Thursday, September 24, 2026, 4 – 5:30pm EDT

Some sentences run our lives. We've repeated them so often we forget somebody made them up — and that a few of them started as jokes.
 
This talk hands those sentences back to you and adds blanks for you to fill. Elissa Yancey—award-winning journalist and founder of the Cincinnati nonprofit A Picture's Worth—leads the room in taking apart five dominant narratives and building what belongs in their place. Come ready to share one silly word, then write a true one. You'll leave with a card and a promise.

Elissa Yancey, MSEd, was born and raised in Norwood, Ohio, the daughter of an Appalachian migrant who was a masterful storyteller. She has spent more than three decades listening to and sharing people’s stories. She co-founded and now serves and Executive and Creative Director of A Picture’s Worth, a nonprofit that builds community power through story. Elissa is a system disruptor who blends her expertise as an educator with her passion for story, community-building and justice.