The chairs were set, the microphones were adjusted, and the speeches were prepared–it was time for the annual University of Maryland Terp Talks. UMD Terp Talks is a student organization with the common goal of giving people the experience to present their personal ideas and stories. The theme of this year’s Terp Talks was centered around the idea of being “fearless.” This idea was represented in stories ranging from confronting and accepting mental illness to coping with one’s own self image.

The highlight speaker of the night was former ERHS student Ebony Brown. The central theme of Ebony’s speech was her own personal struggle with her self image and how she remained fearless through her own self doubt. “In high school I considered myself to be very happy, but once I got into college my whole perspective changed,” said Ebony. “I immediately became concerned with how I looked and I placed my physical image on top of all my priorities.”

Another former ERHS student, Alex Yu, attended the event with high hopes for many of speakers, including Ebony. “I heard about the event on Facebook and I was intrigued by some of the topics,” said Alex. “I had mainly come to the the event to hear my friend Justin P. Silverberg speak about his life, but once I heard that an ERHS alumni was going to speak, I immediately became interested.”

Katie York, a current ERHS student, also attended the event and was especially astounded by Ebony’s speech. “She spoke so passionately about her struggles and really gave me insight on what it mean to be fearless,” said Katie. As Ebony’s speech began to wind down, she gave insight into how she regained her self confidence and shared this experience with the crowd.

Ebony was the final speaker of the night and received a standing ovation from the audience. She thanked them all for their kindness and reminded everyone to “be fearless in who you are and in what you do.”