Sports Talk with Spizman

On-line sales have closed but tickets will be available at the MJCCA's Box Office at 7 pm!

ONE NIGHT ONLY -- LIMITED ENGAGEMENT!

The Marcus JCC of Atlanta Presents
Sports Talk with Spizman

A Conversation with Former NFL Coach Keanon Lowe, whose heroics stopped a mass shooting at Parkrose High School

Author of the new non-fiction book, Hometown Victory: A Coach's Story of Football, Fate, and Coming Home (soon to be a major motion picture!)

Reception, Author Talk, Q + A , and Book Signing

PRE-EVENT RECEPTION BEGINS AT 7 PM

All purchased tickets include a copy of the book. The book will also be available for purchase from the official bookseller of the MJCCA, A Cappella Books.

The Blindside meets Friday Night Lights in Keanon Lowe's Hometown Victory when an NFL coach returns home after losing a friend to coach a team of struggling high school kids on a 23-game losing streak. Keanon Lowe was working as an offensive analyst for the San Francisco 49ers when his childhood friend and former high school teammate suddenly died from an opioid overdose. Keanon dropped everything––including the plum NFL job he had been working towards since childhood––leading him to a position as football coach at a struggling high school back in his hometown. At the time, Parkrose High School was in the middle of a 23-game losing streak--they were the ultimate underdogs. In many ways, the road to Parkrose was paved by Keanon's life-defining experiences––from a childhood spent dodging racist bullies and finding the support and mentorship he craved on the football team, to an NFL season where he worked closely with Colin Kaepernick as he evolved his sideline protest. Keanon was drawn to the young men on the Parkrose team, and to the school itself. After two years, he pushed them to become conference champions, mentoring countless players along the way. But still, there was that nagging sense that his calling wasn't meant to stop there. He was at that school for a reason.

In May 2019, he got his answer when a 19-year-old student entered a Parkrose classroom with a trench coat and shotgun. Keanon disarmed him and pulled the boy into a hug, telling him he cared. In the boy, Keanon saw himself, and the young men he grew up with or mentored along the way––and weren't so many of them just looking for acceptance, for comfort, for love? With the heart of favorite football classics––The Blindside, Friday Night Lights, Remember the Titans––Keanon’s journey at Parkrose is the true account of a life spent striving forward, even when faced with the unimaginable. Hometown Victory is a story about gratitude, service, and most of all, hope.

About the Author:

Keanon Lowe is football coach and former D1 football player for the Oregon Ducks. He gained widespread media attention in May of 2019 after disarming an active school shooter and embracing him until the police arrived. After playing as a wide receiver for half a decade, Lowe went to work in Philadelphia as an analyst for the Philadelphia Eagles and then an offensive analyst for the San Francisco 49ers. He was the head coach for both football and track and field at Parkrose High School in Portland, OR.

About the Moderator:

Justin Spizman is an award-winning and bestselling author, Georgia Author of the Year, ghostwriter, editor, and proposal writer. Since beginning his career as a writer while in law school, Justin has worked on numerous non-fiction books and successful book proposals. Justin prides himself in his ability to work with people from all different backgrounds, upbringings and expertise. Through working 
closely with some of the most successful people in their respective industries, Justin has gained strong insight and understanding into the most efficient and effective means to create a fantastic 
and marketable story primed for exciting opportunities

For more information, please contact Roey Shoshan at roey.shoshan@atlantajcc.org.