PechaKucha is back again and this time the rapid-fire storytelling event will draw hundreds of inquisitive San Antonians to Hemisfair’s Yanaguana Garden on Tuesday evening, June 7, for its 22nd appearance in the city.
(Note: PechaKucha was previously scheduled for May 31, but it has been rescheduled to June 7 due to weather concerns.)
Tickets, which are $5 and typically sell out early, can be purchased here.
PechaKucha Vol. 22, hosted in partnership with Las Casas Foundation, will start with a happy hour, complete with appetizers and a bar, at 7:30 p.m. and the show will begin at 8:30 p.m. News 4 San Antonio Anchorman Randy Beamer, and Kory Cook, music director at KRTU, will serve as emcees.
The Rivard Report is a media sponsor of PechaKucha San Antonio.
The original PechaKucha event started in Tokyo in 2003 and has since spread to more than 800 communities around the globe. San Antonio hosts one PechaKucha every quarter and brings together eight people of varied backgrounds to present their life’s passion, project, craft, or story to an audience using only 20 photo slides with 20 seconds per slide to complete the task.
Presenters for this round are listed below in alphabetical order below, their mini-biographies have been composed by Pechakucha organizers:
Kristal Cuevas, Yogipreneur
A San Antonio native, Kristal graduated from St. Mary’s University in 2004 and found success in the corporate world, but soon left to sell stretchy yoga pants. She quickly realized her true passion – teaching yoga. In 2009, she started teaching private and corporate yoga classes and in 2010, she opened the doors to Southtown Yoga Loft in downtown San Antonio. Five years later, she has two thriving studios, one beautiful daughter (who also practices yoga!), oversees more than 30 instructors and two teacher training programs, and this fall, she will be hosting her first yoga retreat in Tulum, Mexico.
Armand A. Fermin, Army Medic
Born and raised in Southern California, Armand Fermin is all but unfamiliar with living the dream. Armand joined the Army in 1984, and enjoyed a 24-year career as a medic, living in multiple continents. Armand now coordinates combat medical training for all the medics who deploy abroad. Nowadays you’re likely to see him in Southtown enjoying some porch hangs with his wife Eleanor, his children Miles and Miranda, their Rottweilers Bella and Cora, and a cigar.
Peter French, Community Builder
Peter French is a community builder with deep experience in real estate, economic development, entrepreneurship, public-private partnerships, and manufacturing. Peter is the President of home builder Rising Barn, co-founder of the San Antonio Entrepreneur Center, and director of operations for the Plum Creek development. Peter is the founder of 501(c)(3) FreeFlow Research, and serves as a director for Choose San Antonio, SA Tecosystem, and the French Oil Mill Machinery Company of Piqua, Ohio. Peter is a graduate of Trinity University, and lives with his wife Carolyn, and their three children in San Antonio.
Omar Gonzalez, Director of Real Estate for Hemisfair
Born and raised in San Antonio, Omar is now planning and developing mixed use real estate on 40 acres within San Antonio’s downtown. He started his career in real estate and economic development and has since led international residential and resort developments. He received his Bachelor in Economics from the Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Stanford University. Omar also co-founded LOOP (a non-profit organization for San Antonio’s young professionals).
Sam Lerma, Filmmaker/Educator
Sam Lerma is an award-winning filmmaker in San Antonio, TX. He’s worked locally at FOX29, and KSAT-12 as both a news photographer and video journalist. Sam’s films have screened at several major film festivals, including: SXSW, The Los Angeles International Latino Film Festival, and The New York International Latino Film Festival. He was voted Best San Antonio Filmmaker by the San Antonio Current in 2015. He is currently the director of production at the Film School at Harlandale High School, is one of the founding members of the San Antonio Film Society, and runs the production company Screenville.
Elaine Kearney, Landscape Architect
Elaine Kearney’s identity as a landscape architect is shaped in equal parts by her childhood on the family’s central Texas cattle ranch, as well as from residing in Boston and Portland, Oregon. Having recently returned to San Antonio, she is energized by the transformative landscape projects underway in our city…and those not yet dreamed up. Elaine is a senior associate at TBG Partners and is also a part-time lecturer at Trinity University. She received her master’s in landscape architecture from Harvard’s Graduate School of Design.
Rebel Mariposa, Artivist & Vegan Restaurateur
Rebel is a queer Tejana activist and artist born and raised in San Anto. Following her desire to create, express, and heal she found her way from being a professional dancer and music teacher into the kitchen where her love to help and serve others thrived. With demand and interest growing for healthier options she returned to her hometown and now co-owns and operates La Botanica – Texas’ first vegan restaurant with a full bar.
Jeff Moore, Cyclist
Jeff Moore is a senior management analyst at the San Antonio Office of Emergency Management. He is a certified emergency manager and a geographic information systems (GIS) professional. Prior to this, Jeff worked as a senior geographic systems analyst with the San Antonio Police Department. Jeff is also the founder of SATX Social Ride, the largest weekly bike ride in San Antonio with up to 300 weekly riders.
For more information about PechaKucha, click here.
Top image: Three kids make their way up to the top of a rope climb in Yanaguana Garden. Photo by Rachel Chaney.
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