, Carmen," Ray-Ray says. He decided to change his ways, and transform his pain into a desire to help others. "When my angels, Julian and Janessa, were born, I saw that there was more to life than always being angry. I finally found the love that I had been searching for."

Knowing firsthand that growing up is hard, Ray-Ray volunteered at his son's school, and reached out to young people in his neighborhood. "Something about working with the kids just felt right," he says. "Before, I always struggled to find out why I was put here, and felt like I had no answers. When Challenge Day was introduced to me, and I became a Challenge Day Leader, I finally got the answer that I had been searching for."

If you really knew me, you would know…

• My wife and my children are my world and I love them with all my heart and soul.
• Being a Challenge Day Leader is the job of my dreams.
• Listening to my children brings lots of laughter and joy.
• I love where my life is heading.

Rich Dutra St John
Co-Founder of Challenge Day

A former high school teacher and championship wrestling coach, Rich has worked with teens and families since 1978. As a licensed family therapist and drug intervention specialist, he was recruited to open and direct two different adolescent treatment facilities in Northern California, most notably the Thunder Road Adolescent Recovery Center in Oakland where he served as the founding clinical director. Currently, he is an adjunct faculty member at Cal State East Bay University.

A gifted facilitator and counselor, Rich is viewed as an expert in working with youth and families. With a shared vision that every child could someday live in a world where they feel safe loved and celebrated, Rich and his wife Yvonne combined their collective passion and experience to co-found the Challenge Day Program in 1987. Their work has positively affected the lives of hundreds of thousands of youth and adults in 39 states and 6 Canadian Provinces. Rich now serves as a Challenge Day trainer/facilitator, board chairman and head of development.

Sean Flikke

Sean spent most of his childhood in the small town of Cheney, Washington. Back then, his primary interests were collecting sports cards, action figures, rocks, and comic books; cruising city parks and swimming pools; making mischief while camping with his friends; and being a full-time dreamer.

After graduating from high school, one of Sean's dreams came true when he was admitted to Stanford University and made the baseball team as a walk-on. He played all four years while earning a B.A. in Public Policy with a focus on Social Policy (studying crime, poverty, and discrimination). During his senior year, Sean was honored by his teammates as the Most Inspirational Player.

Sean has worked with young people and the young-at-heart for over 15 years. Since college, he has worked a two-year stint as a professional baseball player (another dream come true), a literacy tutoring coordinator, a baseball coach, a small business owner, a professional musician (releasing an album of original music in January 2007 - another dream come true), a screenwriting assistant, a bartender, and an investigative researcher.

Sean's current interests include collecting vinyl (old records), cruising the planet's parks and swimming holes, making mischief that brings joy to people's lives, and being a full-time dreamer.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I was adopted and was raised in a total of nine different homes.
• I am blessed with an unusually large family tree, especially since finding my natural family.
• Challenge Day came to me as an answer to a prayer.
• I am living the life of my dreams.

Sela Gaglia
Co-Director of Training Department and Challenge Day Leader

I was born in Butte, Montana and am the older of two girls. I received my BA in English from San Diego State as well as a Masters of Fine Arts.

My family moved so many times when I was a kid I can't even count how many schools I went to and I lived six years in England because of my Dad's job. I know from personal experience that the same problems exist in every school across the country and it gives me a way to identify and connect with youth in each school I work.

My son's father brought Challenge Day to his school and his family kept it going for 13 years. After Columbine when they knew they needed to add leaders, I was referred because of my work in college. That work was mostly drug, alcohol and violence prevention and I was speaking at national conferences across the nation on these topics. I also taught in the Social Work Department at San Diego State so this was a natural fit for me.

Since coming to Challenge Day, in the last six years I grew up! I became a mom, the most important thing in the world to me, and I am an active part of my son's very progressive school. I have touched the lives of tens of thousands of students' lives and been the recipient of some of the most incredible testimonials about the power of this work any one could imagine. That is what keeps me going.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• If you really knew me, you'd know I believe in the power of our young people.
• I am passionate about travel and the lessons that it brings. You would also know that the study of other cultures fascinates me.
• If you really knew me, my 5 year old son makes my life a comedy routine and I love every minute of it.
• The love of my family, my mom, dad and sister, is supremely important to me. It is the foundation for all my growth and the roots to which I return again and again. I am very blessed in this way.

Tony Lowe

Tony Lowe was born in Toledo, Ohio and raised on a farm 50 miles outside the city. Surviving disease early in life and witnessing his mother's struggles and victories with mental illness imbued him with an unusually strong sense of empathy and a deep compassion for those around him. Tony studied Education, Political Science and Jazz Guitar in college. After working as an Audio Engineer and then as a Vintage Guitar Salesman, he found his stride in the field of Special Education. He worked for 5 years as a Special Education Aide and in-home Care Provider. He designed a Teen-Mentorship program for a large public High School in Ohio writing custom curriculum, recruiting participants, and leading inspirational rallies. Tony relocated to California to work as the Director of a Vocational and Life Skills Training Program for the California Autism Foundation.

When he isn't inspiring young people to live the lives of their dreams, Tony skydives, kayaks, meditates by a lake near his Oakland apartment, writes music, reads detective novels and researches 50s and 60s vacuum tube technology.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I refuse to let my dreams be dreams.
• My personal faith and spiritual practice give me peace and inner quiet in the place of fear.
• I tell countless bad jokes and laugh at them even if no one else does.
• I am honored and grateful to serve as part of this organization. This service is the calling that brought me to the Bay Area, to California, to Earth, and to Life.
• My Mom makes me proud today, and that she has modeled bravery and determination in love for my entire life.
• I love music of all varieties and that I write songs, play guitar, sing, and my band has an album out on Dischord and Adult Swim Records.
• I love attention and praise.

vicki abadesco!

Vicki Abadesco was born and raised in San Francisco, California. After graduating college with a psychology degree, she worked for the San Francisco School District teaching peer education, violence prevention and life skills to middle school and high school students. As she was ending her thirteenth (and last) year with the district, Vicki attended her first Challenge Day and was absolutely inspired! She became a Challenge Day Leader that next fall. That was about 10 years ago. In those 10 years, Vicki stopped leading Challenge Days; worked on creating and delivering follow-up programs; acted as a member of Challenge Day’s Board of Directors; and has now returned to leading Challenge Days. Vicki says, regarding her varied roles: "As you can see, I have a great attachment and love for this work and organization!"

While working with Challenge Day "on the side" for ten years, Vicki co-founded Soul Shoppe (www.soulshoppe.com), an organization that has been providing assembly programs to elementary schools based on many of the Challenge Day themes.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I have friends and family that love, support and encourage me.
• I always didn’t feel that way about my family.
• As a kid, I often felt lonely, excluded and sad.
• Even though I spend a lot of time in front of people, I am naturally introverted.
• I believe I am doing what I was born to do with the gifts I was given.
• I appreciate more and more all of who I am.
• I love connecting with others and finding all the things we have in common.

Vinny Ferraro

Vinny is from a big Italian family on the East Coast, and at 17 his uncle Gigi taught him how to do drywall. Gigi taught him that the real tough guys get up and go to work. So by day he would put walls up, and by night he would take walls down. Starting in 1987, Vinny began speaking in drug rehabs and prisons, making him realize how much he loved to work with people. He says it is the one thing in his life that makes him feel human.

By the late 80's, he began speaking at schools and conventions as well. In 1993, he started working with street artists, acquiring "legal walls" for kids' graffiti murals. He also started leading men's groups and teaching meditation, which he continues to this day. In 1998, he spent a year sitting bedside with the dying through the Zen Center Hospice Program in San Francisco, as well as experiencing A Year to Live Practice. He has studied with several renowned spiritual teachers, the Dalai Lama among them. He has taught meditation in San Quentin, and continues to teach incarcerated youth with the MBA project. In 2001, Vinny trained to lead Challenge Days, and since then he has become an integral part of the organization and the work of Challenge Day.

If you really knew me, you would know…

• I felt alone most of my life.
• When my mom died, when I was 17, I truly found out the meaning of alone.
• My parents were drug addicts.
• I chose to escape most of my teenage years with drugs, and transitioning into volunteer work probably saved my life.
• I was born to do Challenge Days, and everything in my life prepared me for this.
• Now I get out of bed in the morning with goose bumps, because I get to go to school and see the kids' faces.
• You would know I often see myself in those faces
• traveling has become a passion; and after 20 countries, I'm still thirsty to see how other people live.
• I love music, costumes and performing.
• I wasted twenty years being cool, and feeling alone, and refuse to waste one more moment.

Yvonne St John Dutra
Co-Director of Training Department, Challenge Day Leader, and Challenge Day Founder

Working with teens and adults, for over 26 years in a variety of settings, Yvonne has been instrumental in designing and implementing over 17 different nationally recognized prevention and intervention programs for teenagers.

Yvonne's earliest experiences varied from doing classroom presentations and school assemblies, to media programs on gender roles and eating disorders. She later focused her attention on working with at risk youth, addiction and social oppression issues.

A gifted speaker, program designer, trainer, and educator, Yvonne has received many honors and won numerous awards for her work with teens and families. In 2003, Yvonne was selected to receive the Contra Costa County Woman of The Year Award. In August 2005 Yvonne and her husband Rich were recognized as "Champions of Forgiveness" by the World Wide Forgiveness Alliance.

As parents of four daughters, Yvonne and Rich co-founded the award winning Challenge Day Program in 1987. In addition to leading Challenge Day Programs, Yvonne leads Challenger Trainings, Mentorship Programs, Next Step and Living the Change Community Workshops.