Kristi Yamaguchi has had a long and successful career in professional figure skating – she is an Olympic Gold Medalist and two-time World Champion figure skater, among many other honors. She hails from Fremont, a fourth-generation descendant of Japanese emigrants, whose family was sent to the internment camps during World War II – in fact her mother was born there. In 1996, she founded the nonprofit organization, Always Dream, whose mission is to ensure children from low-income families have access to high-quality books in the home environment and extensive family engagement and support. Each year the cathedral chooses a theme for inspiration and reflection, and in 202 our theme is connection. Join Dean Malcolm Clemens Young for a conversation with Yamaguchi about sports, fostering reading as an integral part of children's lives and acceptance of difference among people—and their importance to connecting with others. About the Guest Kristi Yamaguchi is an Olympic Gold Medalist and two-time World Champion figure skater. She went on to become a member of the US Figure Skating Hall of Fame, World Figure Skating Hall of Fame, and the US Olympic Hall of Fame. Following a long and successful career in professional figure skating, Kristi took to the dance floor to win top honors with partner Mark Ballas on the popular TV show "Dancing With The Stars." In 1996, she founded the nonprofit organization, Always Dream, whose mission is to ensure children from low-income families have access to high-quality books in the home environment and extensive family engagement support. Kristi added New York Times Best-Selling author to her list of achievements with three children's picture books, "Dream Big, Little Pig!", "It's A Big World, Little Pig!" and "Cara's Kindness." Kristi resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, Bret Hedican and their two daughters, Keara and Emma. About the Moderator The Very Rev. Dr. Malcolm Clemens Young is the dean of Grace Cathedral. He is the author of The Spiritual Journal of Henry David Thoreau and The Invisible Hand in Wilderness: Economics, Ecology, and God, and is a regular contributor on religion to the Huffington Post and San Francisco Examiner. About The Forum The Forum is a series of stimulating conversations about faith and ethics in relation to the important issues of our day. We invite inspiring and illustrious people to sit down for a real conversation with the Forum's host and with you. Our guests range from artists, inventors and philosophers to pop culturists and elected officials, but the point of The Forum is singular: civil, sophisticated discourse that engages minds and hearts to think in new ways about the world. gracecathedral.org/forum
