BGE presents

Dr. Ben Carson is a top-selling author, the former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, a 2016 Republican presidential candidate and the former director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins. He is also the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the land, and he holds more than 70 honorary doctorate degrees.

Dr. Wilcox is a Doctorate prepared nurse who also holds a Masters in Health Administration and

is Board Certified in Nursing Informatics. Dr. Wilcox has 28 years of healthcare experience in

which he worked as a bedside nurse, hospital administrator, and in healthcare information

technology which has helped him to develop his unique perspective on the American Healthcare

System.

Dr. Wilcox is the author of the book “How to Avoid Being a Victim of the American Healthcare

System: A Patient’s Handbook for Survival (2021)” available at

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578878364

Dr. Wilcox currently resides in North Carolina with his wife and their three dogs.

Dr Wilcox’s website: Dr. David Wilcox - Healthcare, American Healthcare System (drdavidwilcox.com)

Dr. Wilcox is a Doctorate prepared nurse who also holds a Masters in Health Administration and

is Board Certified in Nursing Informatics. Dr. Wilcox has 28 years of healthcare experience in

which he worked as a bedside nurse, hospital administrator, and in healthcare information

technology which has helped him to develop his unique perspective on the American Healthcare

System.

Dr. Wilcox is the author of the book “How to Avoid Being a Victim of the American Healthcare

System: A Patient’s Handbook for Survival (2021)” available at

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0578878364

Dr. Wilcox currently resides in North Carolina with his wife and their three dogs.

Dr Wilcox’s website: Dr. David Wilcox - Healthcare, American Healthcare System (drdavidwilcox.com)

Laurel Schmidt is a lifelong educator (teacher,

principal, district director), art lover, and writer.

She's the author of a critically-acclaimed novel,

How to Be Dead – A Love Story, and four non-

fiction books on art, learning, and brain

development.

She's a nationally recognized expert who has

helped thousands of docents and museum

educators master the art of leading dynamic

inquiry-based conversations that have museum

visitors and students longing for more.

Laurel also works with the education departments of numerous museums in Los Angeles and

New York. She is a consultant to The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), and co-author of

Contemporary Art Start: A Curriculum Guide to Contemporary Art and Culture, published by

MOCA in 1985. It is the centerpiece of an inquiry-based art education program. She is a

consultant to the Guggenheim Museum, The Met and MoMA in New York City and presents at

their annual Teacher Institute on The Arts.

She was a member of the Education Advisory Board of the Natural History Museum and served

for eight years on the Landmarks Commission in the City of Santa Monica, California. She has

published numerous articles in national journals for parents, teachers and school leaders.

However, writing is her lifelong passion. She is the author of Seven Times Smarter: 50 Activities,

Games and Projects to Develop the Multiple Intelligences in Your Child (Three Rivers Press,

2001), Gardening in the Minefield: A Survival Guide for School Administrators (Heinemann,

2002), and Classroom Confidential: 50 Things Great Teachers Do Behind Closed Doors, and

Putting the Social Back in Social Studies (Heinemann, 2007). Laurel is also a consultant,

university lecturer and professional development specialist.

Laurel received a BA in Art from Mt. Saint Mary’s College and a Masters Degree in Art History

from California State University in Northridge. Her thesis was on contemporary photorealism.

She also studied art history at Oxford University.

When not writing, she enjoys painting, reading, watching good films and happy hour with

friends. She lives with her writer husband, Durnford King, in Santa Monica, California. Next

life---Paris. Her blog can be found at www.sexdrugsandsocialsecurity.com. For more

information, please consult: www.laurelschmidt.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A. K. Frailey, an award-winning author of a historical sci-fi and science fiction series, short story collections, inspirational non-fiction books, a children’s book, and a poetry collection, has had 15 books published in the past decade. Her novels expand from the OldEarth world to the Newearth universe—where deception rules but truth prevails. Her non-fiction work focuses on the intersection of motherhood, widowhood, practicing gratitude, and rediscovering joy. As a teacher with a degree in Elementary Education, she has taught in Milwaukee, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Wood River, and was a teacher trainer in the Philippines for The Peace Corps. She earned a Masters of Fine Arts Degree in Creative Writing for Entertainment from Full Sail University.

Ann has won two course director’s awards in Episodic & Serial Writing & Film Screenwriting and was Valedictorian when she received her Master of Fine Arts Degree in Creative Writing. She made finalist in the Tuscany Press Writing Contest, was a two-time winner for the Catholic Writer Seal of Approval, received an Honorable Mention in the Hollywood Book Festival, and was made runner-up in an Indie publishing contest.

A widower, Ann home-schooled all eight of her children. She manages her rural homestead with her kids and their numerous critters. In her spare time, she serves as an election judge, a literacy tutor, and secretary/treasurer of her small town’s cemetery.

She resides in Fillmore, Illinois. To check out her stories, novels, inspirational books, and her film and television scripts, please visit https://akfrailey.com.

About Andi Buerger, JD

Survivor | Author | Advocate

Founder, Voices Against Trafficking™

Andi Buerger is one of the world's most fearless fighters against Human Trafficking. Through her organizations, Voices Against Trafficking and Beulah's Place, she has rescued hundreds of innocents from the multibillion dollar transnational criminal industry

Jared Knott: He has a fascinating book out called Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters: Thirty-Nine Tiny Mistakes That Changed the World Forever.

CASH CRAWFORD RELEASES SELF-EMPOWERING NEW SONG “SAVE MYSELF”

About Author Colin Kersey:

Colin Kersey's writing combines hair-raising stories and vivid prose with colorful characters. His first novel, Soul Catcher, was published by St. Martin’s Press. A former Washingtonian and self- described rainophobe, Colin now lives on a sunny island in Southern California where he is employed as Global PR Manager for a Japanese company. He is a graduate of the University of Washington, Western Washington University, and the novel writing program at Stanford University. He is currently working on a third novel. His work has been mentioned or featured in select news media outlets, including Entertainment Weekly, Washington Post, Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus Reviews.