Desiree Karnis Reavis

Desiree Karnis Reavis opens with a raw, breathtaking spoken word poem before pulling back the curtain on the life that wrote it. Raised in a small West Virginia town, she lost her father at four, watched her mother go to prison, survived assault, domestic violence, cancer, and a near-fatal car accident. Through it all, one thing kept her going: writing. Poetry became her exorcism, her therapy, and eventually her calling. She founded The Stage, a spoken word open mic that ran for nearly 20 years and grew into a community lifeline. That community spirit led her to the National Poetry Month Youth Summit, Women United at United Way of Palm Beach County, advocacy work at the Florida State Capitol and the US Capitol, a TEDx talk, and her role as the inaugural Ambassador of Spoken Word for the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County. Desiree closes with a challenge to the room: no matter where you come from or how little you think you have, your energy, your time, and your fire are enough. Put oxygen on those embers. Become the flame.