Topic:  The Healing Power of Stories

Speaker: Kevin Kling is writer and performer from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has performed his stories and plays in libraries, school gymnasiums, The Kennedy Center, Off-Broadway, regional theaters and storytelling festivals around the US. His international tours have included Australia, Europe and Thailand. He has been a commentator for National Public Radio's “All Things Considered", is a frequent contributor on PBS/TPT's "Almanac" and was featured in the Emmy Award-winning PBS documentaries "Kevin Kling: Lost & Found" and “Art + Medicine: Disability, Culture and Creativity”.

Kevin is also a committed disability advocate and frequent public speaker whose message speaks to both resilience and the on-going challenges faced by people with disabilities. Born with TARS Syndrome, his left arm is shorter than his right and is missing a wrist and thumb. A 2001 near-fatal motorcycle accident paralyzed his right arm.

Kevin is most proud of his work as a playwright and performer with Interact Center for the Visual & Performing Arts, a company of members with all abilities that creates art in the spirit of radical inclusion. He has authored five books and has produced 8 CDs. His website is www.kevinkling.com.