Wynn Walent

Wynn Walent lives in New York City and works for a non-profit in Harlem, friendsofthechildrenny.org. He also is a singer/songwriter frequently playing with a full band in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. wynnwalent.com

Wynn is very passionate about the holiday. One time he gave a speech in someone’s apartment. Somone he didn’t really know. He said, “The high five itself is largely irrelevant, but what it expresses is essential to us all. The five can be of the low variety, it need not be high. It can be a handshake, a wink, a hug, or a fist pound. What is indispensable is the vulnerability that raising one’s hand produces, for it may not always be reciprocated. Knowing and even embracing this, let us offer our hands without fear or reservation to friends, enemies, and strangers alike. It is these momentary exchanges of affection, these fleeting moments of pure joy and simple love that bind us all into that beautiful and mystic fabric that is humanity.”

Anyway rumors have it that it was a fine speech. Probably much more effective delivered in person at a late hour.

Conor Lastowka

Conor Lastowka lives in San Diego, California. He is the greatest Photo Hunt player in the world, and will play you for money, no questions asked.

When confronted with the situation where someone at a party demands that Conor tell them a story to impress them, he tells the tale of a time when he faked a friends death during college, leading dozens of people to actually think he was dead. This resulted in phone calls of condolence to the friends parents, emails written to Conor by people who knew his friend as children, and a very stern lecture from the Dean of Students. The comic can be viewed by clicking here.

If pressed further, Conor will tell the story of the time his band, Re-Ree, was told “There’s a line…and that’s just way over the line” by a former Congressman.

Conor tends to save National High Five Day for the really persistent people who demand three stories. Being instantly confronted with the presence of such an awesome visionary has reduced many a hardened man to tears.

Sam Miotke

Sam claims that he first proposed the idea of some sort of day to celebrate High Fives.  Nobody else remembers him saying that.  He currently lives in Corvallis, Oregon, where he engages in a futile quest to win the weekly New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest.  Less futile have been his efforts at Minesweeper, where he is currently ranked #296 in the world at this site.  His name is spelled Moitke there, but it’s him.

The Founders

Sam Miotke, Conor Lastowka, and Wynn Walent (circa 2003)