RMACES welcomes Major Ed Pulido, US Army (Ret.) as our Keynote Speaker:

Sr. Vice President, Folds of Honor Foundation Founder
Warriors for Freedom Spokesperson
AROGA Health

Major Ed Pulido, U.S. Army (Ret.) is the Sr. VP of the Folds of Honor Foundation a Veteran’s charity which provides the spouses and children of the fallen and wounded educational scholarships. Additionally, he is a Founding member of Warriors for Freedom Foundation a leadership institute focused on the mental, physical and wellness support of our wounded Veterans and their families. He is the spokesperson for AROGA Health. Finally, Major Ed is the Founder of Warrior Nation, a movement focused on the rights of liberty, freedom and patriotism with an autobiography entitled Warrior for Freedom: Challenge, Triumph and Change, the Major Ed Pulido Story.

On the 17th of August, 2004, Major Pulido hit an Improvised Explosive Device (I.E.D) or roadside bomb while serving with the Coalition Military Assistance Training Team under the command of General David Petraeus. Due to the extensive injuries to his left knee, doctors had to amputate his left leg on October 1, 2004. For his heroism and valor on that August day, the President of the United States along with General David Petraeus awarded him the Bronze Star with Valor, Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal, and Joint Service Commendation and Achievement Medals.
Major Pulido’s story of courage and sacrifice has been featured in Time Magazine, PGA Magazine, Fox News, CNN and many national and local Oklahoma City television stations and print media. Since, his amputation, Major Pulido has been a staunch advocate for veterans with disabilities, specifically focusing on advocacy efforts to promote prosthetic technologies, peer visiting with fellow amputees at Brooke and Walter Reed Medical Centers, and raising awareness on the needs of veterans with PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injuries (T.B.I) on behalf of the DOD and VA Real Warriors National Campaign.
He has received countless awards including the prestigious Disabled American Veteran of the Year Award, HeartLine Festival of Hope Award for Suicide Prevention, the Hero’s award from the American Red Cross, the Reaching our City Award, OKC Thunder/Devon Energy Community Hero Award, and the Daughters of the American Revolution Veteran Patient Award. Additionally, he has received the Valley Forge Freedom Foundation Award for national and state level service and the Tuskahoma Brown Miller Award for outstanding leadership.

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Dr. Chuck Jackson, a native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, is known throughout the U.S. and Canada as a dynamic motivational speaker.  His unusual style incorporates the use of humor, media clips, and colorful props to entertain, enlighten, and uplift his audiences.  He has presented hundreds of workshops, seminars, and keynote addresses over the past twenty years to parent, teacher, student, and corporate groups.
     Chuck's professional career began in 1974 as a public school educator.  Upon the completion of his B.S. degree in Elementary Education, he was assigned to inner city schools where his ability to encourage and motivate young learners brought him early recognition.  In his second year of teaching, he was invited to address the National Science Teachers Convention.  Two years later he was asked to present at the Oklahoma State Convention for Teachers of Social Studies.
     His concern for the emotional well-being of his students caused Chuck to pursue a master's degree in Guidance and Counseling, granted by the University of Tulsa in 1977.  This course of study culminated in a three year term of service as an elementary school guidance counselor in one of Tulsa's fine magnet school programs.
After a one year assignment as an assistant principal, Chuck received an appointment as one of the youngest principals in the history of the Tulsa school system.
     During his six year tenure as a school administrator,  Dr. Jackson was known as a progressive leader.  His school's efforts to pioneer programs in early childhood education, individualized learning, computer literacy, collaborative study, and whole language instruction resulted in its recognition as one of eight outstanding elementary schools in the state.  The following year, Dr. Jackson was cited in the 1985 volume of Outstanding Young Men in America.
     During a sabbatical to pursue further graduate studies, Chuck launched his current career.  Serving initially as a facilitator/trainer for the Tulsa Area Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, he taught parenting education courses for two years.  As time passed, invitations to speak at a variety of forums around the country served as a springboard for the establishment of his own consulting firm, known as Human Factor Services.  His company offers presentations on motivation, communication, management, parenting, and teacher effectiveness.
     In 1993, Dr. Jackson completed his doctoral studies in Counseling Psychology at the University of Tulsa.  His dissertation examined stress-related anxiety in gifted adolescents.  He is a member of Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society in Education.