During Homeroom on February 22, Greeley West welcomed an inspirational speaker for the freshmen class. The speaker has a very interesting background story that people wouldn’t expect. His name was James Arthur Ray.

Ray started out by showing a picture of a lot of mugshots. These mugshots were pictures of him. He was in jail and was in despair. Ray didn’t want to live anymore, but then an accident changed his life. In jail he turned his life around by writing, reading, and working out. He was supposed to serve for seven to ten years but he only had to do 14 months. Once he got out he was homeless. He had motivation to not be homeless anymore. He ended up writing a book, competing in triathlons, and traveling the world presenting about different topics.

Carter Bruning, a freshman at Greeley West High School, said, “James really made me think about my life, how I want to be when I’m older, and what I want to be when I grow up. I realized I have to do that all by myself and work really hard for it,” Bruning said.

Ray had a positive impact on many other freshmen too. After talking to a few more they all said he made them think about the path they have taken.

The guest speaker also stayed all day at Greeley West, talking to students individually, in small groups and by visiting classes. It was a big deal for Greeley West to get James Arthur Ray to come speak here.