<p>Orlando Bowen was a linebacker in the CFL from 2000-04. He began his career with the Toronto Argonauts and ended it while playing for the Hamilton Tigercats. His career was sadly cut short after a severe concussion suffered at the hands of two corrupt police officers. </p><p>In 2004, while waiting to meet friends while in a parking lot, Orlando was approached by two undercover officers who accused him of dealing drugs. The officers then physically beat Bowen who suffered significant injuries to the head. Bowen was acquitted of any wrongdoing, and just one month before the acquittal, one of the officers was arrested and charged with possessing and trafficking cocaine.</p><p>Orlando’s mission is to make a difference in the lives of others by motivating people to take action. His heart for people and his desire to see companies reach their fullest potential has made him an influential entrepreneur and an inspirational innovator in the business community. Orlando has used story-telling, fitness activities and cognitive exercises to teach resilience, leadership and teamwork to over 300,000 people.</p><p>When it comes to building teams, creating momentum and employing winning strategies, Orlando is the real deal. Empowering people to overcome adversity, find their passion and to use their gifts to serve is the reason Orlando breathes. This gift has placed Orlando on hundreds of stages, boardrooms and in presentations across North America and has garnered him numerous awards. Orlando Bowen’s story of success and triumph over tragedy will motivate your people to pursue their goals by creating their own roadmap for success. Your executives will know that anything is possible and will be equipped with concepts and tools that will move your company towards success!</p><p>Bowen is the founder and executive Director of One Voice One Team Youth Leadership, which empowers youth to utilize leadership skills and talents to better themselves and their community. He has received local and national awards for his incredible work, including an African Canadian Achievement Award, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal and a national Harry Jerome Award for community service.</p>
Former professional football player who transformed tragedy into an opportunity to help others with One Voice One Team Youth Leadership Organization
<ul><li><strong>Pursuing Excellence and Peak Performance</strong></li><li>With alignment to vision, energy to achieve and focus, come ‘peak performance’. Peak Performance brings extraordinary results. Orlando helps executives recognize their role as catalysts and their ability to be transformative leaders that help secure ‘wins’ from any position within their company.</li><li><strong>The Power of Forgiveness and Resilience</strong></li><li>Orlando shares how to use the unexpected challenges that life can bring as fuel for new beginnings. When the game is on the line, it’s not about the acknowledgement of the fact that we will all face challenges. It’s all about taking the energy from those challenges and channeling them in a way that positively affects ones environment.</li><li><strong>Team Building</strong></li><li>As a professional athlete, Orlando’s experiences on the field taught him the importance of harnessing momentum and working passionately together as a team to pursue shared objectives. He shares how to establish the foundation for high performing teams that can withstand turbulent times, embrace change and celebrate team contributions.</li><li>Orlando speaks to corporate teams, educational institutions and government. He equips them with tools to be anti-racist from a restorative, team-oriented lens that centers around the idea that we are all on a journey that has led us to this powerful moment in time. We can do this and we need all hands ‘on deck’.</li></ul>