Helen Thayer's Programs are Motivational, Entertaining and Educational.
Audiences share Helen's motivational adventures first hand.
The three major components of all of Helen's programs are:
Programs normally run 45 minutes but can be adjusted for time and event theme.
- Achieving goals through planning, problem solving, overcoming obstacles, looking ahead to success.
- A gifted speaker, Helen tells of a remarkable, challenging journey that relates to everyday life.
- Unique on-location photography.
"I've been there and here's how I did it."
Helen's dynamic energy and positive enthusiasm is caught up by her audiences, keeping them on the edge of their seats, inspiring people of all ages to look to higher levels of achievement, plan for success and forge ahead in the absolute belief that the goal will be reached in business or in life.
For the last two decades Helen has motivated audiences to believe that they too have unlimited horizons. Helen says, "My journeys are like life itself. We all have our North Poles and our Gobi Deserts, but we can all reach our goals just as I did, one step at a time, never giving up on ourselves. If we reach for the top and believe we can do it, we can make our dreams come true. Age is no barrier to our dreams and goals.
Helen Thayer gave one of the best presentations we've been to. A gifted speaker and photographer, she is humble, down to earth and realistic in every way. Her speech was not only motivational but also illustrated in a dynamic way her ability to problem solve even under the most difficult of conditions. An extraordinary individual. Men and women, young and old, need to hear her speak.
---- William F. Wilson, Florida
KEYNOTE PRESENTATION VIDEO PREVIEWS:
:: POLAR DREAM - Achieve the Impossible -- Imagine trekking hundreds of miles across a perilous, frozen world with all of your life-support, food and shelter on a sled that you must pull over Arctic sea ice while keeping a constant watch for polar bears. Helen made history at age 50 when she became the first woman to travel alone to any of the world's Poles as she walked to the Magnetic North Pole. Hear the dramatic and inspiring story of her struggle to reach her goal through ice storms, over unstable sea ice and polar bears and how a dog named Charlie saved her life from these awesome but dangerous animals. It is a story that leaves audiences inspired and motivated to reach for their own goals and push their horizons to the limit. Her powerful slide program shows the beauty of the Polar Ice Cap and the polar bears that live there. Helen wrote the best selling book Polar Dream (Simon & Schuster, NewSage Press second edition) about her historical journey.
Polar Dream
Images
Photographs from Helen Thayer's trek across the Arctic ice to the Magnetic North Pole - a collection from the full presentation.
:: THREE AMONG THE WOLVES - Daring to Challenge Yourself -- Although the remarkable and unique story of living with wild wolves for one year above the Arctic Circle is the subject of this book, the story is also about a dream that became a goal and through planning and persistence the yearlong goal was reached and is proof that careful planning and persistence will win the day. Helen and her husband Bill travelled to the Arctic to live within 100 feet of a wild wolf den. They spent a summer observing and documenting the daily lives and activities of the pack and returned in the winter to study the wolves' interaction with the polar bears on the Arctic sea ice. It is a remarkable story of wolves in the true wild; their pup care, their hunts, and their social hierarchy. Audiences want to take this wolf family and their mischievous pups home with them. This is a motivational program of rare photography, not only of the wolf family but many other Arctic animals such as grizzlies, moose and the elusive lynx, and of the great tundra plains of the far north. Helen wrote the book Three Among the Wolves (Sasquatch Books), a finalist at the Banff Mountain Book Festival.
Three Among the Wolves
Images and narrative from Helen's presentation Three Among the Wolves - a preview of the full presentation.
:: WALKING THE GOBI - Quitting is Not an Option -- At age 63 Helen with her husband Bill 74, were the first man and woman to walk the entire distance west to east across the Mongolian Gobi Desert. In a journey of discovery they covered a distance of almost 1,600 miles, enduring sand storms, 126 degree temperatures, and at one point a desperate search for water.
At 13 years old Helen set a goal to walk across the Gobi. A year before the expedition, after a serious car accident, she was told she would never walk again. She didn't give up; she fought through therapy and pain. Finally, still fighting injuries, she set out to realize her dream of crossing the entire desert on foot. Although still recovering, she kept going, even though some days pushed her to the limit. This is a story of courage, perseverance and motivation to rise above adversity to reach a goal and make a dream come true. Compelling, rare photography tells of the Thayer's close interaction with the Gobi Desert nomads who still live the centuries-old lifestyle of their ancestors. Helen tells the story in the book, Walking the Gobi (Mountaineers Books) which is now published in five languages.
Walking the Gobi
Images and narrative from Helen's presentation Walking the Gobi - a preview of the full presentation.
:: DEATH VALLEY CROSSING - Problem Solving, Overcoming Obstacles, Persistence -- At age 80 Helen walked alone to become the first person to walk the entire length of Death Valley north to south in temperatures that approached 100 degrees F. She pulled all her supplies and water in a cart with a starting weight of 280 pounds. The challenging second day involved a long arduous climb over the Last Chance Mountain Range before descending into the waterless valley below. Fifty miles into the trek she was chased down by a severe sand storm and then struggled through a bout of food poisoning when her day snacks spoilt in the heat. With a raging temperature of 104 degrees F. she struggled onward, determined to finish the journey. After overcoming heat, a sand storm and serious illness she reached her goal, the most southern point of Death Valley, having proved once more that goals can be achieved through planning, problem solving, overcoming obstacles, looking ahead to success.
Death Valley Crossing
Images and narrative from Helen's presentation documenting her crossing of Death Valley - a preview of the full presentation.