Sports: Determination, Teamwork & Leadership

Sports: Determination, Teamwork & Leadership

Cirque du Soleil

Winter Games

Alexandre Bilodeau takes part in a training run on the moguls course at Cypress Mountain

Canada celebrates sport, culture,

Born Wearing Golden Boots,

Conor Casey

Strikes Fear into Opposing Teams

Missy Franklin Great Athlete, Greater Kid

sustainability

and collaboration, along with many Olympic “firsts”

Air Force Football Success

Adventure at a Time

in Faith, Family, Character, Leadership and the Falcons

Sports

Coaches who believe

Pushing the Realm of Possibility One

World T.E.A.M.

ad e P er o sh r t ip e r Ac - B ad i em l l y p up g. s 36

Athletes, Art and Anatomy Medical Collaboration and

Olympic

Th

Passions Flourish Through Leadership and Teamwork

Le

Jeremy Bloom’s Wish of a Lifetime Foundation

2010 Vancouver

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table of contents

january - march 2010

In this Issue 4 Letter From The Editor

8 Inspiration

16 Opinion

100 Thank You

6 Letter From The Publisher

10-14 Meet The Board

98 Collaboration Close-Up

» “Being mentally strong

and working together as a team to lift each others spirit and endurance during the toughest parts of the race makes all the difference.This is important in business and in life.” « - Sarah Will

Quote worthy pg.42

Passions Flourish Through Leadership and Teamwork

By Emily Haggstrom “Never underestimate the power of passion.”

A

– Eve Sawyer

s a society we never have enough time. Time keeps on ticking. Tick. Tick. There is not enough time for family, friends, or our careers and definitely not for silly things like passions and dreams we had as children.

As adults we keep our feet firmly planted on the ground and our heads out of

the clouds. We try to reach for goals hanging in our face like low hanging fruit. Tick. We constantly strive for balance. We compete in life’s struggles and hope at the end of the day to make enough money to keep ourselves and our families happy. Tick. Tick. And while most adults repeat their existence day after day; by 26, Jeremy Bloom had lived out his passion for football playing both collegiately and professionally, achieved his dream...Continued on pg.58

Brad L idge Pitching in for Hope, On and Off The Field pg.26

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Cirque du Soleil

artists re-define the image of an

athlete and

performer.

Cirque du Soleil pg.68

COLLABORATOR PROFILES

18 Stealing Time with Atlanta Braves Third Baseman

The Kunsberg School at National Jewish Hospital

20 The Strike of Conor Casey

Five Minutes With An Ultimate Fighter

Chipper Jones

Born Wearing Golden Boots, C asey Strikes Fear into Opposing Teams

26 Brad Lidge

Pitching In For Hope, On And Off The Field

28 Physical & Academic Excellence 30 Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub 32 Enhancing a New Paradigm for the New Millennium Providing Quality Out- of-School-Time Services

BUILDING BRIDGES

The Porter-Billups Leadership Academy - Helping Kids Help Themselves

C

oach Lonnie Porter sits in his home watching the evening news; it is an average summer evening in Denver, Colorado in the early 1990’s. Coach Porter is disturbed by the images that he is seeing on the news. Denver is in the midst of one of its most restless summers in years; a summer that has been marred by gang violence. Coach Porter notices a disturbing trend

in the news stories; young men caught up in street life, all of whom seem to be missing a positive male influence in their lives. Coach Porter recalled seeing story after story on these kids and there was not a father in sight. That was a defining moment in his life. Lonnie Porter knew that he could do more to help out his community, especially the youth. Continued on pg.36

JEWEL OF COLLABORATION

42 World T.E.A.M. Sports

Pushing the Realm of Possibility One Adventure at a Time

58

Passions Flourish Through Leadership and Teamwork

Jeremy Bloom’s Wish of a Lifetime Foundation

46 He’s Definitely Not Elton John’s Typical Rocket Man

80 Missy Franklin

Great Athlete, Greater Kid

84 Dreams Do Come True

And Sometimes It Takes a Team

But When it Comes Down to the Final Seconds…

He’s Clutch

62

Skating, Soccer & Fencing The Sport of Changemakers

68

Athletes, Art and Anatomy

Medical Collaboration and Cirque du Soleil

72

Air Force Football Success

Coaches who believe in Family, Faith, and the Falcons

50 Canada's 2010 Games

Home to Many Olympic “Firsts”

76 Andre Tippett

A Truly Collaborative Patriot

88 Ice Hockey Détente

Peace and Progress on Skates

92

Know Greater Heroes

One College’s Commitment to Community

96 A Win-Win

Kroenke Sports Enterprises Does Great Work for Kids & Education

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LETTER FROM THE editor

I Don’t Know Much

About Sports...

S

eeing as I can barely walk and chew gum at the same time, this issue on sports was a hard one for me to embrace. I was always that goofy kid in stupid gym shorts and tube socks (by the way who created tube socks?) who was the last to get picked. I was a pitiful team player, not because I wanted to be, but because I am truly not athletic. I will say in my defense, however, that I play a mean round of mediocre golf, I really like to swim, and before I broke my arm, I could bowl like Jeff Bridges.

Now...to change the subject, ICOSA is going through a transformation.

We have considered feedback from readers and contributors for almost a year, and are changing small things to accommodate your input. For example, readers regularly follow up and ask about various stories. We are adding a section to the back of the magazine that will highlight some of the big news on stories we’ve covered. We are also condensing the Collaborator Profiles so that they are more readable.

With these two changes, we hope to make the magazine a bit more reader-friendly.

Over the last few months we have also added collaborator receptions and events so that community collaborators – business leaders, academics, government officials and community leaders – can come together to meet

and network. What’s more, some of them are working together to make a difference in the world.

Back to sports... there are many perceived stereotypes in regards to personal and organizational motivations as they pertain to the sports industry; however broad or general they may be. We hope that through this issue some of these stereotypes will be broken down and that the individuals, teams, organizations and programs within this issue have brought to light the amazing things that transpire everyday at the grassroots and professional levels of sport. It is truly amazing what can be created when a group of great minds come together to inspire and challenge a communities way of thinking and alter its perception.

ICOSA challenges you to engage in opportunities within your community that will foster and change the way people look at those involved in sports.

By lending a hand and touching the lives of people through your goodwill it is possible to inspire more to action – including a non-athlete like me!

- Jan Mazotti

PHOTOGRAPHY and design Andrew Thompson Annette Perez

FOUNDER AND PUBLISHER Gayle Dendinger

EDITOR Jan Mazotti

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Geoff Bergman Jerry Brown Mike Burrows Adam Cohen Rob Cohen Michael Connors Jennifer Cook Kim DeCoste Lana Jefferson-Taussig

Dave Jones Rebecca Saltman Jamie Spatola Bob Vogel Peter A. Witt Luke Wyckoff

STAFF WRITERS Emily Haggstrom Jan Mazotti

ADVERTISING Jan Mazotti Kevin Medina

ART DIRECTOR Nick Heckman – EKMN creative

BUSINESS ADVISOR John Brackney

ICOSA welcomes editorial submissions from its readers. Whenever possible, submissions should be sent in electronic format. All unsolicited materials should be submitted to the publisher at the address below. Items not sent electronically will not be returned. The publisher reserves the right to decline use of materials at their discretion and assumes no liability for unsolicited materials.

ICOSA (ISSN1938-2081) is published four times a year. No part of ICOSA may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. ©2010

To view an electronic copy of ICOSA (ISSN1938-209X) or to get your free subscription, go to www.icosamag.com.

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ICOSA CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS 4100 Jackson Street Denver, CO 80216 Office: 303.333.3688 Fax: 303.333.4832 Email: janm@icosamag.com Website: www.icosamag.com

All third-class postage paid at Denver, Colorado.

The title ICOSA is an analogy for great connections and collaboration. An icosahedron, the strongest of the polygons, combines 20 equilateral triangular faces together. We use this analogy because we believe that if we all work together and collaborate, we too can become stronger – just like the triangles.

On the Cover: Alexandre Bilodeau takes part in a training run on the moguls course at Cypress Mountain. Bilodeau went on to win Canada's first Olympic gold medal on their home turf. His gold medal in mogul competition was dedicated to his brother, Frederic Bilodeau, who suffers with cerebral palsy.

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LETTER FROM THE publisher

Vision…

The Big Picture

V

ision is fused throughout the world of sports. The overall vision within each individual sport is to win. However, each vision in sports requires very different ways to achieve the same winning results. For example, the vision in baseball is to hit the ball with a bat, sprint around the bases and score as many runs as possible. In football, the winning objective is to score points by advancing the ball into the opposing team’s end zone. In hockey, a player needs to maneuver a puck into the opponent’s net or goal. Whatever means are used the vision is always the same - to win.

» Collaboration allows for or even encourages individual points of view to create a full and complete vision. «

I look at ideas metaphorically and I see vision as the dragonfly eyes. The dragonfly’s large compound eyes are among its most notable features and may also be its most important attribute. Each compound eye is made up of many smaller eyes.

These individual smaller eyes are able to create images on their own. The real advantage to this adaptation is the ability for the dragonfly to form a big picture by synthesizing all of these images together.

Being able to have a vision of all that makes up, surrounds, and affects a collaborative effort is another adaptation that is necessary to win and ultimately survive. The dragonf ly’s compound eyes provide a helpful analogy for clear and complete vision, which I refer to as the “big picture.” Collaboration allows for or even encourages individual points of view to create a full and complete vision. Organizational vision utilizes past experiences along with the constant presence of ideals to establish goals, dreams, and ideas for where it goes in the future. This vision helps to direct an organization’s aspirations.

Every piece of the big picture adds to the greater vision. I believe that if everyone’s aspirations for the future remain scattered, the organization will be without a defined aim. Even if the big picture is somewhat pieced together, the few missing pieces could be the ones that identify the biggest threats. An organization must have a clear and direct vision if they wish to survive.

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Just as every team uses their vision to win a single game, they also look at the overall vision, the big picture, such as winning the Super Bowl, the World Series, or an Olympic medal. To get to the overall vision, small steps need to be taken. Achievable steps on the way to the ultimate goal serve to motivate group members and maintain their sense of accomplishment. If the group were to set its sights only on the ultimate objective and stumble along the way, members often become discouraged and could even abandon the project before seeing any rewards. With smaller goals at various intervals, collaborators can identify opportunities, see where the mission is going and find satisfaction in even small victories.

Vision is explained best by Peter Senge in The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization, “When different points of view and multiple interests are involved in solving a problem or making a decision, the solution is likely to be much more comprehensive and creative than if a small group of likeminded individuals acted on its own.” We at ICOSA have had many success stories since our inaugural issue, due in part to working in collaborative environments and looking at the overall vision. Yet, we are always evaluating the design of our big picture, so that we are agile in ever-changing situations, open to seeing things in a new way, and constantly proving that we can move forward so that we don’t have to move back.

You will find that many, if not all of the individuals, highlighted in the following stories had drive to achieve a greater purpose, to succeed, and to win. Along the way they used small steps to accomplish these goals and formed new methods to attain their overall vision. We invite you to read the stories of some of these great sports collaborators and understand how the pieces of their lives have come together to form their big picture.

- Gayle Dendinger

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Chad A. Williams

Christopher B. Pelley

Ali K. Yousaf

inspirations

Pride and

Politics

A Lesson in Continued Growth and Perseverance by Gayle Dendinger

E Dale Eisler ’s life and career is a juxtaposition of sorts. He is a leader but he is also a servant.

veryday I am reminded of personal ingenuity and the will of people. A sincere uncontrived desire people have to push themselves to their limits, to better themselves and those around them. We are all people with faults and hidden scars but at the end of the day it is what we do for others that brings out the one innate human quality that constantly perseveres - goodness.

ICOSA is a team. We are constantly changing issues and meeting new players in a quest for knowledge, connection and collaboration. We seek players who inspire us with their vision and take our team to the next level.

So when we decided to focus this issue on sports I tried to think of a leader who inspired me. A key player not only out on the field, but on the frontlines in the game of life. Someone who spends their days to better themselves and those around them. The person who came to mind might seem like one of the most unlikely of players for this issue but is an inspiration nonetheless. That person is Dale Eisler.

Dale Eisler’s life and career is a juxtaposition of sorts. He is a leader but he is also a servant.

Whether he has chosen this life or it has chosen him, his placement between the two is where he resides. His position reminds me of a story a member of my staff recounted to me about a group of elementary school children trying to understand the idea of eternal reward. They were reading a morality piece which said, “Whoever

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wants to be first, he must take last and be the servant of all." The kids couldn’t understand how being last could be fulfilling, or how living life as a servant, devoting time and service to others, could bring true greatness wrought in humility.

The kind of humility learned over time, and brought about through wisdom and experience.

But experience is a funny thing, if you don’t understand how to use it for good it is a waste of time spent on fruitless hours of learning for the benefit of no one, and what good is that?

If you can use your experience to benefit the whole you are a wealth to society, a key player.

To understand Dale and his experience as a leader, you have to first understand Dale as a servant. He’s spent most of his life writing about politics, policy and government as it pertains to his endless devotion to the province of Saskatchewan, its people and its way of life.

He’s lectured at his Alma mater, the University of Saskatchewan, bringing his experience back to students at the same school that ushered him into the life he now leads. He has written for the local Saskatchewan newspapers as a voice for the people of the region. Dale’s also written books that have instilled political vigor in the province and inspired an understanding into the history of its past, not only as Saskatchewan’s but as Canadians. His writing’s have used politics as a motivation for the people. He knew that to be a public servant you needed to inspire a community to dream that the policies to be laid out before them were something that they could believe in.

Dale’s always been at the core of anything Canadian. His sense of pride for the people, the province and the country is incredible. I truly believe the second half of Dale’s life was born out of his love for his country and the idea of its true potential. When he was hired to occupy communication spots within the highest levels of the Canadian government, he once again became a public servant.

Except this go round was much different then his day’s writing of politics and myths.

For the first time Dale got a chance to root himself into the one government he knew so much about. It was shortly after he was hired

It was shortly after he was hired that Canada established an on-going effort to grow the nation; innovating Canada to be one of the world’s best through, knowledge, technological skill, financial growth, positive labor trends and immigration. that Canada established an on-going effort to grow the nation; innovating Canada to be one of the world’s best through, knowledge, technological skill, financial growth, positive labor trends and immigration. A list that could be daunting to some countries but not to Dale and not to Canada; it’s a program being taught and accepted daily by the people. It is a blue print economic and social model that if implemented correctly, could prove to be an ostentatious advantage to the Canadian people. I believe it is a blueprint that could be studied and replicated.

I am awed by Canada’s sense of pride and determination. It is incredible. The effort they are exuding to be a competitor and collaborator on the world stage is motivating.

Dale Eisler - Consul General of Canada Even while being an ally to the United States and our number one trading partner, Canada’s sheer ability to gain autonomy throughout the world, and setting precedents for the Western hemisphere is noble. It is indicative of the nature of the people to stand behind a government who supports its people and rallies behind their well-being.

As the appointed Counsel General of the region, Dale is granted the privilege of helping the Canadian government team up with local U.S. businesses like ICOSA and some of our partners to bring assistance to the war theater of Afghanistan, to once again serve the people of Canada and further relationships within the U.S and to set in motion a sustainable regional relationship that can be replicated across the country.

Dale consistently works hard for his citizens. Whatever team Dale plays on, he plays to win. He motivates his team with the hopes of winning and attaining a final goal, a goal that will ultimately better everyone. Whether you have worked with Dale directly, or been a part of a team where he has served, you know this man is not just a mere servant to the people - he is their confidant, their friend and their leader.

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advisory board

John Brackney

Meet John Brackney President & CEO – South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce

John Brackney: South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce

I

n his pursuit to advance South Metro Denver and Colorado as a leader in economic health, responsible and effective government, entrepreneurial activity and effective decision making that maintains and enhances our vibrant quality of life, John Brackney has been an influential leader in public policy and community problem solving for 20 years.

Born and raised in unincorporated Arapahoe County, John graduated from Littleton High School, one of the best high schools in one of the best school districts in the nation in 1984. He continued his education at an undiscovered gem in higher education, the University of Northern Colorado and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1988, followed by a law degree from the University of Denver in 1993.

While earning his law degree, John enlisted in the Colorado Army National Guard and graduated from Officer Candidate School. He became a Company Commander of the 147 th Combat Support Hospital in 1995, then later served as a Captain at the National Guard State Headquarters. During 12 years of service John received the Meritorious Service Medal twice. He was honorably discharged in 2003.

Elected to his first term as Arapahoe County Commissioner in 1996, John was responsible for setting policy and budget for Colorado’s 1st County. In 1997, he was selected Freshman Commissioner of the year

by Colorado Counties Inc. and then re-elected to a four-year term and served as chairman of the Commission in 2000.

As chairman of the Arapahoe County Public Airport Authority at Centennial Airport, president of the Arapahoe County Water and

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6840 S. University Blvd.

Centennial, CO 80122 p: 303.795.0142 E: jbrackney@bestchamber.com W: www.bestchamber.com

Wastewater Authority, and one of the founders of the City of Centennial, John continued his passion for leadership in the South Metro Denver region. Additionally, John served on the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Group, Colorado Counties Inc., Legislative Policy Group, National Association of Counties Justice and Public Safety Steering Committee and was appointed as the Chairman of the Emergency Management Subcommittee and the Homeland Security Taskforce following September 11th. He received the NACo/ FEMA 2001 Building Disaster Resistant Communities Award and the Award of Excellence from the Arapahoe Counties Sheriff’s Office.

Currently, John is the President of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce, a full - service regional Chamber representing approximately 1,600 businesses and 100,000 employees predominantly in four counties and 16 cities in South Metro Denver.

He previously served as a board member of Littleton Public Schools Foundation and as the Director of the Public Polity Initiatives Council associated with the South Metro Denver Chamber. John is a volunteer fundraiser for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. He currently lives in Littleton with his wife, Meredith, and two daughters Taylor and Jordan; and enjoys gardening, marathons and spending time with his family.

I WANT TO BE...

a Doctor a Journalist

a Lawyer

a Duke Basketball Player

a Coach

an Engineer

a Computer Programmer

the President

an Artist

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advisory board

Dr. Thomas Friermood

Meet Dr. Thomas Friermood President - Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center

D

r. Thomas Friermood is the President of Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center. Panorama is a 26 physician sub-specialty orthopedic practice with three locations in the Denver metro-area. Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center was founded as Lakewood Orthopedic Clinic more than 50 years ago. Dr. Friermood has been the managing partner of Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center since 1984 and has seen the company grow from a 5 doctor practice to a practice of 25 physicians, 3 fellows and 20 physician assistants.

Dr. Friermood received his undergraduate degree from the University of Washington. He graduated with honors from Creighton University Medical School in Omaha, Nebraska in 1974. He completed his internship and orthopedic residency in Sacramento at the University of California at Davis. He also trained at the Shriner’s Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii. Dr. Friermood has provided care for disabled athletes and served as the team doctor for the U.S. Disabled Ski Team for 20 years. He had the opportunity to travel with the team extensively and attended the team during Paralympic Games in France, Norway, Japan, and Salt Lake City, Utah.

Dr. Friermood has also done volunteer orthopedics through Orthopedics Overseas, an agency that provides orthopedic services to third world countries. He traveled to Bhutan in the Himalayas where he was the only orthopedic surgeon in the country. On his second trip to Bhutan he helped train a Bhutanese physician in orthopedics.

For the past 20 years, Dr. Friermood has devoted most of his energies to the business aspect of medical practice. He no longer does surgery but still has several clinics that he visits each week including an indigent care

Dr. Thomas Friermood: Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center 660 Golden Ridge Road, Suite 250 Golden, CO 80401 P: 303.233.1223 E: tfriermood@panoramaortho.com w: www.panoramaortho.com

clinic at St. Anthony Hospital. He was integral in the development of Golden Ridge Surgery Center, an out-patient surgery center specializing in orthopedic procedures. He has transformed his company from an orthopedic clinic to an integrated delivery system for musculoskeletal care.

For the past four years he has been working to develop OrthoColorado Hospital at the St. Anthony Medical Campus. OrthoColorado will be a 48 bed specialty hospital and is a joint venture between Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center and St. Anthony Hospital. OrthoColorado is scheduled to open the summer of 2010. Dr. Friermood believes this facility will provide world class orthopedic services to our community.

On a state and national level, Dr. Friermood is the immediate past president of the Colorado Orthopedic Society and a member of the executive board. He is one of two orthopedic surgeons representing Colorado on the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons Board of Councilors. He is a board member of OrthoColorado Hospital and the Panorama Research and Education Foundation. He is also a member of the Orthopedic Trauma Association, the North American Spine Society and the Western Orthopedic Association.

Dr. Friermood has three children and lives in Lakewood, Colorado with his wife, Kay.

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advisory board

Luke Wyckoff

Meet Luke Wyckoff Founder and Chairman Wyckoff Consulting, LLC

L

Luke Wyckoff: Wyckoff Consulting LLC 100 Filmore Street – Suite 500 Denver, CO 80205

uke Wyckoff is MVP.

(MVP) – Motivated with Vision and Passion is the driving force behind how Luke makes decisions. “It started 20 years ago when a group of my college friends would get together every other Friday and talk about who we wanted to be and how we would get there.” Since that first meeting, the group has stayed in contact, sending our Motivated with Vision and Passion plans to each other every year for critique and accountability. “I knew then that 95% of people do not write down their goals and that if I truly could make a difference in this world I needed guidance and absolute focus.” 20 years later, Luke has made a difference in the business community, not-for-profit sector, and by motivating others to be better.

The EHarmony of Executive Search

Luke saw a gap in how executive selection was being handled at the very senior levels of companies. “I was blessed at a very young age to be accepted to work for Development Dimensions International (DDI), a Pittsburghbased company specializing in Executive Assessment and Leadership Development.” For 12 years Luke worked with and studied how some of America’s top companies assess and select top talent to meet the demands of Wall Street. During that experience, Luke discovered a hole in how companies were using Executive Search firms to find talent. “It was never about the technical knowledge of an executive position,” Luke states. “The success or failure of an executive lies in his or her ‘fit’ with the company.”

Thus was the beginning of Wyckoff Consulting, a firm that combined finding the Executive Talent and assessing them BEFORE presenting them to any board. “We found that a lot of time and investment had been wasted on interviewing candidates that would never be a fit for the culture of the hiring company.” By using behavioral sciences, Luke and his team are able to find, assess, and help select the right executive talent that fits with a client’s culture. “It’s a great feeling to look back years later at clients who retained their talent and know that it was the right fit. I guess you could call us the EHarmony of Executive Search.”

p: 720.524.3400 E: luke@wyckoffconsulting.com w: www.wyckoffconsulting.com

Giving back – it’s in his DNA

Growing up in a town of 700 people in the Midwest has its advantages and disadvantages. “It was my grandparents that taught me that giving back to your community was not just your social responsibility, but the right thing to do.” He wanted to do something more. Luke became socially active when he joined the Junior Chamber of Commerce in Grand Rapids, Michigan. “My experience in the Jaycees opened up a world of opportunity to find new ways to better my community and the world around me.” By rallying people around him, Luke was able to raise funds for Toys for Tots, Goodwill Industries, and many other not-for-profits. With his move to Colorado, Luke became involved as a Board member of the Arvada Center and an active fundraiser with the Colorado Republican Party. “It’s about finding people who have the same passion and motivating them to participate with their time and money.”

The BIG Picture

Luke wants to leave a legacy. “When I look back at the end of my life I want to know that I made a difference.” Luke’s wish is that each person begins with the end in mind. “The day to begin your bucket list is today,” Luke states. If you have wanted to make a difference in this world – start today. If you wanted to learn the guitar, pick up the phone and schedule a lesson today. If you could be remembered on this earth in three ways, what are they, and what are you doing TODAY to bring that vision to fruition?

Luke has a BA in Marketing from Ferris State University and an Executive MBA from the University of Colorado. Luke is an avid musician and can be found playing harmonica or belting out 70’s rock songs with some of Colorado’s finest cover bands.

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opinion

Rob Cohen

Teamwork Can Help Us

Achieve Our Dreams

T

By Rob Cohen

There is a fairly famous story that

their verdict. The foreman stood up, faced the judge, and said they declared the defendant… guilty!

The story is of a lawyer who argued a case for his guilty defendant, on trial for murder.

The defense attorney was enraged: “How could you?!” he demanded. “I saw all of you watching the door!”

has been circulating in the sales world for years, and it goes something like this…

The one challenge in the prosecution’s case was that the body of the victim had never been found. However, the abundance of expertly presented circumstantial evidence was more than compelling. Everyone in the courtroom, jurors included, knew the man was guilty.

So, in his closing argument, the clever defense attorney decides to go for broke.

The foreman replied, “Yes, sir, you are correct. We were in fact watching the door.

But we were also watching you and your client, and you did not watch the door. Your client did not watch the door, not even for a moment, and that was because you both knew there was not a chance in the world that anyone would be walking through it."

He pointed grandly toward the courtroom doors and declared, “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, in exactly 60 seconds, the socalled corpse, the man you believe to be dead, is going to come walking in right through those very doors. We can begin counting now.”

The time ticked by: one second, two seconds, three seconds, ten seconds, 20 seconds, 45 seconds, 55 seconds, 56, 57, 58, 59… and then, at exactly the one minute mark, in walked…nobody at all. Certainly not the corpse.

The lawyer addressed the puzzled jury: “Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize. I told you something that obviously did not come true. However, the mere fact that you looked at the doors as you did showed me – and shows you – that you had some measure of doubt. And, of course, if you have any doubt – any doubt at all – you must return a verdict of not guilty.”

And with a triumphant flourish, he returned to his seat.

The jury went into deliberations, and just five minutes later came back out to render

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The moral of the story is: “don’t expect anyone else to believe something you don’t believe yourself.”

The Power of Dreams

» Don’t expect anyone else to believe something you don’t believe yourself. «

What I want to explore in this article is the power of dreams, and more importantly the power of unwavering faith and belief that we can make dreams come true.

We all have dreams, but we know that the majority of people never act on their dreams, let alone have a chance to make them a reality.

I first began dreaming when I was in high school – I had a coach who pushed me harder than I thought I could be pushed.

He told me, “If you have a dream, write it down, because if you write it down, it will become a goal. And if you have a goal, share it with others, because if you share it with others, it will become a passion.”

I have a passion for sport and the role that it plays in our community. This passion is shared by others who have come together to “Elevate Sport and Energize Lives” within the Denver community.

We are achieving that through teamwork and leadership, by bidding on and hosting events which will help create economic and social vitality for our community. This passion has led us to set lofty goals such as a desire to one day host the Winter Olympic Games in Denver.

We have learned that in order to accomplish this dream, we need to build relationships and be patient because hosting the Olympics is a long-term worthy goal.

Some might ask, “Why should a community strive to host the Olympics?”

Clearly, hosting events – and especially the Olympic Games – have real economic impact.

For instance, the 2006 NBA All-Star Game generated approximately $60 million in direct economic impact; and the Women’s Final Four, which Denver will host in 2012, is estimated to generate $30 million of economic impact. The Winter Olympic Games have been estimated by some to generate close to $1.5 billion in economic impact.

In addition, there is no value that can be attached to the number of times a city’s name is used in connection with the events they host.

We see that clearly if we simply think about how many times we have heard Vancouver referenced in relation to the 2010 Games.

And we say to them – show us any Olympic Games – anywhere – that didn’t start with a small group of people within a city that they love who said, “Why not us? Why not our city, our state, or our country?”

But the real reason to strive to host the Olympics is on the soft side of the issue, and that is what the Olympic Games stand for. It has been said that the Olympic Games hold a special place in our lives – that they lift us up and bind us together. They are the source of many memories that have become permanently etched in our collective thoughts –moments of a team’s shared glory – a moment we live again and again convincing us that we do indeed believe in miracles.

It is indeed a lofty goal to want to do something like bring the Olympics to Denver. But like any lofty goal, it is achievable, if we don’t let ourselves get paralyzed by the magnitude of the goal; if we can break it down into bite-sized chunks, and if we can celebrate the achievement of each success, while at the same time beginning to reach for the next one.

We find ourselves riveted by the Games because what we see in them are the simple truths of our common humanity, and that no matter who you are, where you are from, or what you look like, with hard work and dedication you can achieve your dreams.

People often ask our team how we set such lofty goals for our community, such as believing that we could actually do something such as bring the Olympics to Denver.

We do believe in miracles and we have unwavering faith that we can make our dream come true.

When I was a young boy, my mom gave me a quote that I still carry with me to this day.

"If I am not for myself, who will be for me? Yet if I am for myself alone, what good am I? If not now, when?"

So it is my hope that we all: • Dare to dream, and that we will write our dreams down and make them goals. Then we will tell others of our goals so they become our passion.

• T hat we have unwavering faith that in the end we will succeed.

•A nd unlike the attorney and his client, we will indeed believe….

If not now, when?

Rob Cohen is the Founder and Executive Chairman of the Metro Denver Sports Commission as well as Chairman and CEO of The IMA Financial Group, Inc. To learn more about the Metro Denver Sports Commission, visit www.denversports.org.

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collaborator profile

Chipper Jones

Stealing Time with Atlanta

Braves Third Baseman Chipper Jones By Emily Haggstrom

H

e has been with the Atlanta Braves franchise as a third baseman and team leader for almost two decades. Within that time, Larry Wayne “Chipper” Jones, Jr. has become one of the Braves most coveted team members and arguably one of the greatest players in major league baseball. His all-star status coincides with his batting average and his uncanny ability to slug baseballs right out of the park.

Jones also distinguishes himself off of the field as well as on through his own organization, aptly named the Chipper Jones Family Foundation. Though the foundation has a diverse giving base, almost all of the organizations affect the communities that Jones grew up in and where he currently lives. These various groups range from local little league program sponsorships to charitable donations affecting 30,000 Americans through the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Regardless if it’s on the field or off, Jones continues to make dreams come true by inspiring children and adults alike with his baseball abilities and his charitable ingenuity. Before one of his many baseball games, he sat down to answer a few questions about life, leadership and teamwork.

Who inspired you growing up?

My mom and dad. My dad and I went to the backyard on Saturday afternoons and we would imitate the line up from the game of the week and that’s where I learned how to switch hit. My mom was a professional equestrian and the most mentally tough woman. I got a lot of my mental toughness from her. And, I was a huge Dodgers fan and whenever Mike Socha or Rick Monday batted they hit left handed. Both were huge influences, as were my parents.

Youth sports have become a full-time job for both children and their parents, creating a competitive drive that often results in a “win at any cost” mentality. Through your competitive and professional experiences in teamwork what would you suggest to alleviate this aggressive behavior?

Sports parents have a very fine line to walk. There are times when they need to push their children and there are

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» I would like to see kids change seasons and play

recreational football or basketball and mix it up - and take a break from the sport that they want to succeed in while still staying active and competitive. «

times when they need to step back. In my opinion, playing baseball year around is a bit much and I believe the kids can get burned out. A change of season and sports keeps the game fresh - whatever game it is. I would like to see kids change seasons and play recreational football or basketball and mix it up - and take a break from the sport that they want to succeed in while still staying active and competitive.

Knowing when to do that is what makes a good sports parent.

As a leader in your profession and the communities where you’ve lived, what message would you convey to people about living out their dreams and not giving up?

Learn from your mistakes and don’t continue to make the same ones.

I have skeletons in my closet but it's made me a better person, father and husband. It’s something that every player deals with and how you come out of it that makes who you are.

As a rookie did you know you wanted to get involved in philanthropy or was it something that you felt compelled to do later in your career?

That was exactly how it was. My parents gave me morals at a young age, they taught me never to forget my roots or where I came from.

In 1997 I met this boy with cystic fibrosis and he passed shortly after that. Instantly I became an instant supporter of kids that had cystic fibrosis.

You meet lots of people through your charity work. Do people ask you to dedicate games to them and do you?

Very seldom. But in one case I did. Last year a kid named Buddy who was a big fan, had a bad accident and was in a coma for 2 weeks. He had to learn how to walk, speak and eat all over again. When I met him, the first words out of his mouth were my favorite player is Chipper Jones, my favorite baseball team is the Braves and you have to hit a home run for me tonight. “I’ll do it,” I told him, and sure enough third at bat I hit a home run and I said, “Thank you Lord, for making that happen for that kid.”

Will you dedicate more time to your foundation once you retire?

I will always remain involved in charity work to be an example for my kids and to be a good role model. But my boys and my wife have sacrificed a lot for my career, so after baseball I want to spend some time with them. But I’ll still remain doing what I love - and that’s helping kids.

Emily Haggstrom has a B.A. in Journalism and Media from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is a member of the Level One Society in Denver, Colorado and sits in on various charity committees. In an effort to impact her local community she also volunteers for Whiz Kids Tutoring, Inc. as well as Denver Health Medical Center.

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collaborator profile

Conor Casey

The Strike of Conor Casey Born Wearing Golden Boots, Casey Strikes Fear into Opposing Teams By Emily Haggstrom Photo provided by the Colorado Rapids

B

eing a professional athlete in the United States is something that many young children aspire to become. In today’s popular culture it seems being famous can seemingly lift these children from life’s encumbrances and propel them into an existence of celebrity, notoriety and money.

It is these qualities that have children across the nation rapt in hopes that they will one day become their own next hero. And American’s love their heroes; especially ones that are American made, like football, basketball, baseball and even NASCAR heroes. Champions of sports we can all rally behind, sports we know and love because we created them.

However, through centuries old attempts to differentiate ourselves through unique cultural focal points, we have become uninformed about some of the world’s most famous and most followed sports, along with their players.

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Photo provided by the Colorado Rapids

It took Lance Armstrong to introduce us to cycling and finally David Beckham to establish dwindling attendance in newly formed soccer stadiums across America. Although the number of youth soccer players has demonstrated the sports foothold in the United States, soccer is not a highly publicized American past time. While soccer stars in the U.S. experience less attention nationally, it is internationally where they are recognized. With over 240 million people in 200 countries playing soccer, millions more flood into stadiums across the globe while billions watch mesmerized in front of their television screens.

This year while a number of American’s recover from their Memorial Day weekends,

the rest of the world will be organizing their days and their work schedules to converge on South Africa in both body and spirit to be mesmerized once again watching, arguably, the largest tournament in the world. A tournament draw secured by the U.S. in a game against Honduras, led by forward Conor Casey, who scored his first two international goals which proved to be critical for the Americans in securing a World Cup berth. “It was so awesome going in knowing that if we won we’d be qualified for the World Cup. To win it the way that we did, to play, to start and to score my first goals was pretty special for me. It was a great celebration afterwards too with champagne in the locker room.” The U.S. and Casey rallied just days later at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. to clinch first place in their division. Casey along with the rest of the team, coming off a recent victory and a deadly accident a day earlier involving one of their beloved teammates, felt the pressure to win. In the end they

» “To win it the way that we did, to

play, to start and to score my first goals was pretty special for me." « - Conor Casey

TEAM Competition 2009/10 Statistics

gs g

a

United States Colorado United States

0 24 3 27

0 16 2 18

0 2 0 2

0 16 16

0 11 11

0 1 1

0 11 11

0 2 2

0 5 5

0 4 4

0 1 1

0 0 0

14

2

0

Confederations Cup USA Major League Soccer World Cup Qualifying - CONCACAF 2009/10 Season Totals

2008/09 Statistics United States Colorado

World Cup Qualifying - CONCACAF USA Major League Soccer 2008/09 Season Totals

2007/08 Statistics Toronto FC Colorado

USA Major League Soccer USA Major League Soccer 2007/08 Season Totals

2005/06 Statistics United States Mainz

International Friendly German Bundesliga 2005/06 Season Totals

2004/05 Statistics Mainz

German Bundesliga

GS: Games Started, G: Goals, A: Assists

managed to tie the game in the final minutes. “I think it said a lot about our team’s character.”

It’s also very telling of Casey’s character. While some children are born with a silver spoon in their mouth, Casey was born with golden boots on his feet. Working hard since the age of five, Casey honed his skills and made a career out of soccer that millions around the world dream of accomplishing every day.

He’s played collegiate soccer, been to the Olympics, fought promotion and relegation in Germany with four different squads, participated in the United States first appearance in a FIFA Confederations Cup final and most recently was pulled up to play in the World Cup Qualifiers for the U.S. Men’s National Team.

He’s learned from the best what it takes to be a leader and a team player.

Most notably from the late legendary Clive Charles, who taught Casey to respect his opponents, work hard for his team and to ultimately enjoy

Photo provided by the Colorado Rapids

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collaborator profile

Conor Casey

the game. Charles, a charming and honest man, is credited with propelling Casey’s career through his tactical knowledge of a match. “He helped my game immensely,” said Casey. In fact, it was Charles who proved a huge advantage in Casey’s 2000 Olympic appearance and giving him a stage to gain visibility within the professional European leagues. Shortly after the Olympic games, Casey signed with Borussia Dortmond in Germany, paving the way to his new found career in Europe; a career that brought both injury and struggle but ultimately demonstrated his increased technical ability and staying power.

Although the teams in Europe had an immense number of talented players, teams were separated psychologically through a dog-eat-dog mentality.

Casey, along with every other player in the European leagues, fought hard for their positions creating a competitive atmosphere amongst teammates who needed to prove themselves for promotion, as well as thwarting loan and relegation. “There’s definitely camaraderie,” he said, “but it’s not an easy thing to get a team of professionals that are all fighting for the same positions to be in the same mindset working to help their team.”

» Casey has been

able to take this growth and add some depth, not only to his statistics but to his life in general. He has found that playing with the Rapids has brought him an elevated sense of team who support each other on and off of the field. «

After six years battling on the pitches in some of the most idyllic cities in Europe, Casey returned home to the United States where he could regain his confidence as a player and maintain steady playing time.

While he has been described as a big-bodied cement mixer by naysayers and even ridiculed in regards to his ability, what is surprising about Casey’s 6’ 2” frame is that at times he can be hard to defend. This unique oddity combined with the grace of his footwork and his proven ability to connect the ball with the back of the net seems to continuously set Casey apart up from the fray to prove his detractors wrong.

Even while he missed numerous regular season games with the Colorado Rapids to travel with the Men’s National Team in their quest to qualify for the 2010 World Cup, Casey still managed to be the second highest scorer in Major League Soccer (MLS). A feat to be highly regarded at any measure, he was only one goal shy of the leader who played four more games than Casey; solidifying him as a leader on his team and to impressionable rookies just joining the league. Reflecting he says, “It’s strange; I’ve always associated leadership with being an older player and I guess I’m getting kind of old now but I don’t want to think about that. Obviously getting called to the National Team and scoring goals last year has absolutely helped, and I am sure there are guys coming into the league that I could definitely help along.” Just like Pablo Mastreoni has helped Casey during his transition into the MLS by being a driving force vocally,

through hard work, and by the examples he sets as the Rapids captain. With five or six players rotating in every year, it’s the example that Mastreoni sets that Casey really admires.

Since returning to the U.S., Casey has been able to take this growth and add some depth, not only to his statistics but to his life in general. He has found that playing with the Rapids has brought him an elevated sense of team who support each other on and off of the field. Casey says, “You have a mixture of guys who’ve just come out of college who are 19 and 20 and guys that are 35 and married with kids, you aren’t always going to have guys that are on the same page or at the same spots in their lives but we’ve got a good group who understands each other well.” It is also this core group of professionals who dedicate their time off the field, volunteering with Kicks for Kids, a program that benefits underprivileged children through soccer and corporate donations, an organization the Rapids are very involved in. The team also participates in coaching their academy teams three to four times a week. “The Rapids in general are very involved,” he adds, “They do a lot throughout the community to keep all of us involved too.” And although Casey is on the road a lot, he donates his personal time to the youth soccer league, America SCORES, whose aim is to provide a weekly after-school program that keeps kids off of the streets, by weaving in exercise through soccer and exploring their creative side through poetry. It is a program that exposes kids to a positive social environment and keeps their creative elements in motion and their physical attributes conditioned. “It is pretty cool to see the kids at the end of the year play in their final games and get to do their poetry downtown (in Denver) in front of everyone,” he said.

With an amazing year and a half behind him, Casey’s sun is still high in the sky. He is playing in a sport that dominates the world’s cultures and is recognized amongst some of the top players in the world. A leader in his own right, he’s worked with and played against professionals across the globe, who have managed to succeed in a fiercely competitive environment, but have decisively united in teamwork to play their best for their clubs. It will be a spectacle young soccer players across America will witness this year, when a team of proud American players humbly suit up, as leaders in their sport, to represent the U.S. through teamwork and mutual respect in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Without aging himself, Casey says the one thing he would tell these younger players watching across America, who wish to succeed and eventually play in college or at the professional level is to, “Just enjoy it, if you enjoy it things just fall into place.”

Emily Haggstrom has a B.A. in Journalism and Media from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is a member of the Level One Society in Denver, Colorado and sits in on various charity committees.

In an effort to impact her local community she also volunteers for Whiz Kids Tutoring, Inc. as well as Denver Health Medical Center.

Photo provided by the Colorado Rapids

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Colorado is home to a great business school.

• Our Monfort College of Business was the first and only university business program in America to receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest Presidential honor for organizational performance excellence.

• A team of our marketing students claimed first place at the Direct Marketing Educational Foundation’s 2008 Collegiate ECHO Competition.

• Our business students consistently rank in the top 5-10 percent on nationally administered exit exams.

Gerald Chertavian

Empowering low-income young adults to fulfill their professional potential “I’m the Founder and CEO of Year Up. Year Up is a national organization that is focused on closing the Opportunity Divide that our disconnected low-income 18-24 year olds face in this country. Year Up’s mission is to provide the support, the experiences, and the education that our young adults need to make transitions into livable wage careers and post-secondary education…

I do believe that everyone can be a changemaker.”

Invest in Social innovation today http://ashoka.org/donate

ASHOKA.ORG

collaborator profile

Brad Lidge

» Lidge carries

deep personal interests for the mission and programs of each organization that he supports, and for him, philanthropy stretches beyond monetary donations. «

Brad

Lidge

Pitching In For Hope, On And Off The Field

By Lana Jefferson Taussig

H

e throws 95 mile-per-hour fastballs and his sliders range in speed from 85 to 87 miles per hour. Known as “Lights Out,” pitcher Brad Lidge has built his career as one of Major League Baseball’s most successful closers. In the 2008 World Series, Lidge secured the Philadelphia Phillies’ championship with the final out, a strikeout, in Game 5.

In practice sessions and on game days, Lidge works diligently to improve his game. He also makes sure to build relationships with younger players as they enter the major leagues.

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“Every year, there are several new young players joining the Phillies, whether they’re called up from the minor leagues or traded from another team,” said Lidge. “Hopefully they’ll be playing baseball for a long time, but either way I try to help them toward fulfilling careers, which takes commitment on and off the field.”

Off the field, Lidge is a dedicated philanthropist. Along with his wife, Lindsay, Lidge supports several humanitarian causes, including Strikeouts for Troops, a national nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of wounded troops being treated at military hospitals nationwide; the Garth Brooks Teammates for Kids Foundation, which endorses health, education, and inner-city services for children all over the United States; and the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, promoting baseball and sports nationwide while raising money for other charitable causes.

Lidge carries deep personal interests for the mission and programs of each organization that he supports, and for him, philanthropy stretches beyond monetary donations. He regularly advocates for teammates and other players in the league to join him in supporting worthwhile causes, and he looks for opportunities to make lasting contributions.

About five years ago, Lidge’s father, Ralph, introduced him to an organization that would become a significant influence in his philanthropic efforts. Project C.U.R.E., a nonprofit humanitarian relief organization that delivers donated medical supplies and equipment to people in need in developing nations, welcomed Lidge’s interest and support and recently invited him to join the board of directors.

“After speaking with Doug, [Project C.U.R.E.’s president and CEO], Lindsay and I knew that we wanted to donate and become active participants in its programs,” mentioned Lidge, when discussing his reasons for joining the organization. “We were impressed by the reach of Project C.U.R.E. and its direct approach to make an immediate impact for people who really need help.”

Project C.U.R.E., which collects donated medical supplies and equipment from medical manufacturers and distributors, hospitals and clinics, and individuals, is the largest organization of its kind in the world. Every week, volunteers help to send out two 40-ft. containers, each filled with approximately $400,000 in medical relief. Since June 1, 2009, the organization has delivered more than $21 million in medical supplies and equipment to people in more than 30 countries.

Lidge started his relationship with Project C.U.R.E. by helping the India Projects Fund of Denver’s Catholic Foundation to deliver medical supplies and equipment to Fatima Mission Hospital in Dindigul, India. The hospital, where it is estimated 700 babies are delivered every year, had no tools to provide intensive care for those babies who were delivered prematurely. It lacked basic diagnostic equipment and supplies for expecting mothers.

With Lidge’s help, Project C.U.R.E. delivered a 40-ft. ocean cargo container to the hospital. The semi-truck sized container was packed with infant incubators, bili lights for newborn babies, anesthesia machines, surgical kits for deliveries, X-ray machines and diagnostic equipment, and supplies for examinations.

In addition to this work, Lidge continues to support Project C.U.R.E.’s efforts to deliver aid, in the form of medical supplies and equipment, to doctors and nurses and the patients under their care in developing countries all over the world. He recently pledged funds to send two containers of medical relief to Haiti following the recent earthquake.

And in the 2010 season, Lidge will devote his efforts to increasing participating in Pitching in for Hope, a program allowing MLB players to contribute varying amounts to Project C.U.R.E. for each strikeout, RBI, hit and/or homerun.

Lidge commented on the program. “I’m looking forward to involving more players in the Pitching in for Hope program, especially to benefit people in Latin American countries where many players call home.

With Project C.U.R.E., each dollar stretches so far to assist people in need. It’s a 20-to-1 return.”

Whether on or off the field, Lidge makes a lasting impact – in the catcher’s mitt following an opponent’s strike or in the health and well-being of children and their families in the United States and around the world.

Lana Jefferson Taussig manages communications at Project C.U.R.E.’s international headquarters office in Centennial, Colo., and supports community outreach programs in the organization’s collection and distribution cities nationwide.

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collaborator profile

Kunsberg School

Physical &

Academic Excellence The Kunsberg School at National Jewish Hospital By Jan Mazotti

N

ational Jewish Hospital is an exceptional respiratory hospital that is known as one of the best in the nation.

In fact, since 1998 U.S. News & World Report has ranked the hospital as the number one hospital of its kind in the country.

You may be asking what a respiratory hospital has to with sports, teamwork and leadership. I will tell you. Hidden within the hospital is a school, the Kunsberg School, that caters to kids with severe respiratory issues and who can’t attend public school. Other than that, it is a school like any other, kids milling through the halls going to and from classes. A place where kids can be kids and where they can interact through studies and through sport. The only thing is… for some of these kids, if not taken care of properly, they could die from respiratory crisis at any moment.

The school hosts students from the inner city who are unable to attend public school due to their health issues and has three onsite nurses, who at any time, are within 30 seconds of any classroom.

Kunsberg has kids from grades K-8 with a maximum student capacity of 90 students. There are 15 qualified and dedicated teachers at Kunsberg, many of whom have experience in dealing with medical issues and asthma. Each day, the medical staff checks each child for outstanding health issues, give them their medications, and then monitor their health throughout the day. Kunsberg believes that with the right mix of monitoring and guidance around the student’s asthma and chronic illness, absences can be reduced.

Ultimately Kunsberg’s goal is to help students achieve academic and physical excellence while preparing each student to excel in self-dependence, self-reliance and self-care practices.

a special teacher. He has worked there for over 24 years and plans to, as he says, “work here till I die.” His name is Coach Jim. Dressed in orange almost everyday and armed with an attitude that screams dedication, Coach Jim serves as a role model and father figure to many of his students. He loves his job!

He has seen every kind of case come through the School, and unfortunately, has seen some of his former students pass away.

Coach Jim’s gym classes are the student’s favorite. In a public school, kids with health problems are often told to sit out of gym class – but not at Kunsberg. Jim teaches the kids teamwork, unity, and a sense of self-gratification.

There is no room for competition and competitive dominance in his classes. He knows that many of his students, “come from environments outside of school that deal with negative experiences,” so he tries to exclude that type of attitude. Bullying is not allowed. He does not keep score in games.

And, he picks the teams to ensure that everyone has equal time to play.

He teaches everything from dodge ball to swimming.

Coach Jim

» There is no room

for competition and competitive dominance in his classes. «

Outside of the regular academic schedule, the students are also engaged in art and athletics. During physical education class (PE), students are taught the specifics of any given sport, but more importantly they are taught sportsmanship and equality, while improving their physical fitness.

While we visited the class, one of the 4th graders fell and hit his head. What we noticed was that all of the kids ran to him and checked on how he was doing. They all helped him to his feet and one girl ran to get a nurse. We observed, first hand, the unity of all of the students. And we noticed that after the accident, that the baseball game they were playing was not important. The incident showed us that sportsmanship and unity are interwoven through sport.

Kunsberg’s athletic department is as advanced as any, even though its students are challenged by health issues. In most public schools, the students of Kunsberg could not participate in PE. They would have to sit out. But in the Kunsberg gym, class is open to everyone.

To meet the athletic needs of the students, Kunsberg has found

Kunsberg is one of those places where sport is coveted. But, while sport plays a role in the daily interactions of each of the students, it is not the drive to win that keeps the students going. It is a sense of camaraderie, of sportsmanship, and of health that drives the students and staff to excel each day.

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 Ultimately Kunsberg’s

goal is to help students achieve academic and physical excellence while preparing each student to excel in self-dependence, selfreliance and self-care practices. ÂŤ 01.10 - 03.10

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collaborator profile

Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub

» Key stats « Height - 6' 4" (193 cm)

Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub Five Minutes With An Ultimate Fighter

By Luke Wyckoff

W

here did you get the nickname The Hybrid?

I got the nickname from the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) staff and the producers of Spike TV. Your typical heavy weight is a big huge guy who is a little slower, and often not as technical as I am. In my case, I don’t look like I’m a heavy weight. Actually a lot of people think I’m a light heavy weight. So really, I’m a hybrid. I’m a fighter with knock-out power who moves like a light weight.

Have you always been competitive?

Yes. Growing up my older brother and I would compete against each other in everything. My dad was a black belt in karate and taekwondo and got us into martial arts when we were younger, so I was always competitive whether it was football, basketball, baseball -- everything.

What are your goals over the next few years?

Anything less than becoming a world champion would be a failure for me. My standards are pretty high.

In order to be the world champion, what do you need to do today, next week, and over the next year?

I prefer to take it one day at a time. I have to focus on training and getting better every day. I cannot overlook my next opponent. It’s as simple as that.

Why do you think UFC has become more popular than boxing?

Boxing is a dying sport. In my opinion, they have two fighters left that any one really cares about - Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather.

The UFC is really exciting with the outstanding athletes that they have today. The promoting strategies of the UFC make it the biggest fighting stage in the world right now.

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Weight - 240 (109 kg) Record - 5-1-0

What do you think the allure is to UFC compared to boxing?

We wear four ounce gloves, and a fight can go anywhere. You’ve got guys who are world-class athletes, competing with four ounces gloves. So, you’re going to see a lot more vicious knock-outs and head kicks, as well as punches.

So what motivates you?

I am motivated to make a living by becoming a prize fighter. For me, fighting pays the bills. Getting a knock-out literally puts food on my table and helps me pay my rent.

How do you prepare for a fight?

I usually fight between eight and nine o’clock at night, so it can be a long day. In the morning, I’ll wake up and I’ll do a lot of visualization. I’ll go through a fight a thousand times in my head, put myself in the worst-case scenario, visualize myself winning in every scenario. And then I’ll eat breakfast with my corner-men and a couple of my teammates. I usually just hang around all day, watching movies and relaxing - actually trying to take my mind off the fight. But once I walk into the arena and I get to the locker room, I’m focused and ready to go. Nerves just go out the window.

You’re already in the ring; you’re one minute before the fight - what’s going through your mind?

I’m going over the game plan that my coaches have created for me.

I’m going back over all the things I’ve worked on and what I’ve got to be aware of. It’s just a check list. I’m in the zone - it’s almost cruise control when I get in the ring. I’ve prepared for the fight. Now it’s the fun part.

How do you connect fighting and business?

I care about the business side of professional fighting - the way I look, my image, doing charity work, and other philanthropic activities.

A sponsor is more to me than a paycheck - it’s about creating relationships and helping one another out.

What do you think business leaders could learn from the UFC? Business leaders could learn about the work ethic it takes to get to be a top level contender. You can’t find it anywhere else. The dedication and discipline it takes just to sign a contract to be in the UFC is ridiculous. We’re a different breed.

If you could fight anybody in corporate America, who would you want to fight?

If I could fight anyone in corporate America, it would be whoever owns T-Mobile because of the international roaming charges they charged me. I would wreck that guy!

Five years from now, what’s happening in your life?

Five years from now, I will definitely be holding the UFC belt.

What, if anything, when you’re done being a UFC fighter, do you want to do?

I think I’ll get into real estate. My brother and my dad are in real estate, and I’ll probably fall into their shoes and somehow get into the family business.

Now that would be one very competitive real estate agent!

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collaborator profile

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

Y

outh are our future! Thus, it is important to invest in young people as they move towards becoming fully functioning adults. While the educational system is critical to helping young people fully develop their potential, what young people do during out-of-schooltime (OST) is also critical to their development. Specifically, what are the supports, opportunities, programs and services (SOPS) that can contribute to helping young people grow to become fully functioning adults? For the purposes of this article, a fully functioning adult is one that has developed the knowledge, values, attitudes, skills, and behaviors necessary to a) function in the world of work; b) form meaningful and productive relationships with other adults; and c) be a good community citizen.

First, it is critical to understand that OST programs are far more important than “keeping kids busy and off the streets” or simply viewed as “fun and games.” While having fun is an important hook for drawing youth into constructive engagement in OST activities, and keeping kids off the streets where they might get into trouble are important, there is much more possible through the involvement of young people in meaningful activities with caring adults.

» Changing from an orientation that

emphasizes the negative to one that focuses on the positive may require that we rethink our casting of young people as being at-risk. «

Enhancing a New Paradigm for the New Millennium Providing Quality Out-of-School-Time Services By Peter A. Witt ( 32 )

01.10 - 03.10

To see the importance of OST programs, it is critical to understand a fundamental change in the rationale for youth services among service providers and funders over the past 15 or so years. Until recently, the rationale for a lot of programs was to eradicate behavioral problems like dropping out of school, using drugs, or getting pregnant. This was a deficit-based approach to a service provision with the goal being to decrease negative outcomes.

However, the question arose, if an individual is not undertaking negative behaviors, is this enough to move them towards the development of the positive traits necessary to be successful? Thus, if one is not dropping out of school, does that imply engagement in school and undertaking the types of learning necessary to be successful in later life? The answer is obviously “no.” Karen Pitman of the Forum for Youth Investment summed up this line of thinking with her phrase, “Problem free is not fully prepared.”

So, how do we move from a sole reliance on conceptualizing youth services as “problem reduction” to one that encompasses a problem remediation and positive development stance? In other words, what would the parameters of a fully prepared approach look like, especially as these apply to OST settings such as those offered by youth sports organizations, parks and recreation departments or non-profit organizations such the Boys and Girls Clubs?

There now exists a rich conceptual underpinning for understanding how to promote positive development. For example, the Search

Institute has identified 40 assets that are critical to young people avoiding negative behaviors and undertaking positive ones.

Their list includes both external assets (e.g., the availability and involvement of an adult mentor in a young person’s life) and internal assets (e.g., decision making or resistance skills). Others have talked about Protective Factors or elements in a young person’s life that enable them to be resilient in the face of adversity. Quality schools and positive OST SOPS have been noted as crucial. This type of research has been based on looking at young people who grow up in difficult settings, yet manage to grow into fully functioning adults, while some of their peers do not. How did they become successful (resilient) in the face of adversity? The answers to this question help us develop quality OST programs for young people in the future.

» Empowering teens helps

overcome their feelings of helplessness, alienation, and disconnectedness from society and its expectations and standards. «

The shift to a more developmental approach is moving services “back to the future” as envisioned by Jane Adams in the late 19th century. She helped create Chicago’s Hull House as a multi-service 'community' center incorporating education, health, family services and recreation in a single complex. Today, we include well-rounded youth program elements such as sports, the visual and performing arts, outdoor/ adventure activities, leadership development activities, after-school tutoring, community service involvement, and job training. Agencies that don’t conceptualize themselves as part of an overall system to meet youths’ needs are likely to position themselves as peripheral elements in the overall system, marginalizing their potential contribution to alleviating problems and enhancing development, thus decreasing the likelihood of enhanced funding.

Changing the Mission

the changes taking place in developing a workable OST service model that can contribute to overall youth development.

Building Relationships

The goal of serving youth is shifting from the simple provision of activities to seeing activities as settings or means through which relationships between leaders and youth can be established. The emphasis is continuing to shift to mentoring and establishing long-term, consistent adultyouth relationships that are the essential catalyst for behavioral development and change. Successful mentoring is dependent on moving away from short-term programs to programs that are continuous and long-term. Thus, for example, a one-day per week basketball league offered over eight weeks or a one-week camping/outdoor recreation adventure will have little or no long-term impact on behavior unless they are elements of a comprehensive yearround integrated effort.

Expanding Who Defines Needs and Plans Services There is increased emphasis on developing a community wide plan for OST programs. Communities such as Boston, Chicago and New York have high level commitments through the Mayor’s Office or the School District to assess community resources for OST programs, and implement plans to fill gaps in service provision (e.g., by area, program type, or demographic.)

In addition, youth, parents, and other community members are increasingly being recognized as partners in the process of identifying both the needs of youth, and the SOPS through which needs should

Changing from an orientation that emphasizes the negative to one that focuses on the positive may require that we rethink our casting of young people as being at-risk. While the political process operates best when it can throw money at problems and characterize individuals as needy or at-risk, a more productive terminology would encompass seeing all young people as having potential and as being of promise. Even though youth may come from high risk circumstances, given the right combination of SOPS, they may still grow into fully functioning adults. Our news media needs to tell stories of the positive elements that are active in young people’s lives and the resiliency young people show everyday even in the face of extreme risks.

OST programs have responded to this challenge by moving beyond fun as the goal to using fun as the hook to drive program involvement. They have created safe places for youth as a platform to launch engaging programs that can lead young people toward a fully functioning adulthood. The following are some of

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collaborator profile

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

» The youth development

movement is growing, with strong involvement from schools, voluntary sector agencies, the police, and health and social service organizations. «

be met, rather than these decisions being made exclusively by OST professionals or volunteers. The role of youth summits, councils and committees is also becoming more prominent. These shifts are designed to fully recognize the value of empowerment and consultation.

Segmenting Markets In many communities, teens have become more vocal about the need for “places of their own” (note the similarity to the development of senior centers and day-care centers). The emergence of teen centers, often run for and by youth, is a testament to the recognition that process and involvement are important to youth development. Empowering teens helps overcome their feelings of helplessness, alienation, and disconnectedness from society and its expectations and standards.

In a number of cases, teens have been asked to grow very quickly through assuming a number of childrearing responsibilities especially in families where the parent(s) has to work. Teens need time and places where they can “just be kids” and deal with their own developmental needs. Thus, there is increased recognition that separate programs, with companion efforts for their younger siblings, might meet this need. Differences in developmental needs of boys and girls are also being recognized through separate programming. At the same time, efforts have been made, beginning with the implementation of Title IX to expand opportunities for girls, particularly in providing access and support for participation in sports activities.

Financing Program Efforts Much of the funding for OST programs is short-term, relatively unstable and often confined to narrowly defined programs. However, funding needs to be continuous and support more than the startup and demonstration phases of programs. Youth are adversely impacted by unstable funding (especially in a bad economy) because it engenders their distrust of involvement with caring adults and programs. The withdrawal of funding when trust and a mentoring relationship have been established becomes another broken promise in their lives. How many times has government or foundation funding been for a demonstration project, with the expectation that someone else will pick up the funding after the initial funding period has ended?

This process does not develop the kind of stable programs necessary to demonstrate our long-term commitment to the full development of our young people.

Other funding issues include the inadequate remuneration of youth workers. Low pay, often for part-time, and seasonal positions leads to high turnover rates and the disruption of mentoring relationships. ( 34 )

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The national movement to raise teachers’ salaries has not extended to other professionals working with youth, thus relegating many youth workers to second class status. Too often the best face-to-face workers have to be promoted to managerial positions in order to secure salary increases. Too many youth workers quit the field when they are confronted with the need to choose between their idealism and the reality of earning a higher salary to support their own families.

Evaluating Program Outcomes To date, program evaluation has been largely focused on determining program attendance and user satisfaction. However, funders of youth programs are more concerned with program quality and outcomes. The critical questions are not "How many were there?” but “What happened to each of the specific children as a result of their participation?” and “What return did the community receive on its investment of resources in this program?” As a result, means are being developed to meet funders’ expectations that both individual capacities to achieve the status of being a fully functioning adult are improved and risk behaviors decreased.

Measuring program quality is also becoming a bigger issue. If SOPS are to be offered at a high level it will be necessary to demonstrate that programs are using best practices and are in a mode of continuous improvement. The key questions include: are young people physically and psychologically safe during their participation in a program? Are programs being planned and implemented using identified youth program best practices? Are sports coaches qualified to provide positive leadership for young people? And, are the facilities welldesigned and functional to the intended program purposes?

Getting from Here to There The youth development movement is growing, with strong involvement from schools, voluntary sector agencies, the police, and health and social service organizations. OST programs are positioned to make substantial shifts in the public perception of their value and contributions as key elements in the process of enabling young people to grow up to be fully functioning adults. Both youth and society are generally all the ultimate winners in this endeavor.

Peter A. Witt is a Professor and the Bradberry Recreation and Youth Development Chair, Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences at Texas A&M University in College Station, TX 77843-2261. Contact Peter at 409845-7325or via E-mail at pwitt@tamu.edu.

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building bridges

Porter-Billups Leadership Academy

Regis University - Home to the Academy.

The Porter-Billups

Leadership Academy

C

Helping Kids Help Themselves

Coach Lonnie Porter sits in his home watching the evening news; it is an average summer evening in Denver, Colorado in the early 1990’s. Coach Porter is disturbed by the images that he is seeing on the news. Denver is in the midst of one of its most restless summers in years; a summer that has been marred by gang violence. Coach Porter notices a disturbing trend in the news stories; young men caught up in street life, all of whom seem to be missing a positive male influence in their lives. Coach Porter recalled seeing story after story on these kids and there was not a father in sight. That was a defining moment in his life. Lonnie Porter knew that he could do more to help out his community, especially the youth.

Shortly thereafter, Coach Porter came up with the idea of the Academy. He now knew exactly how he wanted to reach out to his community. He just needed the means to see his vision become a reality. Lonnie shared his vision with Bob Willis, a close friend of his.

Willis was inspired by Lonnie’s dream and decided to give the initial donation that got the ball rolling. So with $7,500 and an ambitious goal, Lonnie officially started what is now known as The Porter-Billups Leadership Academy. ( 36 )

01.10 - 03.10

By Geoff Bergman

Porter, a college basketball coach with over 500 wins at Regis University in Denver, is Colorado’s all-time winningest coach and a man that not only commands but demands respect. And although he has many basketball accolades, he is quick to say that the statistics that he is most proud of is that 95% of his players have graduated. Conversely, this basketball and community leader came from very humble beginnings in the Midwest which molded him into the man that he is today. Porter was born in Indiana and grew up in a poverty-stricken neighborhood. Coach Porter is known for being a straight forward, no nonsense guy. These qualities were instilled in him by some of his first coaches. They taught him as much about life as they did about basketball. He learned that you must have self-discipline, you must be accountable for yourself, you must be true to yourself and, as Chauncey Billups, Denver Nuggets point guard and the Academy's co-namesake shares, “He is honest at all times, at all costs.”

“You know that when he is telling you something, it is something that you need to know; maybe just not what you want to know,” says Billups.

Billups and Academy students play Life

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building bridges

Porter-Billups Leadership Academy

Coach Porter is as tough as a grizzly bear in the gym, but when he is around children his whole demeanor changes. He gets a huge smile on his face when he remembers the very first day of the Academy in 1996, and is overcome with the joy of a proud parent.

“I remember picking up those young kids that first day. I was driving down the highway and I literally got chills. I thought to myself there could be a future world leader on this bus,” recalls Coach Porter.

The Academy started that day with 22 young minds, three faculty members, with the blessing of the Jesuits at Regis University and an ambitious goal to help our future leaders learn, grow and go above and beyond their potential. Coach Porter and his daughter, Staci, whom he had selected to help run the program, knew that they had a long way to go but were anxious about the voyage ahead.

The Porter-Billups Leadership Academy, which is located on the Regis University campus, is intended to help kids in Denver’s inner city that have the potential to do great things, but are in danger of falling through the cracks if someone does not lend them a helping hand.

Porter says, “Ninety-percent of these students will be the first in their family to attend college.” Lonnie believes that everyone who has ever achieved anything was helped out by someone along the way and that we should help out those around us whenever possible.

When creating the idea of the Academy, Coach Porter noticed that in most schools there were special programs for those with very poor grades, as well as programs for those who excelled in the classroom. It was his belief that most leaders come from the B+ to C+ grade range, and that these bright young students were the ones that were most often neglected. The Academy focused on these children and gave them the opportunity to further their education, while becoming leaders in their schools and communities.

The students at the Academy are nominated by their principals and teachers; with criteria that they must have a good attendance record, a clean disciplinary record, and must demonstrate motivation and leadership characteristics.

Once students are accepted, they attend an annual

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three week long summer session where they are taught life lessons that would not be taught in a traditional classroom – lessons like teamwork, conflict resolution, critical thinking and proper etiquette. They learn about non-violent leaders such as Ghandi, Nelson Mandela and the Dali Lama. Students are taught how to evaluate themselves and set goals based on their strengths and weaknesses.

The students range from fourth to twelfth grade.

Furthermore, the Academy offers year-round mentoring and guidance counseling where high school students are able to get help on their college applications and can participate in study programs for the SATs and ACTs. During the three week program on the Regis campus, the students take days full of classes taught by 23 Denver area teachers, many of whom have been at the Academy for years. In fact, one teacher who had been at the Academy for many years moved to Chicago, but he believed in the importance and impact of the program so much that he committed to fly back to Denver every summer and stay for three weeks to be a part of these young lives.

While at the Academy, the students mature and turn into strong, independent young adults. The faculty has worked hard to make the Academy an extremely positive atmosphere for these kids. They learn life skills that will get them through everyday life. Students are taught to be leaders, not followers. “Don’t do what others think you should do, do what is best for you and what you think is right,” Coach Porter reminds them. The students learn that they must take accountability for their actions and must learn to conduct themselves in a moral manner.

Coach Porter believes that one huge problem plaguing today’s youth and society in general is a false sense of entitlement. He thinks that there is too much emphasis on “I” and “Me.” Coach Porter wants his kids to know that nothing is owed to you, you must work for everything. He is quick to add that if you work hard, you can achieve great things.

Students who have been attending the Academy for at least seven years and graduate high school are given the chance to attend Regis University, paid for by the Academy. Here they are able to continue their higher education on the same campus where years ago they told themselves that they would make it to college and beyond.

Chauncey Billups, a Denver native and home town hero had long admired Lonnie Porter and what he was doing. Billups had known

Lonnie since his high school days and in 2006, while in Detroit playing for the Pistons, he decided that he would reach out to Lonnie to see if he could help.

Through a mutual friend, the two were connected and Billups quickly came on board. Billups had long been involved in the community but always wanted to do more. Once he saw Coach Porter’s impact and how unique the program was, he knew he’d found his niche. The program was officially renamed the Porter-Billups Leadership Academy. The students and future students of the academy were the real winners of the alliance between these two Colorado legends. Lonnie saw that Billups exemplified many of the characteristics and qualities that the Academy was trying to teach. Porter said, “Chauncey was a real gentleman and a good citizen.

He demonstrated respect for himself and for others.

He is not defined by his riches or accolades but by his moral character.”

» They wholeheartedly want to help those kids who want to be helped, in the hopes that one day they will be leaders, and will be able to reach out to others in their own community. «

Like Coach Porter, Billups too came from modest beginnings and was also lucky to have strong positive role models in his childhood. Billups says that he was very fortunate to have a loving and caring family. His parents would do anything they could to better the lives of their three children. Even his extended family would do what they could to help. From an early age Billups learned that a strong support system was essential for youth to grow up and become strong and independent adults. When asked, Billups said one of the biggest reasons that he finds so much reward in helping out these children is because he “sees himself in them.” He is able to understand where

they are coming from and can help them through some of their everyday struggles.

Billups differs from many big name athletes who have foundations in their names; due in part that he is actually actively involved. Unlike some of his superstar counterparts, he is not just there for the photo opportunity or to stop by for ten minutes at the end of a program. He is a busy man who strives to be available for active interaction with these kids.

He is there for a majority of the program during the three week summer sessions. The kids love him, not because of who he is on the basketball court, but because he is one of them. As Coach Porter pointed out, “Chauncey has an uncanny way of relating with anyone and everyone. Chauncey likes to sit down with the children and have lunch with them as do most of the teachers. He is able to interact with them on their level and get the chance to become acquainted with them. From the look on his face, one can see that he is getting just as much out of this as the students are.”

Both Billups and Coach Porter are always roaming the halls while the classes are in session, and often pop in the classrooms to see how things are going. Both men, almost instinctively, begin to interact with the children and give them positive support. In one instance, Billups took the time to sit down with a group of young girls playing a game. He treated them as peers and with respect.

They let him play and within minutes they were all laughing and having a great time. Moments like these can be what changes lives.

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building bridges

Porter-Billups Leadership Academy

Oftentimes these kids do not get to experience enough of these instances outside of the Academy.

Billups says of moments like these, “The one thing that you will get here is that you will feel, and know what it feels like, to be loved.”

Fourteen years after its inception, the Porter- Billups Leadership Academy has really come into its own. Coach Porter, Billups, and Staci Porter (the Academy's Director), have taken this program to heights that Lonnie dreamed of while watching the news on the TV that summer day over 15 years ago. With the addition of Billups, the Academy has been able to spread its wings and soar to new heights. Last summer the Academy had 133 children attend the program, 70 of which were high school students. Last Fall, they had four of their alumni return to the Regis University campus again to start their college careers.

» You must have self-discipline, you must be accountable for yourself, you must be true to yourself. «

When asked about what the future holds, Porter says, “The Porter-Billups Leadership Academy has definitely come a long way; however there is an even longer journey.” Recently, several of the Academy’s first students graduated from Regis University. It was just the beginning of Porter’s goal: to have all of his students one day graduate and go out into the community and become positive beacons of light. Coach Porter, Billups and Staci realize that they cannot help every child and that the children must be willing to make sacrifices and help themselves. However, they wholeheartedly want to help those kids who want to be helped, in the hopes that one day they will be leaders, who will reach out to others in their own communities. Both Porter and Billups agree that one day they will retire from basketball, but they will never retire from the Academy. Coach Porter had a poignant way of summing it all up; “There is no better investment for the future than investing in the education of a child.”

For more information or to contact the Porter-Billups Leadership Academy please visit: www.porter-billups.org

Geoff Bergman has a B.A in History and International Business and Economics from the Benedictine University in Lisle, IL. Bergman is an independent writer for ICOSA. You can reach him at geoffb@capwwide.com.

Lonnie Porter at the Academy.

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Students learn academics and teamwork.

Values Count

Whether it’s in the boardroom or the classroom.

THREE COLLEGES

ONE MISSION

“There’s a lot of grey in the world; it’s not very often black and white. Regis helps you focus on working through the grey, on working through the parts that are not easy to determine the right course of action.” ~ Elizabeth Hardin

MBA Grad 2007

www.regis.edu 3333 Regis Boulevard Denver, Colorado 80221-1099 303-458-4100

Learners Becoming Leaders

jewel of collaboration

World T.E.A.M. Sports

World T.E.A.M. Sports Pushing the Realm of Possibility One Adventure at a Time By Bob Vogel

Team Semper Fi peddles into the battle grounds at Gettysburg on 2009 Face of America

W

orld T.E.A.M. Sports (The Exceptional Athlete Matters) is a non-profit organization that creates inclusive adventures that assemble athletes with disabilities together with non-disabled athletes to form soul-stirring experiences. The team nature, combined with the adventures themselves break down barriers, change the way the participants and the world view disability, and shows how teamwork and adaptation enable people to accomplish goals that are far beyond what was thought to be possible. ( 42 ) 01.10 - 03.10

Founded in 1993, World T.E.A.M. Sports (WTS) has a long and impressive list of adventures that have focused on a goal, and pushed the realm of possibility including: “AXA World Ride 95,” which features a core group of 5-disabled cyclists and 10,000 or more dayride participants that rode around the world, covering 13,000 miles and 16 countries in 7 months; “Face of America,” a series of bike rides that include civilian riders with a core group of disabled and non-disabled U.S. veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on a ride from Washington, DC to Gettysburg, PA; “Return to Kilimanjaro” in which 7 mentally challenged

athletes along with 15 coaches climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro the world’s highest freestanding mountain; and the "Coastal Team Challenge," an 8-day, 85-mile sea kayak trip from Anacortes, Washington to Vancouver, British Columbia that featured a core group of U.S. and Canadian soldiers with disabilities.

An example of the unique nature of a WTS event is a 2-day adventure race called the Adventure TEAM Challenge, held for the past 3 years in the Rocky Mountains near Eagle, Colorado. The event is made up of 5-person teams - each team must have two disabled athletes, and one of the athletes must

be a wheelchair user - referred to as a para (for paraplegic).

The event is the brainchild of WTS board member Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind person to climb Mt. Everest and the other Seven Summits. “I was doing the Primal Quest adventure race in 2003. There were rumors floating around that our team wouldn’t make it past the first day. In the end, out of 80 teams we were among the 44 teams that finished. After that race I thought, "Hey with the emerging technology and the team aspect there is no reason that disabled people can’t compete in races like this.’ Especially the way my team supported me through tricky spots, by good communication.”

Weihenmayer worked with WTS and 7-time World Adventure Race champion Ian Admonson to create an adventure race similar to the Primal Quest but shortened to a weekend event that is accessible to an average weekend warrior, while creating the same sense of adventure. This writer (a paraplegic) was invited to compete in the 2008 Adventure TEAM Challenge. As a longtime “armchair fan” of adventure racing, this was a dream come true. Looking around at the pre-race meeting it was clear that Weihenmayer and Admonson had accomplished something amazing. The teams were made up of all spectrums of the sport from casual weekend warriors (I put myself in this category) to worldclass adventure racers and paralympic athletes. As the race director, Admonson and said the goal of the event was the same as any other adventure race; we would be tested physically, mentally, and at times be in perceived danger, but hopefully not real danger. And if he did his job properly we would at times be cursing his name. The race lived up to all he had promised and then some.

The race consisted of 20 miles of mountain biking - paras rode “one-off” adaptive mountain bikes, (3-wheel hand peddle bikes with disc brakes, a wide range of gearing and capable of going anywhere a mountain bike goes). Blind racers peddled on the back seat of tandem mountain bikes and amputees used custom leg and arm prosthetics designed specifically for cycling. The event also included 16-miles of white-water rafting, a rock climbing and repelling section, and each team needed to get up to the top of a 100-foot high cliff - on a trail that was

Canadian Military Master Corporal Paul Franklin, lost both legs to a suicide bomber in Afghanistan--Costal Team Challenge.

Team CISCO, helping pull Josh Sharpe up the mountain.

steep and covered with loose gravel and sagebrush. Once at the top they clipped into a zip-line for a high speed descent across the river. One of the challenges for each team was figuring out the best way to get their para up to the zip-line, teams coming from behind learned from mistakes - or successes the leaders made.

The final section of the race was 15 miles of trekking and orienteering for two team members while the remaining 3 raced, raft on raft down the final 6-mile section of river.

A crucial part of the race was reading the course directions and rules and figuring out how to use them in your favor. At one point, following the zip-line, I figured out it was faster for me to swim downriver in the calm - but frigid - waters and join my team in the raft, rather than have them paddle upriver to get me, a move that temporarily jumped us from 8th to 3rd place. At another point I decided it would be faster for me to paddle the mandatory “rubber ducky kayak,” while most teams opted to tow. A half-mile later, after being flipped in big rapids and repeatedly getting sucked underwater, spun like a washing machine and spit downstream I definitely “perceived” I was in danger and stayed in the big raft after that.

The sponsor and leader of our team was WTS Board member and CEO of American Portfolios Financial Services, Inc. Lon Dolber. Dolber participates in many WTS events, American Portfolios is a sponsor and he encourages his employees to participate in WTS events.

“I tell my employees if you take part in a WTS event you think you are doing it to help out, and you are. But in the end you find you receive much more than you give. Think about it, they probably wouldn’t do an adventure like this in the first place if it weren’t for volunteering, and they meet people with various disabilities and learn about their lives. The cool thing is they will take this knowledge with them and share it with other people. They also take the experience back to the office and get to share the experience and the pride of having a great time and doing something socially responsible which is very important for our company.” Dolber added, “The nature of these events is such that communication is crucial so you learn a great deal about the members of your team. You struggle together, you laugh, and in the end you see that

» "Communication is crucial so you learn a great deal about the members of your team.You struggle together, you laugh, and in the end you see that we have more in common than differences." « - Lon Dolber

Bob Vogel doing the zip-line during the 2008 Adventure TEAM Challenge.

Winning Lumber Liquidators team.

Willie Stewart during a recent race.

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jewel of collaboration

we have more in common than differences. Plus when a volunteer does a World T.E.A.M. Sports event they get out there and push themselves to the limit and suddenly get a boost from somebody that is missing a leg or is paralyzed and we see it really is a team and we all rely on each other,” said Dolber.

“In society,” said Dolber, “people are curious about disability, but we are taught at an early age that it is not polite to look or ask. Before I started doing WTS events I had never been around a person that was missing a leg or somebody who was paralyzed. Doing WTS events has taught me a lot about different disabilities.”

Sarah Will is a coveted athlete for any team considering the Adventure TEAM Challenge. Paralyzed in a ski accident in 1988, Will learned adaptive skiing (mono-skiing) the following year and went on to win 12 Paralympic Gold Medals. “The Adventure TEAM Challenge is fun, and requires teamwork, problem solving skills and the ability to put your trust in other people. In order for a team to be successful each person must communicate their strengths and weaknesses so the team will know who will be best at which part of the course,” says Will. She goes on, “The same holds true of communicating about the disability - how can your team help you through a particular section? How can you help your team through a particular section? I’m light, if you tow me on this section, or carry me on that section we can make up some time - my arms are strong, I can climb that section myself.” In 2009 Will joined Weihenmayer, and top notch adventure racers Brett Landin, Rob Harsh and Ben Witherell on the Lumber Liquidators team to take top honors edging out Freedom Team For Life by just 4 seconds after two full days of racing.

Will points to another key in successful adventure racing, as well as business - mental toughness. ( 44 ) 01.10 - 03.10

World T.E.A.M. Sports

The team at the finish line in Vancouver BC--after 8 days and 85 miles of paddling.

» “Being mentally strong and working together as a team to lift each others spirit and endurance during the toughest parts of the race makes all the difference.This is important in business and in life.” « - Sarah Will

2009 Face of America bike ride from from Bethesda, Maryland, to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Army Lt. Colonel Gregory Gadson gets some help from his team up one of the many long hills.

“Being mentally strong and working together as a team to lift each others spirit and endurance during the toughest parts of the race makes all the difference.

This is important in business and in life,” she said. Dolber agrees, “The mountains, the ocean, and endurance distances, equalize everybody. To be successful you need to work together as a team.

All of these things require a lot of willpower and endurance, just like running a business. Like a WTS event, each day in business is a test of endurance and you have to keep your goals in sight and work with your team to get to your goal.”

The Adventure TEAM Challenge is something that is bound to catch on in a big way—the same way that offering 5K and 10K races created an explosion in the running world, while offering shorter more attainable triathlon distances created an explosion in that sport. The average weekend warrior or wheelchair athlete can now go out and compete on the same playing field as a world class adventure racer. Admonson agreed and said, what the world of adventure racing needs now is for the media to get a hold of it.

As soon as the event gets some serious television time, Admonson predicts it will take off.

But there is one thing television won’t be able to capture, and this holds true for all World T.E.A.M. events; at the end of a day of pushing your physical and mental limits, you are both tired and excited, and something magical happens.

Egos drop, preconceived notions fall away and the scenery, sights, smells, and interactions with fellow participants seem to come through raw and unfiltered, the way they did when we were kids, before we developed our egos and preconceived notions. That is a priceless feeling.

Bob Vogel is an independent writer.

For more information on World T.E.A.M. Sports including the 2010 schedule of events, log on to: www.worldteamsports.org.

jewel of collaboration

Houston Rockets Clutch

He’s Definitely Not Elton John’s

Typical Rocket Man But When it Comes Down to the Final Seconds…He’s Clutch By Emily Haggstrom

Clutch pitches in to be "green."

I

t’s only actually been 46 minutes but the heat is sweltering. Like a summer day in the desert. Your heart is beating in your chest and in your head. Screams echo around you from every direction, but you can’t escape it. It’s holding you there. You writhe and you jump and you squirm. Sweat starts to drip down your face. More screams.

It’s starting to get crazy but you can’t speak.

You can’t form words. Your body just feels heavy, trapped in with the heat. Your motions start to become exaggerated, ugh…more heat; it just won’t end. You need water. You tell yourself, “just two more minutes.” Then

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clenching their towels up around their eyes and the players on the court are panting in exhaustion trying to win the game. You’re the 6th man; it’s up to you to rally the team and the fans.

You’ve gotta’ be Clutch in the last minute. Go, Go, GO! 1995 proved to be the pivotal season that turned the tables for the Houston Rockets organization and inspired the idea for the future mascot Clutch. Houstonians who have seen a Rockets basketball game are sure to know who Clutch is, and even if they aren’t interested in basketball they probably still know him well. Standing tall at 6’ 8”, Clutch, the Rockets loveable obese teddy bear

» Everyone wants a piece of the fearless furry leader and he makes himself completely accessible to any and everyone. « the screams start again, and the noise. It’s electrifying. Sweat continues to fall and all of a sudden, you forget the noise. Forget that you can’t speak and you jump up and down since it’s all you can do. Because the score is 102-102 with 2 minutes left and a home court advantage. The crowd is up on their feet exhilarated, the guys on the bench are

» Boudwin uses Clutch as a vehicle to educate and entertain children while instilling a sense of responsibility in them. « is a huge presence at all home games and a Toyota Center staple. While players have come and gone throughout the seasons, Clutch is always there giving out hugs and performing high jinks on the court and in the stands.

One thing for sure is that it isn’t easy being Clutch. Nobody knows this better than Robert Boudwin. Why? Because he is Clutch. Boudwin is a self-proclaimed class clown and center of attention. He is almost enthusiastic to a fault. The amount of energy that he exudes regularly as Boudwin is unbelievable, so one can only assume it doubles ten-fold when he is in character and on the court. He genuinely loves his job. And I mean really loves his job; so much that it becomes him (literally in Boudwin’s case), causing him giddy childhood excitement and sparking a tone that makes you feel like you could soar to the moon. It’s infectious and people across America have caught his fever.

It is evident through the amount of accolades and awards he has won, especially his 2009 Mascot Leadership Award, a distinction

voted on by his peers. The honor is awarded to the mascot who acts as a leader within the profession, throughout their community and goes above and beyond to help their fellow colleagues by exchanging best practices and sharing ideas. He’s also been inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame and voted first ever National Basketball Association (NBA) Mascot of the Year. Everyone wants a piece of the fearless furry leader and he makes himself completely accessible to any and everyone.

However, no one enjoys time with the large teddy bear more than the kids at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, who are partners with the Rockets organization. Clutch along with his tireless trainer, visit the kids and distribute complimentary books, written by Boudwin himself, that tell the tale of Clutch’s experiences at the hospital. Together they make bedside visits to meet the children individually, hear their stories and give them the chance to be led into Clutch’s world of screaming fans, hilarious shenanigans and warmhearted hugs.

Boudwin’s leadership expands further into the community where he is regularly scheduled to make

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appearances at elementary schools across the greater Houston area, promoting education and drug awareness. Because children love and respond well to Clutch, Boudwin has used his platform as a conduit to inspire and motivate them to build their futures. Originally schools had approached him to do the visits and more or less steered him in the direction of topics that were critical to youth in the area. As the requests continued, message-filled appearances began to develop out of necessity. “At that time we thought, 'We needed to do something here, as opposed to just showing up and throwing out T-shirts.'

We needed to figure out how to deliver a message,” he said. Boudwin and his trainer started creating customized shows that highlighted the importance of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills; the Just Say No program that coincides with anti-drug week; a character building show to discourage bullying; and a show to promote healthy lifestyle choices, to name a few.

Beyond the classroom and out in the community, Boudwin teams up with Rockets players and various local organizations to plant trees and promote green week. Clutch even goes green for the event. During NBA’s “Green Week” the usually grey bear dons a fuzzy green suit instead to leverage support for the leagues efforts to raise money and awareness regarding environmental issues. Most recently Clutch has partnered with Republic Services, a waste management company, to teach kids the importance of recycling. Boudwin uses Clutch as a vehicle to educate and entertain children while instilling a sense of responsibility in them. He feels by adding the aspect of fun it reinforces the messages he delivers.

And be sure that Boudwin is full of fun - riding Ferris wheels for 24 hours straight, spending 112 hours or 4.6 days on the roof of the Toyota Center in support of a Rockets playoff berth, and running a 5K in his 19 pound Clutch suit to promote health and fitness! At Rockets home games he performs improvisational stunts reeling through the air on rollerblades or off trampolines, or running through the crowd acting like a giant loveable cheerleader - he never stops moving. He is the Rockets biggest fan. Although the game is only 48 minutes long the whole experience can last hours.

Mascots like Clutch are perfect tools for these franchise brands. Without ( 48 ) 01.10 - 03.10

Houston Rockets Clutch

So while the players are leaders on the court, setting an example of teamwork, Clutch leads the fans in the seats. «

them, teams would struggle and the organization would appear less in the community. It’s a value the players can’t create when they are on the road full time. Clutch reaches out to the community as an interactive billboard for the organization living, breathing and teaching Rockets basketball.

Though Clutch and Boudwin are a great team, nothing can take away the experience the players bring. “Nobody’s cooler than Yao Ming,” he says, “He’s such a large personality physically and personally. Kids are in awe of him.” So while the players, cheerleaders, mascot and entertainment staff all play crucial roles, none would be as strong without the other. “The Rockets organization is a brilliant example of teamwork and leadership. When the players step up, Clutch steps up, and the front office really works hard to make sure the players know they have fans behind them,” Boudwin says. So while the players are leaders on the court, setting an example of teamwork, Clutch leads the fans in the seats.

Through collective teamwork and combining their diverse leadership roles, the Rockets organization is a competing force within the NBA franchise system for the work they do on and off the court. “Our owner Les Alexander started with a vision 15 years ago. He wanted to add value to the game and to the fan experience. He put the resources behind his vision and I’m thankful that I got lucky enough to come into this situation and I’m thankful that he provides me regularly, the ongoing resources to do so. Whether it’s support internally, the time during the games, or the support financially he is the man behind everything in this organization.” And while Alexander gave the Rockets organization a solid vision, he gave its mascot a stage to perform on; but it’s Boudwin that really makes Clutch shine.

“I love this job. I love it. It’s not just what I do, it’s who I am. I eat breathe and sleep this stuff,” he pauses and then chuckles to himself, “It’s a little bit of an obsession. It’s not just what I do to pay the bills.” With that Boudwin hangs up the phone and he’s off again; doing what he loves, being the Rockets 6th man.

For more information or to schedule Clutch for a future event please call 713.758.7347 or visit www.rockets.com.

THEY SAY THAT A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS. HERE ARE JUST A FEW. Commitment. Empathy. Perseverance.

Honor. Duty. Friendship. Trust. Reward.

Dedication. Camaraderie. Selflessness.

Diligence. Respect. Courage. Fun. Patience. Fellowship.

Since its beginning, World T.E.A.M Sports has been known for hosting challenging athletic events that partner disabled and able-bodied persons to promote inclusion and TEAMwork, including ascents on Mount Kilimanjaro and bike rides around the world, across Vietnam, and the United States.

Using the universal power of sports to create soulstirring athletic opportunities for people of all abilities, these unique events demonstrate incredible achievement and change the perspective of all who participate or witness these remarkable adventures.

Participate. Volunteer. Donate. Celebrate.

Face of America Bike Ride Sea to Shining Sea Bike Ride Adventure TEAM Challenge

April 23 – 25 May 15 – July 17 June 25 – 27

Washington, DC to Gettysburg, PA San Francisco, CA to Virginia Beach, VA Rocky Mountains, CO

Visit our website for a full calendar of events!

If you’d like to join the World T.E.A.M. Sports powerful movement, please visit our website or email us at: info@worldteamsports.org

www.worldteamsports.org

jewel of collaboration

Canada's 2010 Games

Aerial view of Hillcrest © VANOC

Canada's

2010 Games Home to Many Olympic “Firsts” By Jennifer Cook

I

f practice makes perfect, Canada will surely earn a medal this year in the category of Olympic Host Country. Canada held the 1976 Summer Games in Montréal, the 1988 Winter Games in Calgary, and now in 2010, Canada welcomes the world to Vancouver and Whistler for the XXI Olympic Winter Games, from February 12 – 28, and the X Paralympic Winter Games, from March 12 – 21.

These world-class sporting events— hosted back-to-back by the same

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» More than 80 nations are expected to participate in the 17 days of the Olympic Winter Games in February, and more than 40 nations will take part in the 10 days of the Paralympics Winter Games in March. «

country for the first time—promise to be an exciting and inspiring celebration of sport, culture, sustainability and collaboration. They will also provide a chance to showcase Canada as a globally competitive and innovative country with diverse international business and investment opportunities. For example, Canadian environmental technologies have and will continue to play a key role in making the 2010 Winter Games the most sustainable Games to date—one of many Olympic “firsts” for Canada.

Of course all of this didn’t happen overnight. Getting to 2010 has been a huge undertaking. In fact, the Olympic and Paralympics Winter Games are by any estimation, one of the largest projects a country can ever expect to manage in peacetime.

More than 80 nations are expected to participate in the 17 days of the Olympic Winter Games in February, and more than 40 nations will take part in the 10 days of the Paralympics Winter Games in March. With these events come an estimated 5,500 Olympic and 1,350 Paralympics athletes and officials, as well as 25,000 volunteers.

more important than ever as a step towards unifying humankind.

As the Olympic charter says, “Olympianism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy of effort, the educational value of good example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles.” It is to “place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view of promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.”

These are timeless and universal principles. And the organizations and individuals, who came together to pull

off what’s known as “the greatest show on earth,” can take great pride in their role of furthering those principles. Now visitors and viewers from around the world will have the opportunity to see first-hand what makes Canada a living embodiment of the Olympic ideal.

Vancouver-Whistler: Home to Olympic “Firsts”

The Government of Canada and VANOC are committed to a “unique” Games experience—an experience that will make Vancouver-Whistler the home of a number

» In a world faced with enormous challenges—whether it’s the conflict in Afghanistan, the tragedy in Haiti or the world economic problems—the Olympics are more important than ever as a step towards unifying humankind. « In addition 15 venues, stretching over a 120-kilometer zone, will house competitions, medal presentations, athletes and media.

And, approximately 10,000 media representatives and 80 host broadcasters will report the Games to an estimated worldwide audience of three billion.

Disciplines represented at the Games include: Biathlon; Bobsledding, Luge and Skeleton; Curling and Wheelchair Curling; Ice Hockey and Ice Sledge Hockey; Figure Skating (single skating, pair skating and ice dancing); Long and Short Track Speed Skating; Nordic Skiing (cross-country skiing, ski jumping and Nordic combined); Alpine and Freestyle Skiing; and Snowboarding.

Clearly, planning both Games is a complex and immense undertaking. That’s why the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) and the Government of Canada, along with other government and private partners, are focused on a single goal—delivering a secure, world-class event that will be remembered for generations to come.

In a world faced with enormous challenges—whether it’s the conflict in Afghanistan, the tragedy in Haiti or the world economic problems—the Olympics are

Aerial view of Whistler Creekside © VANOC

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Canada's 2010 Games

of Olympic “firsts” in sport, sustainability, culture, business and collaboration.

Take the venues for instance.

Canada’s venue-construction program was on time and on budget. A total of $580 million, equally shared by the Government of Canada and the Government of British Colombia, funded all sporting venues, including seven state-of-the-art new venues and upgrades to existing venues that were designed with accessibility and sustainability in mind. All venue construction and upgrades were completed

by the end of 2008, a full two years before the 2010 Winter Games.

That means, for the first time in Olympic history, the competition venues were completed before the previous Games in Beijing were finished, allowing Canadian athletes two full years to gain home-field advantage, which Canadians hope will ensure another first for Canada—a gold medal on Canadian soil.

Incorporating Sustainability Incorporating principles of environmental, social and economic

sustainability throughout the 2010 Winter Games has been an important initiative for Canada. Since 1994, environmental protection has been one of the three pillars of the Olympic movement, along with sport and culture. That’s why Canada set longterm environmental management goals in construction and operation plans to create the first “green” Olympics.

The 2010 Olympic venues offer concrete proof of this initiative. Principles of environmental sustainability were applied when building new facilities to maximize energy and water efficiency, while reducing waste

» A total of $580 million, equally shared by the Government of Canada and the Government of British Colombia, funded all sporting venues, including seven state-of-the-art new venues and upgrades to existing venues that were designed with accessibility and sustainability in mind. «

View of curlers in action on the ice at the Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic curling venue © VANOC

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and pollution. Better indoor air quality and durability are added bonuses.

Existing facilities were upgraded to highlight energy conservation and efficiency and to demonstrate alternative heating and cooling technologies. Many of the venues employ heat recapture, which recycles waste heat and uses it to heat other facilities. For example, the Hillcrest Curling Arena captures waste heat from ice sheets and uses it to heat the neighboring community pool. In some cases, recycled materials were used in the construction and refurbishment of facilities.

In addition, venue sites were carefully selected and assessed to minimize their impact on environmentally sensitive areas. The crosscountry ski trails at the Nordic competition venue, for instance, were designed with an eye to minimizing the number of trees to be cut down. The trees that were cut at the venue were mulched, fermented and mixed with seeds of indigenous plants from the area. The mixture was later sprayed on soils throughout the venue so that natural vegetation could re-grow in the area.

That’s just one example. There are many more.

Aerial view of the University of British Columbia Thunderbird Arena Š VANOC

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Canada's 2010 Games

By investing in green building practices up front, the 2010 Winter Games venues will provide a return of environmental and community benefits over their lifetimes. Sponsors, suppliers, contractors and other partners were also encouraged to follow sustainable procurement practices that comply with ethical sourcing guidelines.

Further evidence can be seen in the public transit systems, which were designed to reduce traffic congestion, minimize local air pollution and limit greenhouse gas emissions.

Vancouver and Whistler city streets have also become showrooms for the latest in low-emission technologies and use of alternative fuels, hybrid and active fuel management vehicles.

In other words, Canada can and will set an example of how to plan for and run a successful and sustainable Winter Games.

providing support and programming for the Games. It also invested more than $622 million, which covered infrastructure, legacy costs and essential services, such as security, immigration and border services, to achieve a successful and peaceful holding of the Games.

The Government of Canada also began working closely with the Aboriginal peoples of Canada including the First Nations, the Inuit and Métis. In fact, Vancouver 2010 is the first Games to recognize Aboriginal people as equal partners in staging the Games. The purpose of the partnership was to work with these groups to identify talented athletes, promote youth participation in sport, and to develop coaches and leaders for Aboriginal peoples of Canada. Canada is also working to encourage Aboriginal people across the country to participate in as many areas of the 2010 Winter Games as possible, be it as athletes, volunteers, employees, entrepreneurs, artists and performers, spectators or cultural ambassadors.

For example, beginning with the bid process, the Four Host First Nations— Musqueam Nation, Lil’wat Nation, Squamish

» By investing in green building practices up front, the 2010 Winter Games venues will provide a return of environmental and community benefits over their lifetimes. «

Collaboration and Partnership

In 2002, the Government of Canada initiated and signed a comprehensive MultiParty Agreement for planning and staging the 2010 Winter Games with key partners including the Government of British Columbia, the City of Vancouver, the Resort Municipality of Whistler, the Canadian

Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee. The agreement outlined commitments and expectations for all parties such as financial contributions, legal responsibilities and sport legacies, which marked the first time this type of formal agreement had been adopted prior to the Games being awarded. Later it was lauded by the International Olympic Committee and is now considered a “best practice” and model for future Games.

The following year, the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) was established to support and promote the development of sport in Canada by planning, organizing, financing and staging the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The Government of Canada then took on the role of coordinating over 30 federal agencies

Bobsledders launch themselves down the track at the Whistler Sliding Centre © VANOC

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Nation and Tsleil-Waututh Nations—have played an important role throughout the planning of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, which are taking place on their shared territories. This partnership has and will continue to provide Canada’s First Nations with an excellent opportunity to showcase their unique and vibrant cultures, as well as opportunities to partner with Aboriginal businesses that have much to offer globally.

In November 2005, VANOC and the Four Host First Nations signed a protocol, marking the first time in Olympic history that Aboriginal peoples have been formal partners with an Olympic Organizing Committee.

Together, they are working to showcase Aboriginal traditions, history and culture, and create lasting social, economic and cultural opportunities and benefits.

Canada’s International Business Dimension

While competition may be the name of the game in the arena, Canada’s competitive spirit and pursuit of excellence extends beyond sport and into the field of global business. With 90 percent brand recognition, the Olympic Games provide an unmatched platform for international cooperation, especially from a commercial perspective.

Thousands of Canadian business partners, sponsors and suppliers have contributed to making these Games possible. Another reason why the Government of Canada invested in the Games was to showcase the country’s collective efforts hosting the Games, while offering business leaders from around the world a chance to view Canada as a modern, technologically savvy country worth investing in.

» VANOC and the Four Host First Nations signed a protocol, marking the first time in Olympic history that Aboriginal peoples have been formal partners with an Olympic Organizing Committee. Together, they are working to showcase Aboriginal traditions, history and culture, and create lasting social, economic and cultural opportunities and benefits. « As an example, the Canadian business environment offers optimal conditions for global business to thrive. These conditions include a diversified economy, financial stability, highly educated workforce and advanced industries. Even during the recent global economic crisis, Canada’s prudent fiscal policies and financial oversight have kept the economy strong and stable through challenging times.

According to the Canadian Office of the Chief Economist, Canada’s economic outlook remains strong. In fact, Canada was the last G7 economy to enter recession and is projected to maintain this strong position as the economy continues to recover and has experienced the smallest peak-to-trough decline among the G7 members to date.

So make no mistake—the Games have and will continue to create international business and investment opportunities. Aside from the 2010 Olympic and Paralympics Winter Games, Canada is home to many business advantages including: • Preferred access to the North American market—which holds over 435.8 million

consumers with a combined GDP of US $15.3 trillion—through the North American Free Trade Agreement.

• Th e lowest overall tax rate on new business investment among major industrial economies.

•C ompetitive R&D tax incentives for innovative businesses.

Perhaps that is why some of the most recognizable names in global business— Microsoft and Nokia, Honda, Kellogg and Shell—are advancing their global strategies in Canada.

By hosting the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, Canada hopes to give the world a view of Canada as a land of diverse peoples, culture, world-renowned geography and natural beauty… as an international partner of choice for innovation, commerce and investment… as a nation that embraces multiple cultures, respects diversity and champions sustainable development… and as a country that embraces this opportunity to strengthen the Olympic Movement and champion its goals of building a better and more peaceful world.

For the latest information on the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games, visit www.vancouver2010.com. For more information on the Government of Canada’s participation in the Games, visit www.canada2010. gc.ca. And for more information on investing in Canadian business, visit www.investincanada.gc.ca.

Aerial view of Whistler © VANOC

BACKGROUND The Consulate General of Canada in Denver is part of a network of Canadian Government representation throughout the United States, including the Embassy in Washington D.C., 13 Consulates General and seven Consulate offices.

The mission of the Consulate in Denver is to build stronger bilateral ties within the four-state Rocky Mountain region of Colorado, Montana, Utah and Wyoming. For more information, visit the website at www.denver.gc.ca. All press inquiries should be directed to Jennifer Cook at (303) 626-0672 (direct), (303) 589-8782 (mobile) or jennifer.cook@international.gc.ca.

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Canada's 2010 Games

Canada’s 2010 Winter Olympic Venues & Events Whistler Creekside: Travel and sport

Whistler Media Centre: In Whistler,

publications consistently rank Whistler Mountain as one of the top ski resorts in North America. The resort welcomes more than two million visitors each year. Whistler Mountain has extensive experience hosting International Ski Federation World Cup competitions. Events: Alpine Skiing; Alpine Skiing (Paralympic)

media will have access to a Mountain Media Centre in the existing Whistler Conference Centre with facilities for covering the snow and sliding sports for the 2010 Winter Games. The 35,500 square foot venue will include a press and broadcast centre.

Whistler Nordic Venue: The

a new facility that will feature the largest-ever Olympic Games spectator capacity for curling.

Events: Curling; Wheelchair Curling.

two-kilometre-square core area features approximately 14 kilometres of cross-country and biathlon competition trails, 8 kilometres of training trails, a temporary 10-metre biathlon range, two ski jumps and three 10,000-seat temporary stadiums. All Paralympic crosscountry skiing and biathlon events will start and finish at the Olympic cross-country stadium and will use parts of the Olympic cross-country competition trails. Several kilometres of training and recreational trails will be available near the competition courses.

Events: Cross-Country Skiing; Ski Jumping; Biathlon; Nordic Combined; Cross-Country Skiing (Paralympic); Biathlon (Paralympic).

Whistler Sliding Centre: The Whistler

Sliding Centre features 1,700 metres of bobsleigh, luge and skeleton sliding track and is part of Whistler's long-term resort development plan. Its proximity to Whistler hotels is expected to help showcase sliding sports, attract tourists, and provide a sustainable revenue stream towards the Centre's long-term operations.

Events: Bobsleigh; Luge; Skeleton.

Whistler Celebration Site: Nightly Victory Ceremony presentations for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will be held at an outdoor celebration site in Whistler Village.

Whistler Athlete Centre: The Whistler Athlete Centre will support the Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Village during the 2010 Winter Games with high performance training facilities, including a gymnasium, multi-purpose meeting rooms and lecture space.

Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Village: The Whistler

Olympic and Paralympic Village will provide accommodations for 2,750 athletes, coaches and officials during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and 1,000 during the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. It will also be the site of the Whistler Athlete Centre. ( 56 )

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Hillcrest/Nat Bailey Stadium Park: Hillcrest/Nat Bailey Stadium Park is

Pacific Coliseum: The Pacific Coliseum is home to the annual Pacific National Exhibition (PNE), which attracts 60,000 people a day each summer. Events: Figure Skating; Short Track; Speed Skating.

UBC Winter Sports Centre:

UBC is an expansive university campus on Vancouver’s west side, well-served by public transportation. A new arena will be located on the site of the existing Thunderbird Winter Sport Complex. Events: Ice Hockey; Ice Sledge Hockey.

The Vancouver Olympic Village:

The Vancouver Olympic Village will feature new low- and mid-rise accommodations for 2,550 Olympic and Paralympic athletes, coaches and officials. Its location in southeast False Creek is just minutes away from the nightly medal ceremonies at BC Place Stadium and Vancouver’s shopping and entertainment districts. The village will provide everything athletes need to prepare, train, relax or contact home.

General Motors Place: General Motors

Place will be one of the two venues for Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey, along with the UBC Winter Sports Centre. This world-class facility, home to the National Hockey League Vancouver Canucks and a venue for major sport and entertainment events throughout the year, will feature round robin and medal round games. Events: Ice Hockey.

BC Place Stadium: BC Place Stadium

in downtown Vancouver will be the site of the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the Opening Ceremonies for the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. It marks the first time ever that opening and closing ceremonies will be held indoors. BC Place Stadium will also be one of two nightly Victory

Ceremonies presentation sites along with an 8,000-person temporary venue in Whistler.

BC Place Stadium is a four-hectare multi-use facility with the largest air-supported stadium roof in North America.

Trout Lake Community Centre Rink: Trout Lake Community Centre is

a multi-purpose facility, which includes an indoor skating rink, fitness centre, preschool and youth centre. During the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, a new rink in the facility will be used for short track speed skating training. Training Venue: Short Track Speed Skating.

Richmond Oval: The 31-hectare

Richmond Oval site will feature a 360,000 square foot multi-purpose facility with a 400-meter track. Events: Speed Skating.

Killarney Community Centre Rink: Killarney Community Centre Rink

is a multi-purpose facility, which includes a community centre, pool and rink. During the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, a new rink in the facility will be used as a training facility for ice hockey.

Cypress Mountain: Cypress Mountain,

in Cypress Provincial Park, features spectacular views of Vancouver. The freestyle skiing and snowboard competition sites will include a new in-ground halfpipe, a new freestyle site for aerials and moguls, a re-graded parallel giant slalom course and two 12,000-seat temporary stadiums.

Events: Freestyle Skiing; Snowboard.

Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre: More than 10,000

accredited members of the media are expected during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. In Vancouver, they’ll have access to a Main Media Centre that combines a Main Press Centre in the existing Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre (VCEC), and an International Broadcast Centre in the adjacent Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion Project (VCCEP).

Accredited media will have 468,000 square feet of function space available at VCEC, along with an additional 97,000 square feet available at the cruise ship facility connected to VCEC. Media will have access to state-ofthe-art facilities and equipment to deliver the 2010 Winter Games to an estimated worldwide audience of three billion. VCEC is located on Vancouver’s downtown waterfront next to Canada Place and numerous hotels.

Aerial view of the biathlon course at Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Park Š VANOC

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Wish of a Lifetime Foundation

Passions Flourish Through Leadership and

Teamwork

Jeremy Bloom’s Wish of a Lifetime Foundation By Emily Haggstrom

“Never underestimate the power of passion.”

A

– Eve Sawyer

s a society we never have enough time. Time keeps on ticking.

Tick. Tick. There is not enough time for family, friends, or our careers and definitely not for silly things like passions and dreams we had as children. As

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adults we keep our feet firmly planted on the ground and our heads out of the clouds. We try to reach for goals hanging in our face like low hanging fruit. Tick. We constantly strive for balance. We compete in life’s struggles and hope at the end of the day to make enough money to keep ourselves and our families happy.

Tick. Tick. And while most adults repeat their existence day after day; by 26, Jeremy Bloom had lived out his passion for football playing both collegiately and professionally, achieved his

dream of going to the Olympics as a mogul and freestyle skier and forged a new passion shortly thereafter; starting a non-profit that even your grandmother would be proud of.

Jeremy’s passions bloomed early. Raised in a family entrenched in hard-work, sports and humility, Bloom spent his weekends chasing candy bars down the slopes of Keystone Resort with his grandparents and his weekdays throwing the football around the yard with his dad. Athletically, Bloom owes a lot to his father who taught him the fundamentals of football and helped take him as far as he could as a skier. By the age of 15, Bloom had made the U.S. Ski Team as a freestyle skier and was traveling to destinations across the globe.

Simultaneously as his ski career was taking off, so was his career in football. After high school Bloom was offered a full ride scholarship to the University of Colorado as a wide receiver and punt returner, and at the ripe old age of 19 he became a World Champion skier.

It seemed as though Bloom could not be stopped, he was setting school records on the football field, winning the 2003 Freestyle World

Ski Championships and attending school fulltime. Under the rules and regulations set forth for college players by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Bloom’s status as a professional skier and collegiate football player proved to be the epitome of the association’s conflict of interest. In 2004, the NCAA declared him ineligible for accepting endorsement money from skiing. In lieu of his curtailed time on the football field Bloom focused his attention on skiing. He became the number one freestyle skier in the world and a number one moguls skier; earning him a spot on the 2006 U.S. Olympic team. Shortly after the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy, Bloom flew back to the U.S. for the NFL combine and earned a spot on the 2006 Philadelphia Eagles roster after being drafted in the fifth round.

In 2007, Bloom was released from the Eagles only to be signed at the end of the year by the Pittsburgh Steelers. In August of 2008, Bloom was released from the Steelers, ending his professional career in the NFL. Bloom returned once more to skiing, earning a spot on the U.S. Ski Team, but inevitably he decided at the end of 2009 to hang up his skis and retire indefinitely from the sport.

Ultimately, his decision was made about the time his latest and greatest passion was blossoming. He was walking away from his childhood dreams to fulfill the dreams of others through his new foundation, Jeremy Bloom’s Wish of a Lifetime (JBWL) established in January of 2008. “I didn’t give up a dream; I no longer dreamed about those things, it was a transition in my life. I think I was really lucky I was able to find something that I’m so passionate about and that kind of came in and overtook my passions before I was forced out the door. I was able to just walk away on my own.” Bloom didn’t just walk away with this new passion, he ran. “When I find a passion I only know how to do it one way and that’s 100% and I wrap myself around it and it becomes me.”

Although Bloom had never aspired to start a foundation, he was reminded of a time in Japan with the U.S. Ski team where a senior citizen was searching for a seat on a bus and three Japanese gentlemen got up, bowed and offered the woman one of their seats. “I was really struck

at that age,” he said. Additionally, Bloom had been greatly affected by the bond he shared with his own grandparents and the model for his foundation began to take shape. “I wanted to change the way we look at aging and the way we look at those who have paved the way for us,” he said. The JBWL foundation was created to bring attention to low income seniors and to help them achieve their unfulfilled lifelong dreams. Bloom felt there was a lack of resources and opportunities for older Americans in lower income brackets. The seniors targeted are those that have worked hard their entire

lives, taken care of families, given back to their communities, and have overcome obstacles and challenges. It was his hope that these seniors could live out one of their dreams and experience some of the feelings he was affected by when he had achieved his own dreams.

Even through this tumultuous economy the JBWL foundation has seen huge growth, not only financially but at the partnership level. Since starting the foundation in early 2008 the calculated value through board engagement, a bottom line of money raised and spent at 4 to 1, coming into the black within 2 years of existence (a feat that is very challenging for most non-profits) and continuous wish applications coming into the foundation, it was not hard to see that the results were proving powerful. Bloom and his all-star team had improved the health, happiness and quality of life for seniors. As a testament to all of their hard work they began to garner support from organizations locally and across the United States. In fact, the response from outside organizations was so tremendous that the JBWL foundation staff of 16 board members, 6 wish committee members along with hundreds of volunteers expanded their reach.

Starting January 1, 2010 JBWL foundation has started granting wishes in all 50 states and hope to grant over 250 wishes in 2010. Wishes that will affect other seniors like Jerry who wanted a bruno turney chair installed in his van so he could regain the freedom that had eluded him after a terrible bicycle accident and brain aneurysm. Or a dare-devil senior named Lucy who had wished to sky-dive since she was 8 years old. The reach is widespread. Bloom’s foundation even found a senior that had been writing for over 25 years in the hopes of publishing her stories.

The foundation teamed her up with a publisher and she is now coming out with her very own children’s book. Currently, the JBWL team is partnering with galleries to display artwork by seniors who have always dreamed of having their work displayed; and as a bonus the proceeds from these pieces will go back to the foundation to help more seniors.

Although measuring the affect of JBWL’s success is difficult, it is the attention they have

» Bloom and his all-star team had improved the health, happiness and quality of life for seniors. «

» “When I find a passion I only know how to do it one way and that’s 100% and I wrap myself around it and it becomes me.” « - Jeremy Bloom

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Wish of a Lifetime Foundation

received on behalf of older Americans that they are so proud of. A great example is The Seniors’ Resource Center in Colorado, whose mission is dedicated to helping older American’s. The Centers Public Relations Coordinator, Brandon Edelman spoke of the opportunity with JBWL saying, “He (Bloom) can help raise awareness for the services that we (Seniors’ Resource Center) provide and there is an opportunity to nominate some older adults within some of our programs for his Wish of a Lifetime.”

Bloom is optimistic that by using these wishes as a vehicle of inspiration to highlight seniors nationally, who are accomplishing dreams well into their 80’s and 90’s; that the foundation will continue to attract more people to the cause daily, and to hopefully create a culture of change. Slowly but surely by creating this foundation Bloom believes JBWL can garner more of an element of respect for the senior population. And while money is tight for older twenty-something’s around Bloom’s age, they are the new demographic that can begin to initiate the way young adults view older Americans and to start giving.

Bloom encourages young people to get involved through volunteering their time with the foundation, nominating seniors for JBWL or by simply interacting more with their own grandparents.

Blooms recent non-profit success has ultimately come down to building a great team. Through his experience playing football and his involvement in an Olympic sport, Bloom has learned to set goals and stick with them. He’s dealt with diversity, facing challenges and accepting failure to overcome it. By applying these principles into his work ethic he has created the ultimate business model. Bloom said that, “It’s about being around inspirational

people who motivate each other and together do something to make a small difference in the world.” It was his hope to start the foundation without his name, but in the end it was added strategically. By lending his name to a great idea turned non-profit, Bloom has

foundation to eventually stand on its own and be known for the wishes that they grant and the work that they do. “There’s a stereotype in the sports industry that people lend their names to things because it sounds good and raises publicity. Like anything else all stereotypes and generalizations aren’t correct. You have to dig deeper into it. Does it happen? Sure it happens. Is it what I strive for? Not even close.”

As evidenced by the foundations continuous growth it seems evident that Bloom is focused on more than just himself. He’s taken all of the leadership and team aspects he’s been exposed to his whole life in athletics and combined them to create a perfect mission for the JBWL foundation.

He is now focused on a stronger desire to help others. And with the support of his amazing staff, seniors can now accomplish their goals and experience that same feeling of accomplishment before the last…tick.

As I set to close out my interview with Mr. Bloom I can see perfectly outside my window, hundreds of snowflakes dance down onto a perfect blanket of white; shaping up to be another perfectly unique winter day in Colorado. A day Bloom would have lived for as a child, and that’s when I decided to ask him; if he could have one more wish fulfilled, one more dream of his own, what would it be?

And with no hesitation in his voice he said happily, “All my wishes have been fulfilled.

They continue to be fulfilled every day and that is a big reason why I want to continue giving that opportunity to other people.”

» “It’s about being around inspirational people who motivate each other and together do something to make a small difference in the world.” « - Jeremy Bloom

created more of an opportunity for his young foundation. “I am blessed that I’ve been bestowed with the talent to create a name that people know and the opportunity to have that name open doors.”

Although Bloom has a unique platform as a celebrity to open those doors, he wants the

Emily Haggstrom has a B.A. in Journalism and Media from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She is a member of the Level One Society in Denver, Colorado and sits in on various charity committees. In an effort to impact her local community she also volunteers for Whiz Kids Tutoring, Inc. as well as Denver Health Medical Center.

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jewel of collaboration

SKATING, SOCCER & FENCING

Johann Koss in Africa

Skating, Soccer & Fencing The Sport of Changemakers By Rebecca Saltman

D

id you ever wonder why people of every creed and culture are so drawn to professional sports? Sunday afternoons in the fall across this country are always filled with gatherings to watch any number of sporting events, both live and on ( 62 ) 01.10 - 03.10

television. What drives this interest in our lives? No less a personage than Nelson Mandela sought out this common connection when he asked the captain of South Africa’s rugby team, Francois Pienaar, to help unite their country.

Knowing his nation remained racially and economically divided in the wake of apartheid,

Mandela believed he could bring his people together through the universal language of sport. His frank and vocal support behind South Africa’s underdog rugby team (during their unlikely and dramatic run to the 1995 World Cup Championship match) became a way for many disparate elements within South African society to look for areas of connection and of collaboration. Clint Eastwood and an all-star cast brought this amazing story to life on the silver screen in the form of “Invictus.”

I grew up in a home where my father would watch any sport. My mother has often joked that Dad would get excited if two people were competing to keep a piece of tissue paper in the air. He loved the thrill, the competition defined by opposites using mutual skills against one another - and I also believe he really enjoyed watching successful teamwork.

This early exposure is probably where I got my fierce drive for collaboration, ultimately laying the groundwork for engaging in social entrepreneurship in my own life.

I will be honest, writing about sports per se is not really a strength. However, writing about Changemakers is. My background in high school swimming and volleyball would not lend itself to a piece highlighting the international efforts of internationally renowned athletes, so I reached out to Ashoka.

Finding some of the best and brightest social entrepreneurs, using sport to create positive change in their communities, is a mission statement for several Ashoka Fellows.

Ashoka’s Changemakers and Nike partnered on their “Sport for a Better World” competition in 2007, opening a worldwide search for projects that use the transformative power of sport to achieve real social change.

One result of this enduring project was worldwide exposure for several athletes whose physical skills were matched only by their drive to improve their world. Ashoka’s brilliant Fellows, Johann Olav Koss, Jürgen Griesbeck, and sisters Balsam and Lulwa Al-Ayoub, have taken their dedication of sports and projected it onto an ugly canvas of violence, poverty, war, and starvation. In effect, they painted vibrant new philosophies on dull, unvarnished old paradigms. The results, detailed below, may explain why sports has universally become so integral in our lives – it is a true prototype of collaboration. We may look back as a global community and hail the early years of the 21st Century as the first cohesive recognition that “we’re all in this together”, and only together can we move on.

Johann Olav Koss was born in Norway in 1968. His parents were physicians (his father a heart specialist, his mother an obstetrician-gynecologist). In his youth, Johann

discovered a passion for speed skating and trained very hard to become an Olympic athlete.

He credits much of his success to understanding the value of teamwork. He won four Olympic gold medals and one silver during the 1992 and 1994 Winter Olympics (setting multiple speedskating world records in the process).

In 1993, Johann became a sports ambassador for Olympic Aid for Eritrea, devastated after its 30-year war for independence from Ethiopia. During this visit, he played football with war-affected children who had lost one limb, using a football made from shirts tied together. This trip left a permanent impact on him. It was then, that he realized the impact that sport could have in bringing people together. After winning three gold medals in the 1994 Winter Olympics, Koss announced that he would be donating his entire bonus to Olympic Aid and its affiliated organizations.

The Lillehammer Olympic Organizing Committee (LOOC) conceived Olympic Aid (now “Right To Play”) in 1992 in preparation for the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer, Norway.

The focus of Olympic Aid was to show support for people in war-torn countries and areas of distress. A partnership was formed among the Red Cross, Save the Children, Norwegian Refugee Council, Norwegian People’s Council, the Norwegian Church Fund and Olympic Aid to raise funds for and awareness of the specific initiatives each of these organizations were implementing.

Koss was named the lead Athlete Ambassador, and he proceeded to challenge fellow athletes and the public to donate money for each gold medal won. An unprecedented $18 million USD was raised and used for five main projects: building a hospital in Sarajevo; building schools in Eritrea; supporting a mother/ child program in Guatemala; supporting refugees in Afghanistan; and a disabled children’s support program in Lebanon.

In 2003, Johann helped change the orientation of Olympic Aid away from favoring Olympic sportsmen to opening it up to various levels of athletes. Today, he is President and CEO of Olympic Aid’s newer incarnation, “Right to Play.”

Right to Play reaches out to countries affected by war, poverty and disease in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and, in the near future, South America. It identifies local issues and adapts sport and play programs to suitably address them. The core idea behind Right to Play’s programs is to contribute to a behavioral change among children and youth, ultimately leading to their holistic development. This behavioral change is cultivated by including

the children and youth in Right to Play’s sports and games - all designed to teach values and life skills such as teamwork, inclusiveness, discipline, and communication.

Johann focuses 35% of his activities in refugee camps connecting strategic issues such as inclusion and diversity, health, sanitation, and HIV/AIDS with sport. Under his guidance, Right to Play has developed 300 games that have improved the children’s understanding of leadership, cleanliness, personal hygiene, and how diseases spread.

These games educate children in matters of conflict resolution and communication issues

» The core idea behind Right to Play’s programs is to contribute to a behavioral change among children and youth, ultimately leading to their holistic development. « related to living in small, crowded areas with different tribes, religions and geographies.

Right to Play has successfully established a coach-teacher model that is self-sustaining: participants are simultaneously trained to become future coaches/trainers. In many countries, competitive sport is very elitist and the organization strives to bring learning opportunities through sports to the bottom of the pyramid. Thus, through all its programs, Right to Play is using sport to bring better education and health to some of the world’s most disadvantaged areas. Perhaps not surprisingly, class barriers are reduced and avenues for career development and income generation are created in the process.

Right to Play has strategically partnered with local communities and citizen sector organizations (CSOs) in every country where it operates. It is now entering into a dialogue with national governments to influence public policy, building upon its local success to affect systemic change at the global level through the United Nations. For example, in Mozambique, programs teaching disease prevention and HIV/AIDS awareness have seen involvement rise from 80 children in 2007 to over 200 children in 2009. In Lebanon, conflict resolution and peace building games have given children living in refugee camps an outlet to express their fear, anger and frustration, finally leading to healthy emotional expression.

Jürgen Griesbeck has been a sports enthusiast from a young age, and was always fascinated by the social effects of

sports. Having studied sports sciences in Cologne, Germany and social sciences in Medellín, Colombia, in 1994 he began research as the coordinator on “Sport and Local Development and Eradication of Poverty” at those same universities. He later wrote his Masters thesis on the subject of “Contemporary Social Problems.”

That same year his life was completely upended when the Columbian national football star Andrés Escobar was killed in a bar shooting. Escobar was a friend of his wife’s family, and Jürgen knew El Caballero del Futbol (“Soccer’s Knight”) personally.

One of the most affecting details to surface during the Medellín authorities’ investigation was the very real possibility that the murder was revenge for an unfortunate play during that year’s FIFA World Cup tournament, against the United States. Stretching to stop a cross by U.S. midfielder John Harkes, Escobar deflected the ball into his own net. The USA won the game 2–1, and as a result, Colombia was eliminated from the tournament in the first round. The next month, while visiting a local Medellín club with friends, Andres was cut down by 12 bullets. Witnesses claimed the murderer, a local elementary school teacher, mockingly cried out “G-O-O-OO-A-L!” as he fired. Deeply shocked, Jürgen wondered: “How can football (also known as soccer), a game based on team spirit and fairness, lead to a murder? Does football reflect the state of society? How can the power of football be used in a positive way?”

Jürgen decided to show that football has an unlimited ability to bring people together to overcome problems. That football can unite instead of divide. He started his first project, “Football for Peace,” in one of the most dangerous and violent cities at the time, Medellín. In the midst of a spiral of violence that had gripped everyday life in Medellín, he was successful against all odds in a short time. Five hundred teams consisting of more than 10,000 boys and girls were now playing where gang conflicts had taken place. The kids accepted and committed to establishing innovative rules such as no drugs, no violence, girls were to be actively included, no referees, no weapons before entering the area of play, and so on. Soon after it began, even security measures surrounding the playing fields were lifted.

"When I heard the news about Andrés it was about 5 in the morning and it hurt so deeply. . . I knew I wanted to do something with football, but it took some time to work it out in the specific context. The “Football for Peace” approach means we play only with

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mixed teams, without a referee so that each player can learn how to handle right and wrong on their own. Fair play is an essential part of the rules. I think in Medellín it was the first time people from a background of conflict were brought together, and it was football that did it. We have aimed to make possible the impossible.” Jürgen said.

He believed if it worked there, it would work everywhere. He envisioned a worldwide network of citizen organizations using football as a tool for social change, helping them to find new partners, and opening up the resources and recognition of the professional football industry and the broader public.

Jürgen’s global network brought dozens of organizations together using the football industry, governments, foundations, and other citizen organizations, to leverage their work and enhance their ability to serve society. Its multi-purpose uses, availability, and strong emotional element make “street soccer” a powerful unifier for all players throughout society, while engaging the business and social sectors.

After “Football for Peace”, Jürgen further developed his successful approach for a different context and framework in Germany.

With Germany facing a new wave of xenophobic rightwing attacks ten years after reunification in 2000, he set up the Football for Tolerance project in Brandenburg. The initiative aimed at integrating disenfranchised youth with others prone to violence by using football to mitigate strong right-wing tendencies and actions. In spite of initial resistance, Jürgen made it a successful model and handed it over to local leadership. He decided to dedicate himself to overcoming the structural challenges he had witnessed during his first two endeavors: The lack of a globally integrated and recognized field of football for social change.

Citizen organizations around the world use football as a way to reach out to young people. While these groups ( 64 ) 01.10 - 03.10

integration of immigrants, peacebuilding, or gender equality, Jürgen enables them to exchange best practices and form a basis for collaboration on a global scale. More than a network, his organization, Streetfootballworld, links its members with other community organizations in their fields and with local governments and foundations.

He matches them with corporations, such as Nike, and the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), channeling new financial and professional resources into the social sector, while increasing social awareness and changing the policy of FIFA and the football industry. Jürgen facilitates events like the global Streetfootball Festival, which he founded to change the self-perception and identity of participants and that of the public. He has brought youth from all over the world involved in football for social change together, both online and offline, to form a global community.

As Jürgen adds more members to the global network, he builds a united movement around football as a powerful instrument to improve the efficiency of citizen organizations and increases their ability to reach and impact millions of children.

» These games educate children in matters of conflict resolution and communication issues related to living in small, crowded areas with different tribes, religions and geographies. « have various goals - safer streets, better schools, improved health, a cleaner environment - they have a powerful tool in common.

By connecting carefully selected citizen organizations that use football as a tool for social change in a variety of fields, such as HIV prevention, environmental protection,

Balsam and Lulwa Al-Ayoub are empowering

Jürgen Griesbeck

girls from the Middle East.

They have proven that women can work in the same arenas as men, and excel. They are professional fencers and two of the few women dedicated to professional sports in the Gulf region, where laws and tradition inhibit girls from competing in sports. By competing in international tournaments and mentoring young female athletes, the Al-Ayoub sisters are showcasing women's talent and strength to a society that has traditionally confined women to the home. By lobbying for the amendment of the professional sports law which does not consider women athletes, they are opening the gates for others.

The Al-Ayoub sisters grew up in an athletic family that believed in sports as a tool for self development. The sisters

Kids playing at one of Griesbeck's camps.

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were encouraged to pick a sport from an early age by their father, a devoted football player and swimmer, and their mother, a physical education teacher. In addition to constantly encouraging the girls to pursue a sport, their parents took them and their siblings on road trips to Eastern and Western Europe, to more- and less-privileged places, so they could learn to appreciate diversity and broaden their horizons. Their mother had a two-pronged influence on them, in the realm of sports, in empathy and in human understanding.

She strongly believed that sports developed character. Although they grew up with a conservative background, they studied abroad and competed in basketball and volleyball tournaments throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Balsam received a degree in Physical Education and Lulwa a degree in Linguistics and Translation. After years of living abroad, both are again living in Kuwait.

Women in the Gulf are not allowed to become professional athletes, and in some countries, they are not even allowed to play sports. The Al-Ayoub sisters are deconstructing these taboos in the Gulf area by using the sport of fencing to literally “cut through” society’s constraints. The sisters wanted to instill their belief at the national level, that being active in sports enables girls to grow proud, strong, fearless and expressive – regardless of their ultimate life’s goal.

The Al-Ayoub sisters are empowering women through a strategy based on three components. First, through their success in their field, they are setting an example as role models for many girls in Kuwait. They use their status to serve as mentors to aspiring fencers, whom they constantly encourage to compete in the same arenas as men. Second, they are creating a new perception of women as leaders and trainers, as they train young boys and girls in fencing.

Third, they are promoting sports among young girls in schools, in order to break the walls of women’s social exclusion. In contrast to other regional programs utilizing more conventional approaches (like raising awareness), the AlAyoub sisters’ strategy is comprised of a set of modules that break down social taboos, instill the notion of female leadership, and promote greater inclusion of women. They believe that being professional female athletes in a patriarchal world will open doors for others to join all kinds of sports and thus be empowered.

Although there are very few community organizations in Kuwait, most if not all are government- controlled and funded. The AlAyoubs realized that for their idea to take root, they had to have freedom and sustainability.

They did not want to associate their

entrepreneurial idea for empowering girls and women with the traditional, fairly conservative perception of community organizations in the region. To date, they have managed to raise funds to sponsor themselves and their pupils, and have even competed in tournaments which they themselves have sponsored.

Gender empowerment has always been a controversial issue in the Middle East, and even more so in the Gulf Peninsula. However, in recent years, women traditionally confined to the home are now venturing into worlds they had previously known little about. They are increasingly working alongside men in banks, universities and public offices. At the same time, age-old traditions, laws, and a lack of public awareness about the role of women still hold sway, leaving women in the Gulf to face continued oppression.

In Kuwait women constituted nearly 40% of the country’s labor force in 2003,

efforts invested in men and thus are not able to reach their full potential, although they have the spirit to excel. The Al-Ayoub sisters are among the few Kuwaiti women entrepreneurs, having founded a sporting event management company, “Touché” - an obvious reference to fencing, yet also a subtle hint as to their success as businesswomen.

Through their organization, the sisters advocate for better-quality, and more evenhanded professional sport opportunities for Kuwaiti girls. On a political level, they are also lobbying with the Kuwaiti government to modify professional sports law so that women can be considered “professional athletes” thus participating in championships under Kuwait's flag.

Currently, the sisters are coaching and providing mentorship to two young girls who are practicing to become professional fencers: Mariouma Al Fahd and Dalal El Shaye’. They have also started a pilot program to introduce fencing as an extracurricular activity in one school, which has provided space for training, while the sisters have donated fencing equipment and gear that the students can use. The program introduces fencing as a sport and as an art, and trains girls and boys together. The pilot will be replicated in three other schools in Kuwait over the next five years.

Moreover, the Al-Ayoub sisters have managed to bring increased respect for Arab female athletes, by participating in an unprecedented initiative in the Arab world. Together the sisters delivered a series of training seminars aimed at men occupying senior managerial posts in the corporate sector, as part of their collaboration with one of their sponsors. The training, “From Championship to Leadership,” introduced the notion of female leadership in a non-traditional manner by building on the Al-Ayoub's triumphs in their competitions, then applying their strategies to the corporate world. They are currently laying the foundations for a sports academy that will cater to the needs of the female athletic community in Kuwait (both Kuwaitis and foreign nationals), thereby confounding the inequities to which Kuwaiti and foreign women are commonly subjected.

It is clear, these three athletes have used their sport to change practices in larger regions. Each of them is making a difference one person at a time. Each is using their sport to be a changemaker.

» Fair play is an essential part of the rules. I think in Medellín it was the first time people from a background of conflict were brought together, and it was football that did it. We have aimed to make possible the impossible. «

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ensuring many women a proactive role in public life. Nevertheless, educated and professional women still faced social and legal obstacles that prevented them from being fully emancipated. Participation in sports remains a particularly difficult hope for many professional female athletes.

In preparation for the Beijing Olympics, Olympic committees were set up globally to train athletes and fund their activities.

Accordingly, the UAE, Oman and Bahraini women made their Olympic debut, while Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait still withheld this right, the latter claiming that men would have a better chance at competing.

This “paternalistic mentality”, more a natural epidemic than a hurdle facing the sportswomen of Kuwait, is actually encoded to a certain extent by the law: the label “professional sportswoman” does not exist. Nonetheless, the legal status of both sportsmen and sportswomen is clearly defined under International, European and Belgian National and Regional Law. Yet the Kuwaiti Fencing Federation does not exercise its role in providing a chance for women to represent their country abroad and raise their flags of victory. Women are not receiving the same

Rebecca Saltman is a social entrepreneur and the President and Founder of an independent collaboration building firm designed to bridge business, government, nonprofits and academia.

jewel of collaboration

Cirque du Soleil

Athletes, Art

and Anatomy Medical Collaboration and Cirque du Soleil

By Michael Connors

C

irque du Soleil has the unique ability to transport its audience to a magical and mystical place using, almost exclusively, the expression and wonder of the human body. The founder, Guy Laliberté began the unique circus in the early 80’s with a small loan from the Canadian government. He packed up the show and gambled everything on a performance in Los Angeles and would not have had enough money left over for gas for the return trip if he had failed. The result: he revolutionized the world of entertainment.

A cacophony of color and motion, elite athletes bring to life a narrative and weave tales of wonder combining precision choreography, spectacular costumes and props, and, most importantly, an almost super-human display of the body’s potential. When watching Cirque du Soleil it becomes apparent that on display is a physical manifestation of collaboration. Like a professional team of any kind, Cirque du Soleil performers rely on one another at a fundamental level in order to create an event that is focused and unified in its form and meaning. Each artist closely works with their team and organization, and intimately depends on their support. Each routine is choreographed to work in conjunction with the whole of the performance, much like a Rolex.

A demonstration of such skill, beauty and precision could not happen without a great deal of effort from hundreds of support staff. And, arguably, one of the most important parts of the whole may be the medical care and treatment of the performers. Cirque du Soleil artists re-define the image of an athlete/ performer, but they are athletes at the core nonetheless. Thus, much like the collaboration that takes place on stage, there is a symbiotic relationship between the performers and medical staff that requires close cooperation and complete trust. Here we take a closer look at the

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dynamics of these relationships and the rewards that grow out of these collaborations.

Cirque artists endure a grueling training and performance regime that may mean they are working for weeks at a time with little time to rest. Bryan Burnstein, the strength and conditioning advisor for all Cirque du Soleil shows, notes that each show has a full staff of physical therapists and massage therapists to work with the athletes before, during and after each show.

As many would assume, Cirque artists work a demanding show schedule that subjects them to repetitive motion injuries and trauma.

Burnstein notes, “The injury patterns are similar to what you see in high level athletics. The human body is still the human body. You see everything. You have your acute stuff, but you also see the wear and tear of doing the same thing 476 times a year, which is what we do.”

Yet, Cirque du Soleil may be one of the best organizations to fully support their performers with a staff of trainers, physical and massage therapists, and even nutritionists. It truly takes a village. There is no doubt that the stage shows put extraordinary demands on the performers bodies. Perhaps the best way to highlight the conditions these artists live under is to take a closer look at an individual example. According to an article by Andy Isaacson from the APTA

» Cirque du

Soleil artists re-define the image of an athlete and performer. « (American Physical Therapy Association) in March 2007, he highlighted Tracy Bonner, a 32-year old former collegiate diver from Houston. He said, “In her main act, a metal swing catapults her 30 feet above the aquatic stage. If all goes well, she will feel the impact of the performance on just her shoulders and wrists.” But sometimes things don’t always go well. In fact, Bonner has landed flat on the stage, knocking the wind out of her and causing her to suffer a full body blow. Isaacson even describes how she was even hospitalized after missing the water entirely during an act.

Clearly, to execute such a well-timed and coordinated athletic spectacle, it takes a great deal of teamwork and human resourcefulness on a multitude of levels. Consider that there are performers from 40 countries across the

Âť "You see everything.You have your acute stuff, but you also see the wear and tear of doing the same thing 476 times a year, which is what we do." ÂŤ - Bryan Burnstein

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Cirque du Soleil

globe on the Cirque staff. The sheer level of diversity makes it extremely difficult to cross perceived boundaries and make everyone feel comfortable. There are considerations like home sickness, culture shock and language barriers that have to be overcome.

Imagine the pressures of not only executing complex acrobatic routines but doing so in a foreign land with a large disparate assembly of individuals. Isaacson quotes Janet Pundick, former director of health services for Cirque du Soleil, “If someone tells me that for the last 15 years they’ve been using a type of methodology with respect to their rehabilitation, I’d be at a disadvantage to suggest they change that if they believe it’s working for them. In our profession, we all have to believe in a mind-body connection, and if you don’t believe something’s going to work for you, it absolutely won’t.”

That mind-body connection is what motivates the preventative and acute medical teams at Cirque every day. In fact, the benefits of collaboration are not exclusively enjoyed by the athletes. As a result of close partnerships, the physical therapists are exposed to a wide range of injuries and an equally diverse approach for healing. As mentioned, the medical staff often encounters folk remedies and treatments that are used within specific disciplines.

“Cultural background can make quite a difference in expectations and needs. What a performer thinks they want, may be at odds with what clinicians might think is best. The education works both ways. There’s also a great opportunity to learn the approach they would use and ask, ‘Is it something that would help me grow? What can I learn from that?’” said Janette Powell, a Cirque therapist. As a result, doctors and therapists are exposed to a wide variety of injuries and treatments confined within one performing organization. They run the gamut from lower back spasms from the gymnasts to shoulder and wrist injuries from divers. And, just imagine what the contortionists go through!

Most importantly, perhaps, is the fact that Cirque du Soleil sees the performer as a whole person. Burnstein touches on the depth of their care when he notes that each team works closely with the athletes - beyond just the physical training and therapy, there are integration teams that help athletes transition to a life beyond performing. He says, “There are people who help them with those transitions. As artists are integrated into new shows and new places, there are people who help them with those transitions, physically and emotionally. When they are in their career and start thinking about what

to do after we help educate them about what skills they can use out in the world or even within the company. That helps with the stress of what they are going to do when they can’t perform. The levels of support don’t just stop with the coaching and training. There are a lot of people that put time into making sure they are doing well.”

This comprehensive collaborative strategy is a major reason Cirque du Soleil has been, and remains, a spectacular success. Imagine the job satisfaction rating most companies would enjoy should they choose to adopt such a model. It is vital to visualize the acrobatics and precision movements of the athletes as a true metaphor of collaboration. The levels of support throughout the organization run deep and wide and the results are apparent for all to see and enjoy.

So the next time Cirque du Soleil comes to your town - GO. Be sure, as you gaze at the spectacle on the stage, that there are hundreds of people you don’t see.

And remember the dance in the sky is only possible with the help of those on the ground.

Michael Connors is a Colorado native who grew up in the shadow of the Rockies, enjoying hiking and skiing. He has an M.A. in Literature and once taught writing, skiing and the English language overseas.

» "In our profession, we all have to believe in a mind-body connection, and if you don’t believe something’s going to work for you, it absolutely won’t." « - Janet Pundick

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Air Force Football

Air Force

Football Success Coaches who believe in Family, Faith, and the Falcons By Mike Burrows

Troy Calhoun and Coach Fisher DeBerry.

L

ike the medal-winning relay teams in Olympic track stadiums, the Air Force Academy executed a smooth passing of the baton when Troy Calhoun returned to the Falcons to coach their football team after 23 years with Fisher DeBerry in charge.

It was a transfer of firepower.

DeBerry coached the Falcons to a ( 72 ) 01.10 - 03.10

169-109-1 record, including two 12-1 teams, three Western Athletic Conference championships and a 6-6 mark in bowl games, from 1984 to 2006. He was so successful, so beloved and so respected, he was an immediate inductee into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame after his retirement from coaching. And he knew exactly who his Air Force successor should be.

"The academy couldn't have selected anyone better than Troy. He not only was a natural hire, I was sure he would be a great hire," said DeBerry, the winningest coach in the history of military academy football. "He's certainly off to a great start. I couldn't be happier for Troy and for the academy."

Calhoun, a former Air Force quarterback and a 1989 graduate of the academy, was

coaching in the NFL as the Houston Texans' offensive coordinator when the Falcons called and asked him to come home. He was an assistant coach at Ohio University and Wake Forest and had coached with the Denver Broncos before joining the Texans with a promotion to coordinator. He jumped at the opportunity to coach the Falcons, even though it came with the daunting challenge of following a legendary coach.

"Nobody can replace somebody like Coach DeBerry.

He was an incredible football coach and such an honorable man," Calhoun, 43, said before the Falcons wrapped up the 2009 season with a 47-20 thumping of the Houston Cougars at the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas.

"More than anything, look at the great influence he had on a countless number of people, on

guys that went on to leadership roles in active duty.

"I talk to him as much as I can. I don't know if there are adequate words to describe the impact he has had on so many lives, mine included."

Three years into the Calhoun era, DeBerry's successor is making his own impact. Calhoun is 25-14 overall, leading the Falcons to 9-4, 8-5 and 8-5 records.

He was the Mountain West Conference coach of the year in 2007, his first season, and is the only coach in Air Force history to guide the Falcons to a bowl game in each of his first three seasons. The Falcons have played in the Armed Forces Bowl every year Calhoun has coached them.

"None of that success surprises me," DeBerry said.

Fisher DeBerry

"Troy was probably the best student of the game among all of my former players. He never went into a game not prepared.

And he's the same way as a coach. It showed in the bowl game against Houston. Troy and his staff outcoached the Houston staff. Houston was a 10-win team and was favored.

When I was coaching, the Falcons took great pride in never backing away from a challenge. We always met challenges head-on. That bowl game against Houston presented the same situation, and you saw the result."

Troy Calhoun

DeBerry might not be as busy as a retired coach as he was when he was leading the Falcons to bowl victories over Virginia Tech, Texas, Ohio State, Mississippi State, Washington and Fresno State, but he's not exactly resting in a rocking chair. Far from it. He and his wife, Lu Ann, are devout Christians devoted to improving the lives of single-parent family members through financial assistance provided by the Fisher DeBerry Foundation.

Since its inception in 2003, DeBerry's nonprofit foundation has awarded more than $150,000 in

Âť "Troy was probably the best student of the game among all of my former players. He never went into a game not prepared." ÂŤ - Fisher DeBerry

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grants to single-parent families and to organizations that support children in those families.

Single-parent families have a special place in DeBerry's heart. He grew up in Cheraw, S.C., without a father.

"Lu Ann and I started the foundation in honor of my mother," said DeBerry, 71.

"I was raised in a single-parent family. My mother often worked two jobs to make sure I had opportunities for achievement.

We never had much, but I always had enough thanks to her."

"The sole reason for our foundation's existence is to provide life-changing opportunities for as many single-parent families, especially children, as we possibly can. Every year I was coaching and recruiting, it seemed like I was going into more and more homes of singleparent families. Studies show that one of every four kids in this country now lives in a single-parent family, and 87 percent of those kids live with their mother.

Somebody has to help those kids and those families. That's what our foundation is trying to do."

DeBerry's foundation awards $500 grants that help pay for needs such as clothing, school supplies, summer camps, scholarships and after-school programs; a few targeted areas of assistance. The foundation awarded grants totaling $40,000 in 2009, and DeBerry loves to tell the story of one person among many who benefited from that generosity.

"A young lady in Colorado Springs needed $486 to travel to Chicago to audition for a college scholarship," DeBerry said, beaming. "She received a $500 grant from our foundation and turned that money into a college scholarship worth more than $100,000.

That's the kind of impact we hope to have on a lot of people."

DeBerry and his wife are tireless fundraisers for their foundation, raising money through an annual golf tournament in South Carolina, through an annual 5-kilometer run and walk in Colorado Springs and through an annual banquet in Denver featuring the coaches of the state's four Division I football programs. DeBerry also is a speaker at several Fellowship of Christian Athletes fundraising events each year.

So much for relaxing in retirement.

"The reason I retired from coaching was to spend more time with my family, with my (six) grandchildren," DeBerry said. "And being retired from coaching ( 74 ) 01.10 - 03.10

Air Force Football

Âť "We didn't get the bluechip players in recruiting, but I can assure you we always got the bluechip people. Faith, family and the Falcons.That was the foundation of our success, and I think it showed." ÂŤ - Fisher DeBerry

Troy Calhoun and Coach Fisher DeBerry

also allows me to put more effort into the foundation and help the Fellowship of Christian Athletes more. I'm still busy, believe me."

DeBerry recently published his second book, "The Power of Influence," as a fundraiser for his foundation. The book is a compelling 35-chapter look back at the extraordinarily successful DeBerry era of Air Force football as seen through the eyes of his assistant coaches and his players, many of whom have been in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan since their graduation from the academy. Woven throughout the book is the all-important

Fisher DeBerry

responsibility of being a positive influence on people around you, especially on America's youth.

"When I think of Coach DeBerry's staff, I think of great Christian people completely dedicated to their coaching profession and to mentoring and molding young men into leaders," wrote Chad Hennings, an All-America defensive tackle for the Falcons who won the 1987 Outland Trophy as the nation's top interior lineman and later played for three NFL championship teams with the Dallas Cowboys after flying combat missions in Iraq during the first Gulf War. "I believe the strongest bonds between men are forged through adversity. The memory of one man, one leader, can help guide you through all of life's future battles," wrote Marc Munafo, an Air Force half back who graduated from the academy in 1987. "I was lucky. I played for Fisher DeBerry and the United States Air Force Academy."

"What would my life be like if I hadn't played football for Coach DeBerry?

I thank God that I don't have to answer that," wrote Col. Dave Hlatky, an F-16 fighter pilot who graduated from Air Force in 1989 after starring as a guard for the Falcons.

DeBerry salutes everyone but himself for the Falcons' stunning success when he was their coach.

Following the 1983 season, a year in which the Falcons went 10-2 and Hatfield was named national coach of the year, DeBerry succeeded Hatfield after Hatfield left Air Force to coach Arkansas, his alma mater.

There was a smooth passing of the baton then, too.

Air Force's first team with DeBerry in charge went 8-4, including a 23-7 pounding of Virginia Tech in the 1984 Independence Bowl. A year later, the Falcons bolted to a 10-0 start and rose to No. 4 in the national polls. They finished 12-1, including a 24-16 victory over Texas in the 1985 Bluebonnet Bowl and a share of the WAC title, and DeBerry was named National Coach of the Year.

The Falcons also were 12-1 and WAC champions in 1998, when they blasted Washington 45-25 in the Oahu Bowl.

That team's only loss came in a 35-34 shootout with Texas Christian.

At the finish line, after a remarkable 23-year run, DeBerry's Air Force teams were a combined 35-11 against archrivals Navy (17-6) and Army (18-5). DeBerry guided the Falcons to victories over Notre Dame in 1984 (21-7), 1985 (21-15) and 1996 (20-17 in overtime). Hatfield handed him a strong program when he passed the baton, and DeBerry made it even stronger.

"The fact that I stayed at the academy so long tells you how much I love the academy," DeBerry said. "It was a hand-

Âť "I never went into coaching for money or prestige or ego. It was always all about the players, just like it is now with Troy." ÂŤ - Fisher DeBerry

Troy Calhoun

"I'm in awe of what we were able to accomplish," he said. "I was blessed to be surrounded by the best coaches and players you could ever want. We didn't get the blue-chip players in recruiting, but I can assure you we always got the blue-chip people. Faith, family and the Falcons. That was the foundation of our success, and I think it showed."

DeBerry was coaching a triple-option offense at Appalachian State in Boone, N.C., when he came to Air Force in 1980 as the quarterbacks coach on Ken Hatfield's staff. Hatfield hired DeBerry to help fuel the Falcons' transition to the triple option. A year later, DeBerry was promoted to offensive coordinator.

in-glove fit for me. I was that comfortable.

I had the best coaching job in the country at the best school in the country. I never went into coaching for money or prestige or ego. It was always all about the players, just like it is now with Troy."

Calhoun's vision for the future of Air Force football is clearly connected to the legendary coach who handed him the baton after the 2006 season.

"To sit there and say there is no way Air Force cadets in Mountain West Conference sports can't frequently experience winning seasons, I just don't agree with that," Calhoun said. "There's evidence that tells you why that can occur, and that's what we are going to do."

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Andre Tippett

Andre Tippett A Truly Collaborative Patriot By Rebecca Saltman

I

t may be sacrilegious growing up in Boston, being raised as a Patriots fan, then trying to be a sports “agnostic” here in Colorado - home to Bronco Nation. There is something wrong here. I walk a fine line every September, ensuring that at social gatherings I don’t step on any toes. Of course, in the realm of sports rivalries I have it fairly easy in this regard (we’re all in the AFC, can’t we just get along?!), and can point to any number of local college competitions that spark greater ( 76 ) 01.10 - 03.10

» Leaders who succeed in a team sport must have the clearest vision of who they are, what they stand for, where they are going, and how they are going to get there. «

rancor. But surely being Andre Tippett’s cousin doesn’t win me any favors in polite pre- or post-season Broncos conversation!

Leaders who succeed in a team sport are not necessarily those who have the greatest resources at their disposal. Instead, they must have the clearest vision of who they are, what they stand for, where they are going, and how they are going to get there.

Professional athletes in a leadership role must have the well-honed ability to capitalize on their personal strengths.

They also must have the ability to bring the finest talents of their team to focus on the greatest opportunities presented to them, often moment-to-moment. They are able to think strategy, plan strategy, and live strategy in every area of their game. Tippet’s recent induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008 serves to highlight this point.

When I was asked to profile professional athletes who demonstrate this strategic teamwork, living their mission while catalyzing collaboration within their communities through sport, I didn’t have to look beyond my outstanding cousin, Hall of Fame linebacker, Andre Tippett.

He represents the iconic stature one achieves when learning and living the balance between personal goals and collaborative work. Tippett’s early dedication to the mental and physical challenges of karate laid the groundwork for his extraordinary team-building skills. His adoption of the solitary mental gymnastics entailed in martial arts actually prepared him for success in a group setting.

He learned the concept of “shoshin”, referring to having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a subject.

» "Although I’m retired, I’m still involved heavily in the organization, involved in outreach – if I’m talking the talk but not walking the walk, my story doesn’t really mean anything" « - Andre Tippett

“In the NFL, I assumed every year that every linebacker the Patriots drafted could take my job,” he freely admits. “So I adopted the white-belt mentality—shoshin—heart of a beginner. At each training camp, I went at it as hard as I could. Once the season began, I went hard in games, and I went hard in practice. There were times in practices when guys would look at me as if to say, why are you going so hard? Well, I was practicing the way I planned to play on Sunday. That concept—

beginner's mind—followed me through my twelve-year career.”

On the other side of that coin, collaboration is a process where leaders use “strategy” to achieve systemic outcomes. It is clear that Tippett has been so successful on the field, in karate, in business, in community and with family because he embodies both the skills of a career football player and the strategic acumen of a veteran collaborator. “I have a 13-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son who are still in the house,” he explains. “I am constantly reminding myself that I ask those guys to ‘do the right thing’ with their friends…

I have to remember… although I’m retired, I’m still involved heavily in the organization, involved in outreach – if I’m talking the talk but not walking the walk, my story doesn’t really mean anything.”

JUST THE STATS

Tippett was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 1982 NFL Draft. He is a member of the NFL’s 1980s all-decade team and was selected to five Pro Bowls from 1984–88. From 1984–85, Tippett recorded the highest two-season sack total by a linebacker in NFL history, totaling 35 sacks during the two seasons. His 18.5 sacks in 1984

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are the third most by any linebacker in a single season, while his 16.5 sacks in 1985 are tied for the sixth most by any linebacker in NFL history.

Tippett holds the Patriots’ franchise record with 100 career sacks. He also owns the top three single-season sack performances in Patriots history. He ranked seventh on the all-time sacks list, and third among all linebackers at the time of his retirement following the 1993 season. Over the course of his career, he forced 17 fumbles, recovered 18 opponents’ fumbles, recorded 30 multiple-sack games, and sacked a total of 41 different quarterbacks over the course of his career.

Tippett was named the AFC’s Linebacker of the Year by the NFL Players Association for three straight seasons from 1985–87. He was voted to the AP’s All-NFL First-team on two occasions (1985 and 1987) and Secondteam on two other occasions (1986 and 1988). He was also named to the NFL Films All-Pro team in 1984. He was voted the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) co-Defensive Player of the Year, along with the Oakland Raider’s Howie Long, in 1985. Additionally, he was voted the 1985 UPI AFL-AFC Defensive Player of the Year.

WHAT MAKES TIPPETT TICK?

There is a drive in every professional athlete that often defies common explanation. In the case of Andre Tippett, it would seem “focus” is the well-spring of his career - and the source of his focus has always been karate.

“There was a karate school in my neighborhood and I always wanted to go in but mom would never give me the money,” he said. “I didn’t realize she couldn’t afford the $25 a month it cost for lessons – not if she wanted to feed us or put clothes on our backs. Finally when I was eleven, I learned that the Boys & Girls Club were holding karate classes, and that’s where it all started for me. I’ve learned a lot about selfdefense. Mom gave me discipline, but karate gave me structure… it gave me something I could look forward to, something I could call my own.”

Tippett has been studying martial arts for 35 years and holds a fifthdegree black belt in Uechi-ryu, having earned the title of Shihan (Master Instructor). His chosen discipline is ( 78 ) 01.10 - 03.10

Andre Tippett

a line of karate called Shohei-ryu - a system evolved from the more familiar Uechi-ryu system, brought to Okinawa, Japan from China by Kanbun Uechi at the turn of the last century. Tippett is certified through the Okinawa KarateDo Association in Okinawa, Japan.

He’s also earned black belt rank in two other disciplines, and holds a certified referee “A” rating in the Amateur Athletic Union.

IN THE COMMUNITY

» "Mom gave me discipline, but karate gave me structure… It gave me something I could look forward to, something I could call my own." « - Andre Tippett

In his work as the New England Patriots Football Development and Promotions Director, Tippett coordinates initiatives for the team to engage in community affairs projects, business development initiatives, player development, and alumni programs. He is an advisor and spokesperson for youth football programs, working with past and present players in the community.

Tippett plays a significant role during rookie orientation, helping first year players make the off-field transition from college to professional football. He also works with veterans who seek assistance for their post-football careers.

Over the years, Tippett has participated on the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, Friends Way, a non-profit organization that provides free grief support to children, teens and adults coping with the death of a loved one; the Diabetes Foundation of Rhode Island; and has served as the spokesperson for The Price Center. Outside of his community service, Tippett has been recognized with numerous community service and fitness awards.

During his Hall of Fame speech, Tippett credited his success to, “all the people growing up in Iowa and in New England. Without you, I never would have been able to accomplish anything.”

He went on, “I made my name, and who I am, as a ballplayer. Out here, when I talk, I talk from experience. You look back on leadership, work ethic, perseverance, accountability, all of these things we learned as players on the football field," and in my opinion, he truly touches the individual and the collaborator within us all.

Rebecca Saltman is a social entrepreneur and the President and Founder of an independent collaboration building firm designed to bridge business, government, nonprofits and academia.

THE WOMEN’S COLLEGE of the University of Denver

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womenscollege.du.edu 303.871.6848 01.10 - 03.10

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Missy Franklin

Missy

Franklin Great Athlete, Greater Kid By Jerry Brown

I

n the water, racing against the clock, with swimmers in the lanes next to her, 14-year-old Missy Franklin is on her own. It’s up to her to perform.

And “Missy steers the ship” when it comes to deciding her future as a swimmer, says mother and Number 1 cheerleader DA Franklin (pronounced Dee-A).

Missy readily accepts responsibility for her swimming career. “I started swimming (competitively) when I was five,” she says.

“You need to work hard for anything you want to accomplish. I just had fun with it, working as hard as I could and having as much fun with it as I could. It’s always fun for me. And it always will be.”

She’s also the first to acknowledge that a lot of help and support go into her considerable success in the pool. The help comes from coach Todd Schmitz, parents Dick and DA Franklin, her Colorado STARS swim teammates and the faculty and her friends at Regis High School, among others.

Schmitz has been Missy’s swimming coach for eight years. And he tops her list of people helping her succeed in the pool.

“Todd helps me so much,” Missy says.

“He’s always with me. It feels like he’s swimming the race with me. He’s always cheering with me no matter what. Todd always pushes me to be my best. If it’s a hard (practice) set, he’ll be there to tell me that I can do it, that it’s worth it. He’s so supportive.

I feel so comfortable around him.”

“One of the unique things about Missy’s relationship with Todd is that they’re both really young,” says Dick Franklin, Missy’s father and other Number 1 cheerleader. “Todd is 30 and they’ve been working together for eight years. They’ve matured together.”

Making Her Own Decisions Missy’s parents leave the coaching to Schmitz, and the Franklins are unanimous in wanting it that way.

“If my parents ever coached me, I probably would get slower,” Missy says with a smile as mom and dad look ( 80 ) 01.10 - 03.10

on, nodding in agreement. “They’ve never pressured me. They’re so supportive. But they let me make my own decisions. I really appreciate that.”

Those decisions include the choice three days a week to climb out of bed at 4 a.m. to make it to two hours of swimming practice before heading off to freshman classes at Regis High School in the suburbs of Denver.

“If she doesn’t get up, she doesn’t go to practice and then she has to answer to her coaches not to us,” Dick says. “We don’t get her out of bed.”

Teenagers are notorious for staying up late and sleeping in whenever they can. Some experts say it’s part of their biological body clocks. So how does Missy get herself out of bed and ready for practice?

“All my friends are in the same boat,” she says. “They’re rolling out of bed at 4 a.m. too.

I know that when I wake up. And it’s fun to go to practice and be with everyone.”

Actually, it’s not always Missy who has trouble getting up before sunrise.

“There are times when I feel so tired that I don’t want to get up,” DA says. “I’ll be exhausted and praying that Missy won’t get up because I want to go back to sleep.

But she gets up.” And that means either mom or dad does, too. One of them has to serve as chauffeur. Missy’s still too young to make the 10-mile drive to practice and school on her own.

An Important Triangle

» “Cooperation and communication are important,” DA says. She describes the relationship as “an important triangle. Part of our role as parents is to back off and let the coach do his job and let Missy do her job.” « - DA Franklin

So, being a competitive swimmer is Missy’s choice. But making it happen is a group endeavor. And the principal players – swimmer, coach, parents – are all clear about their roles.

“Cooperation and communication are important,” DA says. She describes the relationship among Missy, coach and parents as “an important triangle. Part of our role as parents is to back off and let the coach do his job and let Missy do her job.”

There’s no “stage mother” in either of Missy’s parents – pushing her to succeed because of their dreams or ambitions.

“I saw a lot of that in the tennis world and sneaker world,” says Dick, a former senior executive of Reebok and Head Sport. “It was ugly. I told DA to shoot me if I ever get like that.”

"As parents," DA says, “we become involved when it’s a matter of illness – if she’s too sick to go to practice. That hasn’t happened very often.”

And, DA adds, “we become involved if there’s a school issue if her grades started slipping, for example.” There doesn’t seem to be much chance of that. Academics

are high on Missy’s – and her parents’ – list of priorities.

Missy’s parents and coach work well together, Dick says.

For example, they questioned a trip to the Junior National Championships in Columbus, Ohio, in December because they felt there was too much going on that month – a trip to Manchester, England, for the Duel in the Pool between a USA national team that included Missy and Europe’s best swimmers plus final exams for Missy’s first semester at Regis. All this after just getting back from the World Cup Competition in Stockholm and Berlin.

“She missed eight days of school while she was in Europe,” Dick says. “We just felt a trip to Columbus would be too much. Todd really wanted her to be there to support the team but he understood completely and supported the decision.”

In addition to missing class, Missy ended up taking her final exams later than her classmates because she was out of town. Her teachers worked with Missy and her parents to allow that to happen. “Regis has been incredible,” Missy says. “They’re so supportive.”

Regis promised when Missy enrolled, to work with her and her parents so she wouldn’t have to choose between swimming and academics, DA says. “There was a part of me that said ‘let’s wait and see what happens.’

But they’ve lived up to their word.”

Just as there’s no “stage mother” in Missy’s parents, there doesn’t seem to be much teenage rebellion in Missy.

“I’ve learned over the years that my coaches and my parents are so much more experienced at life than I am,” she says. “Like when my parents tell me to wear a coat to keep from getting cold and I don’t want to and I get cold.

That’s just beginning to sink in. If I just listen to them, it won’t happen.”

“Does Missy always listen to everything the first time? Of course not,” Schmitz says. “She’s still a 14-year-old kid and she’s like any other athlete. But Missy’s very coachable.”

A Gifted Athlete

Already six feet tall with size 13 feet, Missy has the ideal build for a competitive swimmer, which undoubtedly contributes to her already considerable success.

She’s also a naturally gifted athlete – just like her parents.

“We had her on skis when she was three,” DA says. “She was skiing blacks when she was

eight.” Missy’s also participated in gymnastics, soccer, basketball and volleyball – and done well at all of them.

“Whatever she’s done, she’s assumed accountability and responsibility for herself,” DA says. “She decided when to stop gymnastics, soccer, skiing, basketball and volleyball. She loves skiing. But she decided that one slip, one mistake could mean being done with swimming for a year. So, we haven’t been on a mountain for three or four years.

She thought about doing volleyball in addition to swimming in high school. But she decided she couldn’t do both.”

Dick Franklin’s an avid diver, and in years past that often meant family vacations someplace warm near an ocean. Not anymore.

“We haven’t done Hawaii for Christmas in a while,” Dick says. “Everything we do now is either attached to one end of a meet or another.

The swimming very much shapes our travel and vacation plans.”

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It Just Happened

But the Franklins are hard pressed to pick the moment when Missy decided to become a competitive swimmer or when their lives changed as a result. It just happened.

“It’s always been a natural choice to support Missy as she grew in swimming,” Dick says. “It was just a natural evolution of how we live our life. There was a time when we would normally be on vacation over the holidays somewhere warm down by the beach. Now vacations are traveling to swim meets. There are just so many things you can do and just so many days you can take off.”

DA Franklin is a physician who has traded in her family-medicine practice to become a consultant for the State of Colorado working with the developmentally disabled. Her consulting role gives her the f lexibility she needs to attend Missy’s swim meets. She’s missed only one of the hundreds of meets Missy has competed in over the years. She was running a

Missy Franklin

fever of 104 degrees during the one she missed.

Dick has been a senior executive for a number of companies and currently runs Envirobrand, an ecostrategy consulting firm. Because of the demands of his own career, Dick hasn’t made it to all of Missy’s meets, but he attends as many as he can.

Attending Missy’s swim meets promises to become more challenging as she breaks into the big time on the national and international scene.

For years, Missy competed locally.

Then around the state. Now, the world is her stage.

One big change: Missy now travels with her team. Mom and dad aren’t allowed on the same plane – or even to stay in the same hotel.

“We see her from the audience,” DA says. “We try to Skype one another. We both have Blackberries. But she travels and sleeps with the team.”

That led to an interesting dilemma when it came time to head home from

The Franklin's at home.

» “The attributes that set champion athletes apart from everyone else... They all have a pattern of wanting it. They start very early. They know there’s no shortcut. They know you have to put in the time and make a lot of sacrifices.

That comes from within.” « - Dick Franklin the Duel in the Pool in Manchester, England, in December 2009. As Missy and the U.S. team headed back home, mom and dad found themselves stranded in England because of a massive snow storm that shut down airports along the East Coast shortly before Christmas.

Suddenly, they had a 14-year-old daughter on her way home to Denver – with no parents there to meet her. “We called friends to get her at the airport, but she was on her own for four days until we could get home,” DA says.

Still, mom and dad will be in the stands whenever possible to cheer for their daughter. When DA, asked Missy if she should show up for an upcoming swim meet in Seattle, Missy’s answer was simple and direct: “Of course.

What were you thinking?”

Her Ego is on the Ground

As an executive for Head Sports and Reebok, Dick spent a lot of time around athletes and their families. He worked with Shaquille O’Neal, Arthur Ashe and Wayne Gretzky among others. ( 82 ) 01.10 - 03.10

He sees in his daughter many of the attributes that set champion athletes apart from everyone else.

“They all have a pattern of wanting it,” he says. “They start very early. They know there’s no shortcut. They know you have to put in the time and make a lot of sacrifices. That comes from within.”

“Missy’s able to focus when she needs to focus,” Schmitz adds. “There are a lot of people at all different ages all the way up to adult who don’t know when to turn it on and when to turn it off. It’s a skill. Missy definitely knows when to be serious. But she knows how to have a good time, too.”

And as proud as they are of her success as a swimmer, Missy’s parents are even prouder of what many of their friends tell them: Missy’s a great athlete but she’s an even greater kid. Her ego is on the ground.

Jerry Brown is a Denver-based writer and public relations professional who has worked for The Associated Press, U.S. Information Agency and daily newspapers in Little Rock, Fort Worth and Denver.

Making a difference in our community.

tell me more Š 2007 Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (27922)

www.airproducts.com

jewel of collaboration

emily K center

Mem ber s of Craz ies Who Care

, Duke Socc er, and Emi ly K

Stud ent s

Dreams Do

Come True And Sometimes It Takes a Team By Jamie Spatola

I

f you ask Duke University Head Basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski why he loves his job so much, his answer would include the word “team.”

He would tell you about the personal and collective benefits of being a part of something that is bigger than you, about how relying on teammates can allow you to accomplish things that you could never do alone, and about the beauty of collective responsibility. His Duke University teams have won games and championships. They have also suffered defeats.

And members of those teams have reaped the ( 84 ) 01.10 - 03.10

many benefits that come with winning and losing together. They have learned about hard work and accountability, about care and pride.

And perhaps no individual has felt these things more deeply than Coach K himself; he is a man with a passion for teamwork.

Clearly, teams can come together for many purposes. Coach K’s Duke teams find their mission on the basketball hardwood. Teams of doctors and scientists come together to study and cure diseases. Business teams combine their talents to make a particular enterprise successful. And in 2001, Father David

McBriar, then a priest at Durham’s Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, brought to Coach K’s attention an enormous need in the community. The high-potential, but high-risk youth of Durham needed his teams help. They needed a place to go where their dreams could be heard, where they could be taught how those dreams might become a reality. Coach K, a builder of teams, knew that bringing together the right team and inspiring them with this worthy mission could effect great change in the lives of some special young people and break the cycle of poverty for local area families.

Winning games has always been important to the Hall of Fame coach but what excites him most is how any success and recognition he has achieved on the court can be leveraged to have a positive impact in the world outside of the athletic arena. Coach K and his immediate and extended Duke team would become a part of the bigger, more important team that is having this kind of community impact.

The Head Coach

First, the team needed a leader.

So, Duke Basketball’s head coach set to work recruiting. One of the first calls he made was to Marleah Rogers, daughter of Krzyzewski’s officer representative for the teams on which he played as a West Point cadet, Colonel Tom Rogers. Rogers had

and expertise to getting the idea off the ground. Now, five years later, she serves as the CEO and President of the nonprofit Emily Krzyzewski Center whose beautiful 29,000 square foot building stands in the heart of Durham, North Carolina, just a few blocks from downtown on one side and Duke University on the other. The Emily K Center serves as a destination and source of inspiration for the seventy students in its Pioneer Scholars program for first through eighth graders and the thirty in its high school Scholars to College program. It’s where students

» The Emily K Center is where they are taught to embrace heart, high expectations, hard work, honesty, integrity and respect as foundational to their character. « become a part of Krzyzewski’s life at an important and impressionable time. In his final year at West Point, Krzyzewski lost his father. Colonel Rogers filled a void, became a father figure and a guide. Their two families were forever united. Through the years, the Rogers and Krzyzewski families have endured many of life’s ups and downs together.

In 1975, Rogers joined the staff of the young Coach Krzyzewski as he took over the reins as his alma mater’s head coach. In 1980, when Krzyzewski was hired as the head coach at Duke, the Rogers family relocated to Durham and the retired Army Colonel became a part of Krzyzewski’s Duke staff. In the meantime, Marleah Rogers, one of the colonel’s daughters, was becoming a pretty phenomenal leader herself as an officer in the Army and then in a variety of global businesses and consulting firms.

In January 2005, Coach K told Marleah Rogers about this idea and, immediately, she embraced the vision.

This time it was Marleah who filled a void. Seeing the need for a longterm strategy and a business plan, she left her high-paying consulting job and promised six months of her time

receive focused instruction from highly qualified tutors and where they are held accountable to those tutors and to high academic standards. The Emily K Center is where they are taught to embrace heart, high expectations, hard work, honesty, integrity and respect as foundational to their character and where they are given the opportunity to follow the Center’s motto of “Dream, Do, Achieve.” The Emily K Center was named for Coach K’s mother, the daughter of Polish immigrants. She taught her two sons that they could become anything they wanted to be. How proud she would be to see her name on the Center, knowing that youngsters of today are not so different from her own sons.

Though Coach Krzyzewski and his older brother, Bill, grew up poor in inner-city Chicago, they had a family who believed in them and a supportive community around them. They were given a

Travon Johan enjoy the program.

Students get tutoring from Duke Volunteer.

Alejandra - Pioneer Scholar Working.

Craz ies who Care inte ract

at all leve ls.

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emily K center

Pioneer scholar with Coach K.

chance - just like the youth at the Center.

The Assistant Coaches

Of course, the rest of the team still had to be assembled. Rogers recruited some tremendous talent to fill the ranks on the Center’s Board of Directors and full-time staff who design and implement the Center’s educational programming, manage the budget, and help raise the funds that make it all happen. As for the volunteers and tutors, Duke University and its athletic program have had much to offer over the Center’s first four years of operation. Over 100 Duke students

volunteer each year, committing their time to the Center’s students and programming.

Supported by teachers who serve as Lead Tutors, Duke student volunteers work oneon-one with the Pioneer Scholars, reinforcing and challenging them while also serving as role models and mentors. Additionally, each summer the Emily K Center (EKC) benefits from the DukeEngage program, an initiative that allows undergraduates to deepen their volunteer experience by spending eight-week summer internships in support of various charitable initiatives around the world.

EKC scholars get a lot out of their daily

Duke soc cer player s, CW

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C, and a stu den t hig h

five on the cou rt.

interaction with their student tutors, but they give a lot too. More than 50% of EKC volunteers say that their experiences with these motivated youngsters have led them to a change in their major and/or career plans.

It seems to hold true with all teams - you must give a lot of yourself in order to be a part of something bigger, but you gain so much more than you give. Anders Campbell is a case in point. Throughout his four years as a Duke undergraduate Campbell , like many Duke students, became one of the “Cameron Crazies,” the nickname given to the Duke student body who have the best seats in the house for Duke’s home basketball games in historic Cameron Indoor Stadium. Their energy, creativity, and inexhaustible enthusiasm have given Duke teams one of the greatest home court advantages in college basketball.

Campbell decided that the Crazies could add community outreach to a resume that already features some of the most stellar shows of support and opponent intimidation. Recognizing the potential to harness some of this energy to have a positive impact on the community, he and some of his fellow students founded an organization called Crazies who Care. It began simply enough, collecting a dollar from each student who attended Duke Basketball games to donate to Coach K’s favorite charities with 50% going to the Emily K Center and the other 50% going to Duke Children’s Hospital. It grew from there as Campbell and his fellow caring Crazies began donating their time as EKC volunteers.

Crazies help support the character development programming that the EKC kids participate in on Fridays. They have hosted on-campus career and leadership seminars. They have led sports clinics, arranging for Duke’s men’s soccer, men’s ultimate frisbee, and women’s volleyball teams to help. Meanwhile, they have continued their fundraising efforts on the Center’s behalf, hosting events including an endof-year banquet that the Blue Devil

men’s and women’s basketball teams attend. Campbell then became one of the Center’s DukeEngage interns and last summer, along with fellow intern Mary Caroline Dyke, developed a summer curriculum for the EKC scholars in which the students interviewed Duke student-athletes in order to ultimately produce a sports-themed magazine in which their own articles were featured.

Campbell has now graduated, leaving behind him a legacy of giving for the Crazies who will follow. Thanks to Campbell, Crazies who Care is a thriving organization and will continue to be for a long time. He gave a lot as a part of the EKC team and it has changed his life. As a part of a program called MATCH Corps, he now works to help educate low-income, inner-city youth in Boston as he pursues a career and a lifetime devoted to education and social entrepreneurship.

The Players

Good coaches who are committed to and motivated by the mission are not enough to ensure a basketball team’s success. They have to have players with the same level of commitment as well as the necessary ability and know-how.

In the same way that Coach K and his Duke Basketball staff recruit players for their program with a foundation of both talent and character, the Emily K Center seeks the best of the best in candidates for its K to College programs.

Students are selected through a thorough admissions process requiring an application, interviews, and recommendations from teachers and principals. It is not a handout. It is a mutual commitment. The youngsters are becoming a part of a team and, therefore, they are expected to give as much as they receive.

Highly motivated, low-income students are recruited and then immersed into a culture and structure that pushes them to achieve.

And they do. In just their first year as Pioneer Scholars they gain an average

One-on -one tutorin g with studen ts.

of 9.5 percentile points in reading and 8.5 percentile points in math. This significant impact has increased the percentage of students performing at or above grade level from 43% to 92% in reading and from 52% to 93% in math. As students continue in the program those gains are sustained and built upon so that when they graduate from high school they will be prepared to excel in college and become leaders of their own teams, building careers and improving communities.

The Sixth Man

No team is complete without support. At Duke, that support comes from the Cameron Crazies whose efforts as Duke Basketball’s “Sixth Man” have opponents fearing their trips to Cameron Indoor. The Emily K Center would never have been built and its programs could not function without the external support from its own version of the “Sixth Man.” Every summer, Duke Basketball hosts K Academy, a fantasy camp for men thirty-five years and older. Over four days, these men practice, play, and learn under the tutelage of Coach K, his staff, and many of the great players from Duke Basketball history. It is a fun week, the campers work hard, and it culminates with an auction where proceeds go to support the Emily K Center’s efforts. Over the years, repeat campers have come to know the Center well and realize the importance of its mission. As a result, many of these men and their families have become independent supporters of the Center. Their contributions of both money and pro-bono expertise as well as those from members of the Durham community have given the Center some of the much-needed capital

and support it needs to grow and continue to impact more students.

Coach K and Duke’s commitment to the Center is obvious, even to a first-time visitor to the EKC. His mother’s name is on the building and Emily Krzyzewski had always taught her sons to treat anything with your name on it with the utmost pride.

A photograph of mother and son is the first thing visitors see when they walk through the front doors. The floor of the Emily K Center gymnasium is the floor from the 2001 Final Four, the last time one of Coach K’s Duke teams became National Champions. Posted outside of offices and classrooms are some familiar Duke names – Amaker, King, Ferry – players from Duke Basketball’s past who also realize that great teams can accomplish much more than a well-executed motion offense and have given generously in support of the EKC’s efforts in the Durham community.

For Coach K and his Duke team, a visit to the Emily K Center is a reminder of what winning really means and how it happens. The success already achieved by Emily K Center scholars teaches everyone involved that it is not naïve to believe in values and character, that commitment to a common goal still works, and that dreams do indeed come true.

It happens. It happens on the hardwood in Cameron Indoor Stadium and it happens around a small table in one of the Emily K Center classrooms. It can happen anywhere. It just takes teamwork.

Jamie Spatola is a graduate of Duke University where she majored in English. She is the co-author of two books with Mike Krzyzewski: The Gold Standard and the bestselling Beyond Basketball.

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jewel of collaboration

Ice Hockey Détente

Ice Hockey Détente Peace and Progress on Skates By Adam Cohen

T

he wide smiles of little boys and girls portray simple motivations as they lace up their hockey skates: have fun, wear cool equipment, be part of a team, and don a colorful team jersey. Complex considerations like international détente, cross-cultural collaboration, and political conflicts don’t register in the typical 4-year-old’s concept of hockey.

Stepping onto the ice of a suburban New Jersey rink, 4-year-old Kevin shoots the puck ( 88 ) 01.10 - 03.10

and watches as it smoothly slides toward the goal. It’s the first shot of his hockey journey, a competitive journey that would end in a most unexpected place 17 years later: 6,000 miles and seven time zones away on the Canada Centre Arena ice sheet in Metula, Israel.

When Kevin Alpert, now 22 and a 2009 University of Colorado (CU-Boulder) graduate, first tightened the laces on his skates at 4 years old, he would never have guessed that his love of hockey would lead to the honor of playing

on the USA all-Jewish team. His life and hockey career would take him from New Jersey to Colorado, around Europe and, ultimately, to Metula’s Canada Centre rink within Katyushamissile range of a Hezbollah stronghold in southern Lebanon.

It’s a unique journey made possible through the spirit of the tradition-steeped game of hockey, the support of Colorado Springsbased USA Hockey, and a strong worldwide Jewish community whose ties run thousands

a season playing in ACHA’s West Region with other teams from Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Texas, Arizona, California, Washington, and Oregon.

A highlight of Kevin’s CU career came as he was named to ACHA’s Select (All-Star) team in the 2007-2008 season. The team swept through Europe, winning all five of its games against European league teams from Switzerland, Austria, Germany, and the Czech Republic.

of years deep. For all the geopolitical and culture complexities, in the end, Kevin and his teammates discovered the simple game they love transcends boundaries and offers a rich tapestry of teamwork and collaborative lessons.

Youth Hockey Dreams

The youngest of four hockey-playing brothers, Kevin began skating as a 4-yearold and then joined the Morristown (New Jersey) Colonials youth team. After a move to Colorado as an 8-year-old, hockey provided a quick entrance to new friends and fun. Playing in the Littleton Hawks program through high school, Kevin participated on competitive travel teams as he navigated cleverly named youth age group levels – Mini-Mite, Mite, Squirt, Pee Wee, Bantam, and Midget. With improvements in his skills and a growing competitive drive, Kevin advanced to AAA elite-level teams in high school.

American-born hockey players face long odds in advancing beyond youth ranks. Youth hockey players in the U.S. seeking a college scholarship suffer the challenges of competing for limited post-youth opportunities in a non-mainstream sport whose highest-level talent comes from our neighbors in Canada.

At the professional level, Canadians represent 53 percent of players in the National Hockey League (NHL) while Americans just 19 percent. The growing European influence in the NHL accounts for 28 percent of players.

The NHL Colorado Avalanche 25-man roster has just three American-born players: John Michael-Liles, Craig Anderson, and Matt Hendricks. (Paul Stastny, born in Quebec City, Canada, has dual U.S.-Canadian citizenship and will compete for the 2010 USA Olympic team.)

Winding down his youth career, Kevin weighed the alternatives. He could leave home to play Junior-level hockey for 1 or 2 years and hope for a college scholarship – with no guarantees – or enter CU as a freshman.

“I chose the certainty of a better education at CU”, says Kevin, now employed in the financial services field, and he hung up his gear, believing his hockey career was over.

Unaware that CU fielded a club (nonscholarship) team in the Division II American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA), he was thrilled when a Facebook friend sent him a message about a tryout.

CU’s team was in transition; simultaneously holding the tryout and replacing its coach, the team’s returning seniors and team captain ran the tryout. Selections were made after one practice and Kevin was named to the team as a forward.

» Kevin took comfort knowing that the common language and experience of hockey facilitated the process of building trust and relationships. « From Utah to Europe and Points in Between

Beyond the university logos on the front of the jerseys, life in the ACHA differs greatly from big-time NCAA sports. Players pay around $1,200-$1,500 per year for ice time and provide their own equipment at great expense.

In addition to skates and protective equipment, most players break and replace multiple hockey sticks per year at a cost of a $100 (or more) each. Per diem food allowances favor all-you-can-eat buffets and drive-thru cuisine versus sit-down meals. Despite these relative inconveniences, ACHA players experience the same thrills, competition for league and national championships, and pride of their NCAA counterparts.

Unheralded but confident, Kevin started his inaugural CU Buffs season as a “healthy scratch,” with the coaches deciding to leave him out of uniform and on the sidelines. Three games passed until he suited up and, after a player injury put him on the top line, Kevin notched a 3-goal hat trick in his first game vs.

Utah State. He’d remain a mainstay in CU’s line-up through graduation and average around 30 goals

A Calling for Country and Cultural Collaboration

Again facing the end of his hockey career, Kevin’s CU coach put him in touch with a contact at USA Hockey’s Colorado Springs headquarters. He considered opportunities to play in Europe, where many professional hockey leagues operate, until reaching Wayne Sellers, the coordinator of USA Hockey’s World Jewish Hockey team. Several phone calls later, Kevin received an invite to join the 2009 Team USA entrant for the 2nd World Jewish Cup hockey tournament.

Joining his teammates in New York City, a 30-minute team practice was followed by a 12-hour f light to Tel Aviv and 3-hour drive to Metula, Israel.

Through the proximity and struggle of travel, a group of individuals began a transformation to become a team. Kevin took comfort knowing that the common language and experience of hockey facilitated the process of building trust and relationships. In Kevin’s words, “Hockey guys are a different breed. We’re a rare bunch playing a demanding sport.

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Ice Hockey Détente

This team had the same types of characters that are always in the locker room.”

Before arriving in Israel, Kevin initially had fears about the political tensions and dangers in the region. Just 3 years earlier, the world anxiously watched a 34-day conflict between Hezbollah paramilitary forces and the Israeli army that turned the environs surrounding Metula and northern Israel into a war zone, killing over 1,200 Lebanese and Israeli soldiers and civilians. From the window of his room, Kevin could see a Hezbollah camp.

Local residents welcomed their American-Jewish visitors enthusiastically and helped the team understand how to accommodate the potential dangers in the region. Still, the realities of life in Israel and the Middle East region were sobering.

On a trip to Tel Aviv, Kevin visited teammate Alec Kirschner’s relatives for dinner. He listened as Alec’s 18-year-old cousin, a young woman preparing to serve her mandatory 2-year stint in the Israeli Defense Force, and her boyfriend who would serve for 3 years, described their feelings about military service. He also met young adults who had just completed their service. While none of them wanted to fight or to do harm to others, they understood their country’s service needs. Some indicated that their military experience made them passionate about creating positive change in the region, while others were disillusioned.

Back on the ice, teams from France and Russia joined perennial powerhouse teams

from the U.S. and Canada. Host Israel fielded its national team, a squad missing several key players due to injury or non-availability, and in transition from aging professional and semiprofessional players to a younger foundation.

Tensions on the ice were restricted to competitive desires to win, as players from all five nations shared a common ancestral Jewish

scoreboard as the sole judge of ultimate success.

But the World Jewish Hockey tournament, organized by the Israeli Ice Hockey Federation, achieved broad benefits for many.

Non-Israeli Jews played the sport they love in their ancestral and spiritual homeland, experienced the rich culture of the area, and gained a greater appreciation for the political challenges and opportunities in the region. Hockey gained exposure in a country where it is not well known or traditional, sparking increased interest from youth and adults. Awareness and interest of the sport was raised with a goal of building a rink in Tel Aviv, the country’s population center.

For Kevin, Alec, and their teammates, their experience represented a victory greater than the trophy they proudly brandished. Sport provided them with an opportunity to have fun, play the game the right way, and remove the barriers between countries out on the rink. Teammates and competitors came together, supported each other on and off the ice, and shared their respect for the game. They made some great friends and found that sport can make the world a closer, more collaborative community. And, of course, they got to wear cool gear and colorful jerseys.

» Sporting tournaments always feature winning and losing sides, with the final scoreboard as the sole judge of ultimate success. «

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background and love and respect for a spirited game of hockey.

Metula’s Canada Centre, Israel’s sole remaining Olympic-sized venue after a second rink was destroyed in a military attack, provided a welcome respite from the stifling July summer heat. A round-robin tournament format pitted each team against the others for medal round positioning. In the round robin, Team USA narrowly beat Israel, 4-3, then captured a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory against Canada. In the medal round, Team USA overwhelmed Canada to capture gold, while Israel defeated France for the bronze.

Collaboration Creates Victories for Everyone Sporting tournaments always feature winning and losing sides, with the final

Adam Cohen is an ICOSA Advisor and hockey dad. As principal of Accelerant Performance Solutions, he helps organizations transform strategic, operational, and human performance. For more information, visit www.accelerantperformance.com.

MANAGING BEYOND THE RECOVERY: NEW REALITIES, NEW RULES, NEW VALUES

What’s in store When the U.s. economy emerges from the deepest recession in history?

• • • •

Companies will be closely managed rather than over-led The footprint of Federal activism on business will be significant There will be new ways of doing business to fit the “new normal” Business performance and value will have new metrics

Join corporate business leaders, professional services and investment firms, and private equity dealmakers for the must attend conference of our times. the denver chapter of the association for Corporate Growth (ACG) proudly announces: 2010 Rocky Mountain Corporate Growth Conference “ManaGinG Beyond the ReCoveRy: new Realities, new Rules, new values” March 17-18, 2010 the inverness hotel and Conference Center, englewood, Colorado Keynote speakers include: howard Behar—Former president of Starbucks North America and Starbucks International; Board member for Washington State Budget and Policy Center, Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership, and Anna’s Linens. fawn germer—Bestselling author of acclaimed business books, Finding the UP in the Downturn and Mustang Sallies; Pulitzernominated journalist, and former writer for The Washington Post, U.S. News and World Report, and the Rocky Mountain News.

Keith mcfarland—Background as CEO with Inc. 500 company, university dean, and New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Breakthrough Company and Bounce.

Visit www.acg.org/denver for more information and conference updates.

aCG denveR is the plaCe to ConneCt to the people and ideas you need to GRow youR Business.

jewel of collaboration

Norma Carr

Know Greater Heroes One College’s Commitment to Community By Dave Jones

I

n 1988, when Norma Carr accepted the job as Athletic Director at Salt Lake Community College (SLCC), the school’s athletic department was an afterthought. Her first office was a 1,200 sq. ft. modified shed that she shared with staff and athletic equipment. SLCC basketball games were played in high school gymnasiums throughout the Salt Lake Valley and the men’s program was facing sanctions by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).

Her mentor at the University of Utah considered her crazy for committing to a college that had made no commitment to the infrastructure and discipline of its athletic programs. At that time, the upstart community college, that had traditionally been a vocational school, was teaching a respectable 13,000 students on four campuses.

In the twenty years between showing up for work at SLCC and leading her program to contend for its first-ever national title, Athletic Director Norma Carr pierced a Utah athletics’ men’s club. In addition to the national championship, SLCC has had all five of its teams ranked in the top 20 in the nation twoyears running—Norma was recently presented with the Administrator of the Year award for two-year colleges, capping an impressive run.

But, Carr’s focus has always been on her players, her teams, and her region; she’s never been motivated by winning awards. “Yes, it’s an honor—probably one of the top honors I could get in my career,” Carr said. “But I didn't do the things in my life because I expected an award at some point; I did things in my administrative career because that's what I love to do and I believe in it."

In the spirit of teamwork, Norma cultivated a tight-knit group of coaches from the beginning. Collaboration doesn’t always come easily for headstrong, competitive individuals.

Teamwork, though, has been a hallmark of SLCC’s teams and athletic department staff. Just two years on the ( 92 ) 01.10 - 03.10

job, Norma hired men’s basketball coach Norm Parrish. More than nineteen years and 400 victories later, he’s still coaching for SLCC, although the office is more spacious than it was nearly two decades ago.

Since he took over the program in 1991, he has coached hundreds of players. Nearly forty percent of his players have gone on to play in the NCAA Division I ranks—and several made it all the way to the pros.

Diversity has always been a key to his success. To that end, Norm has recruited players from all over the United States and every continent except Asia and Antarctica.

Players from such foreign locales as Australia, Switzerland, Greece, Brazil, Russia, Serbia, Senegal, and Ivory Coast have suited up as SLCC Bruins.

Consider player Gary Wilkinson who showed up at SLCC at just the right time. A high school dropout four years removed from his would-be graduation, Gary called Coach Parrish looking for a chance to play basketball for SLCC. Having turned his life around after a close friend committed suicide, he completed his GED and served a religious mission. Still, he was an out of shape kid who had never played a minute of varsity ball in high school and had barely played at all since quitting high school. Wilkinson must have seen something in himself that others had overlooked, because he asked for a scholarship, but he also told the coach he wasn’t interested in walking on.

"A lot of guys would have hung up the phone," Gary's wife Jessica Wilkinson said. "That Coach Parrish gave him the time of day changed Gary's life." Despite the inauspicious introduction, Parrish offered Gary a chance. Being 6’9” might have had something to do with it. The maturity he had already demonstrated in turning his life around also played a part. "If Gary was disciplined enough to serve a religious organization for two years,

» "I didn't do the things in my life because I expected an award at some point; I did things in my administrative career because that's what I love to do and I believe in it." « - Norma Carr

» When not on the court, SLCC women basketball players have distinguished themselves in the classroom with numerous academic awards. As a team, they consistently carry the highest grade-point averages in the country. «

» The “Know Greater Heroes” program puts student athletes, cheer squads and mascots in local schools to promote health, teamwork, wellness, positive self-image and student success. «

» Collaboration doesn’t always come easily for headstrong, competitive individuals. «

I knew he’d be disciplined enough to handle most anything," Parrish said. "I didn't think I was taking much of a risk as far as baggage.

It kind of erased the dropout."

Not that he would have taken just anyone off the street. "I'd hate to say it, but if he were 6’2”, I probably never would have invited him to go play," Parrish said. "I would have said, 'You're another 6’2” kid that didn't go to high school.' His size got him a look, but he took full advantage."

Taking advantage meant leading his teams on the court and in the classroom—Gary graduated with a perfect 4.0 grade point average, earning an honorable mention Junior College All-America and was a two-time academic All-American at SLCC. He moved on to Utah State University, where he became the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year and led his team to the NCAA tournament.

On the women’s side, continuity through diversity has been Carr’s legacy. Women’s basketball coach Betsy Specketer has been with the college for more than 14 years. She won her 300th career game as a Bruin in the 200910 season amidst an unprecedented charge in the national rankings that included a blistering 15 game winning streak.

When not on the court, SLCC women basketball players have distinguished themselves in the classroom with numerous academic awards. As a team, they consistently carry the highest grade-point averages in the country.

With more than 16 team players who carry a 3.5 grade point average or higher, the SLCC softball team is also one of the nation’s highest performing teams in the classroom.

One SLCC softball player, Lindsey Palmer, was a two-time Academic All-American at SLCC. Fresh off of three Utah State Championship

victories, MVP awards each year of high school, Lindsey brought a sparkling athletic and academic record to college. Boasting a flawless 4.0 grade point average, Lindsey was named a first-team All-American while securing 29-2 as a pitcher.

She led her team to the Scenic West Conference title and advanced deep into the National Tournament. For her efforts, she was also named the 2008 Betty Jo Graber Female Athlete of the Year, given to the top female athlete in the NJCAA. She continued her athletic and academic career at the University of Utah.

One month after Salt Lake Community College celebrated its 60th Anniversary and Lindsey’s national honor the men’s basketball team started their 2008-2009 season.

The season was peppered with visits to area elementary schools through the “Know Greater Heroes” program.

This program puts student athletes, cheer squads and mascots in local schools to promote health, teamwork, wellness, positive self-image and student success.

The SLCC Bruins marched through the schedule quietly replaying their opponents from the previous year with an eye toward the tournament season. Always less than a year from breaking up, two-year teams do not have the luxury of recruitment and reconstruction years.

Coach Parrish only has a few months to teach his lessons of defensive play, responsibility and leadership.

The members of the previous year’s upstart national runner-up team remembered and urged their younger teammates to a 31-6 record.

And on March 21, 2009 – with thousands of classmates, children in elementary schools and the silent majority of graduates of SLCC listening to an Internet radio feed, (NJCAA games are not televised) the Bruins claimed the school’s first national championship.

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jewel of collaboration

The team returned to Salt Lake City for celebration, television appearances and a gubernatorial proclamation.

After all of the excitement, Norm Parrish returned to teaching in the classroom, between-season conditioning, and the proud obscurity of being a community college coach. After a three day bus trip to get back to Salt Lake City, nearby University of Utah men’s basketball head coach Jim Boylen stopped by Norm’s office to pay him a visit and talk basketball. As the two coaches were talking, Norma happened to be near by. Boylen pointed to Parrish and told her, “You need to get a new contract for him."

Since 1988, SLCC has grown into a comprehensive community college with a national reputation. The College now boasts 33,774 students, 14 locations, 5 athletic programs that compete nationally, and student athletes who are consistently recognized for their academic and

On March 23, 2008…

Norma Carr

SLCC Vice President of Student Services Deneece Huftalin and Athletic Director Norma Carr support student athletes as administrators and as loyal fans.

» On-court success is important - even necessary but it’s not enough. Student athletes in her programs will succeed in the classroom, in the community, and in their lives after they leave SLCC. «

…the Salt Lake Community College men’s basketball team spent the morning of the biggest game in its players’ lives at an elementary school. Kevin Brening, the team’s host for the NJCAA National Championship tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas was so impressed with the character of SLCC’s players staying in his house that when he heard about the “Know Greater Heroes” program, he arranged for the players to conduct a rally at his daughters’ school.

So, instead of working on their jump shots, just hours prior to playing in the game that would be for the right to play for a national championship, a group of players got in the team bus and went to talk to 600 K-6 graders at Holy Cross Elementary School. The school’s entire student body was treated to an impromptu presentation on friendship, teamwork, goal setting, leadership, and basketball.

The Know Greater Heroes program takes SLCC players into hundreds of local elementary schools throughout Utah for engaging, high-energy assemblies. These young audiences get to hear and see real leaders up close who excel in sports and who live right in their own community.

Student athletes might learn even more from the program than the

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elementary school kids. Not that it’s always comfortable or easy for them.

“When we first started out in this program, I know a lot of us were pretty shy or scared. Talking in front of people isn’t really our thing,” said Brian Green.

“But the program is really a great opportunity for us. Lots of times, I think we get more out of it than the kids we see, because it really makes us deal with the issues we have. We come out [of the program] with a lot more poise and confidence that we take onto the court with us.”

Since 2004, all SLCC athletics teams have been involved in the leadership program that provides 30,000 Utah school children each year with positive role models and the message of choosing sports instead of drugs. More than twice each week during the school year, the athletes perform at a different elementary school. The program is built into the college curriculum, and is considered a major part of the student athletes academic and social development.

Nearly 90 percent of SLCC student athletes participate in leadership development activities. The retention rate among SLCC athletes is almost identical to this number. Three of the college’s five sports had a perfect 100 percent retention rate. The

athletic achievement. More than twenty years later, Norma Carr is still the only woman running men’s athletic programs in Utah. The SLCC athletic department is housed in the 180,000 sq. ft. Lifetime Activities Center. And, the SLCC men’s basketball team has brought home the State’s only national basketball championship since 1966.

All of the distinctions and national championships aside, what Carr believes in is winning—everywhere.

Her coaches, staff and colleagues know that on-court success is important— even necessary—but it’s not enough.

Student athletes in her programs will succeed in the classroom, in the community, and in their lives after they leave SLCC. Carr simply won’t consider anything less.

Dave Jones is a public relations specialist in the Institutional Marketing and Communications Department of Salt Lake Community College. The College educates and trains over 60,000 students annually at 14 Salt Lake valley locations and SLCC Online.

other two had 92 percent and 70 percent rates. About two-thirds of all SLCC student athletes are recruited to continue their playing careers by four-year institutions, and three-fourths move on to attend college at four-year schools. Leading these future leaders is a decorated coaching staff comprised of individuals at the top of their professions. SLCC’s players are learning from the best. Three of the five coaches have won national and regional Coach of the Year honors for their sports.

Focusing primarily on Federal Title I schools—schools with high concentrations of students at significant risk of failing to meet state academic achievement standards—the program targets an important audience. “We get student athletes that come here from all kinds of backgrounds,” said Athletic Director Norma Carr. “Some need more attention and guidance than others. It’s rewarding to see those athletes especially go into the schools and make a difference in young people’s lives who also really need someone to look up to.”

It’s even more rewarding when the athletes as role models go on to athletic achievement.

“It’s pretty cool to go to the assemblies and be introduced as ‘National Champions,” said Lesean Wilcox. “You can see the kids’ eyes get bigger when they hear that.”

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jewel of collaboration

Kroenke Sports Enterprises

A Win-Win Kroenke Sports Enterprises Does Great Work for Kids & Education By Kim DeCoste

“In every community, there is work to be done.

In every nation, there are wounds to heal.

In every heart, there is the power to do it.”

- Marianne Williamson

H

ave you ever seen the look on a child’s face when she or he sees someone in person whom they regard as a hero? It can bring tears to your eyes.

Whether it’s a child who is struggling in school, in life or with an illness, children sparkle differently when they get attention from their idols. And in these challenging times, we’ve seen a few recently tarnished images. In U.S. culture, we put certain people on pedestals, and right or wrong, we hold them in different regard than the everyday people of our lives, even if the everyday people are doing great things. It’s just the way it is. And we, as a culture, adjust our standards sometimes for the better – and sometimes not – to keep those heroes on our collective stage.

Private business is often seen as purely self-interested. And private owners of sports teams and organizations are not typically seen as heroes - or regarded as anything but performance and profit- driven entities. Here at ICOSA we believe, however, that we have found a sports organization that really does care and really does do amazing things in the community for all the right reasons.

Kroenke Sports Enterprises stands out as a leader, and is steered by the efforts of a small number of people to have great impact. While it is true that in sports there is always a winner and a loser, as Stan Kroenke stated to

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BusinessWeek, “Economics is about creating win-win situations.” And his organization is creating win-wins all over Denver and beyond.

It’s important to take a moment to clarify exactly who Kroenke Sports Enterprises is.

Headed by the enigmatic and somewhat pressshy Stanley Kroenke, the empire is massive and Mr. Kroenke’s track record as a leader in the sports community as well as in business in general, is indisputable.

AVS Hockey Clinic

Kroenke Sports Enterprises and Mr. Kroenke himself own the Colorado Avalanche hockey team, the Denver Nuggets basketball team, the Colorado Rapids soccer team, the Colorado Mammoth Lacrosse team, and in Denver, the Pepsi Center as well as the historic Paramount Theatre. And, Kroenke developed the largest soccer specific complex in the world, constructing Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado. He also sits atop the Altitude Entertainment Network, a 24-hour regional television network.

A native of Missouri, Mr. Kroenke was actively involved in bringing the National Football League Franchise Rams to St. Louis and he was enshrined in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. Aside from sports and entertainment, Mr. Kroenke is one of the country’s leading real estate developers through THF Realty and the Kroenke Group, and has an ownership stake in Screaming Eagle and Jonata vineyards in California.

We spoke with Deb DowlingCanino, Vice President of Community Relations/Fan Development at Kroenke, whose personal success as the only woman on the 11 person executive leadership team is mirrored by her impressive accessibility (she answers her own phone) and her command of fast facts around the community programs in which Kroenke is invested.

In fewer than 15 minutes, she was able to give detailed information off the top of her head about the work that Kroenke is doing and how it has impacted children and education.

While there are other areas of outreach, we focused specifically on kids and education. Ms. Dowling pointed easily to two tremendous programs Kroenke supports: The Boys’ & Girls’ Club’s partnership with the Denver Public School System as well as the support they offer to Colorado Special Olympics. And those, impressive as they are, just scratch the surface of all that Kroenke is doing.

» Over the past 13 years the Nuggets/Avalanche Prep League has grown from 900 kids in 1997 to over 5,000 kids participating in 2010.We have seen an increase in school pride and pride in the different communities of Denver. «

Nuggets Basketball Clinic

An email from John Andrew, the Director of Athletics for Denver Public Schools came to us in response to our request for comment and it needs no modification.

Mr. Andrew wrote the following, “Kroenke Sports has definitely been a life saver for the kids in Denver Public Schools. Their generosity of spirit has elevated the Nuggets/ Avalanche Prep League into one of the premier middle school sports programs in the nation. Before Kroenke Sports, DPS was void of any after-school athletics for middle school aged kids and many kids found their way into trouble during the hours of 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.”

When Kroenke Sports came on board as a philosophical and financial sponsor of the Prep League in 1997, kids found that they had positive alternatives to turn to after school. The program boasts a high weekly eligibility component, [as well as] attendance and behavioral component that keep kids focused in order to participate in the after school practices and games.

Over the past 13 years the Nuggets/ Avalanche Prep League has grown from 900 kids in 1997 to over 5,000 kids participating in 2010. We have seen an increase in school pride and pride in the different communities of Denver. It is not only the after school Prep League where Kroenke Sports shines. Andrew says, “They have provided so many opportunities for our children in DPS to experience what can often be taken for granted in more affluent areas of Colorado.” In fact, Kroenke now supports multiple projects within the DPS school district such as Nuggets Open Practice, Nugget for a Day, Avalanche for the Day, Fun, Fit and Literacy, homeless initiatives, Youth Development, Ticket Vouchers (a great incentive for the kids to do well in school), donated weight equipment, Nuggets Summer Basketball, Team Fit [and] Special Olympics – to name a few.

“The players on the teams, while tired and overworked, have always made every appearance a special one for the kids. To see the players interact with the kids warms your heart and makes you believe that everyone can make a difference in the lives of children. These are just a few of the initiatives that make Kroenke Sports so special,” added Andrew.

He went on to say exactly what we’d planned to write in this article – that this kind of good work cannot occur without the dedication and focus of truly excellent leaders.

“It is truly a special organization run by a very special person. Deb Dowling is an incredible leader who focuses a group of the most dedicated staff that I have ever experienced.

Her staff, from Doug Fulton (liaison to

Prep League), Matt Deluzio, Mark Randall (Community Ambassador and hometown hero), Amy Yuratovak, Katie Wolfe, and Lesley Linscott, are entirely committed to the work that they do. These people truly care about the lives of kids in Denver. They are so much more than a company that has a Community Department; they are the Community here in Denver. Each and every initiative they take on has a personal meaning to them. I know that lives have been changed because of this group of people. Kids will look back on their experience with Kroenke Sports and know that someone cared,” stated Andrew.

The other pinnacle program at Kroenke was the partnership with Special Olympics of Colorado. For over twenty years they have

Nuggets - Special Olympics Event

been working with the Special Olympics to organize all-team clinics. In these clinics, 125 special Olympians statewide come together for a chance to learn more about a sport. Take basketball, for example; in the basketball allteam clinic, kids are invited to attend a clinic at the Pepsi Center where stations are set up with members of the Denver Nuggets. The kids work around each station and are able to learn important lessons directly from the players, as well as improve their skills. By the time they complete the circuit, they will have improved their game and met the entire team!

Last year’s event had nearly 150 Special Olympic Colorado athletes ranging in age from 7-70 and marked the sixth successive year the Nuggets’ staff and players have volunteered time to host this event. The Denver Nuggets organization is the only team in the NBA that does an all player/all coaches clinic for Special Olympics. In fact, Dowling-Canino confirmed that this clinic for the Special Olympics of Colorado is the only mandatory team appearance required each year for the Nuggets and it is considered a favorite among staff and players.

As Head Coach George Karl said after the event, “We give these special athletes our time and, in return, they give us their spirit.”

Special Olympics President & CEO Mindy Watros commented, “Year after year, our

athletes have the time of their lives during this clinic. We are extremely grateful to the Denver Nuggets and Kroenke Sports for this opportunity and to Comfort Dental for their sponsorship of the event.”

When we see these “human interest” stories on the news or read of them in the paper, the photos are of the players and kids. And, as we began the article, there is nothing like the look on the face of a child when she or he gets to meet a “hero.” We appreciate when we see our superstar sports icons engaging with everyday kids in everyday ways. It makes them feel more “normal” to those of us who carpool, participate in PTO, or fundraise to help our kids and their schools.

Unseen and often unmentioned though are the business leaders behind the organizations’ stars. There are good people working hard every day. Yes, they drive profit and watch the bottom line. Yes, they collect a paycheck just like the rest of us fortunate enough to be working. But they also strive to have a positive impact in the cities where they live. They work hard every day to help people understand the connection between the athletes, the teams and the community.

It reminds us of the sometimes misquoted American teacher, scholar and scout leader, Dr. Forest Witcraft, who in October of 1950 submitted an essay which said in part, “I am not a Very Important Man, as importance is commonly rated. I do not have great wealth, control a big business, or occupy a position of great honor or authority. Yet, I may someday mold destiny.

For it is within my power to become the most important man in the world in the life of a boy. And every boy is a potential atom bomb in human history…All about me are boys.

They are the makers of history, the builders of tomorrow. If I can have some part in guiding them …I may prove to be the most important man in their lives, the most important man in my community. A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove. But the world may be different, because I was important in the life of a boy.” Our only addition to this noble quote? We’d just add “or a girl”!

Kim DeCoste is the President of DeCoste & Associates, a strategic career management and coaching firm specializing in career transition (www.DeCosteAssociates.com). Kim is also actively involved in STEM initiatives, public K-12 education and clean technology expansion through the South Metro Denver Chamber and Cleantech Open (www.CleantechOpen.com).

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COLLABORATION CLOSE UP

GLOBAL TRADE

Energy &

the Environment

I

n September 2009, Envirofit International received TIMEs Heroes of the Environment 2009 Award for their cook stove technologies. Engineered to reduce toxic emissions by up to 80% and reduce fuel by 60%, these stoves will soon be available in more than a dozen developing countries across Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

International Development Enterprise (IDE) was awarded the 2009 AGFUND Prize from The Arab Gulf Programme for United Nations Development Organizations (AGFUND) for successful implementation of their PRISM method in ten developing countries including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Myanmar, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Nicaragua.

T

In mid-November 2009 The Cleantech Open, the world’s largest business competition created to find, fund and foster startup clean technology companies, announced the winners of this year’s competition at the annual Cleantech Open Expo and Awards Gala in San Francisco. Dubbed the “Academy Awards of Clean Technology,” the event marked the grand finale of the Cleantech Open's yearlong business competition. This year, at the Cleantech Open’s biggest event ever, thousands of people representing the nascent cleantech industry —contestants, alumni teams from previous years, mentors, venture capitalists and budding cleantech entrepreneurs — convened to showcase the best in cleantech innovation from national and international teams. The 2009 National Prize winner was California-based smart power company, EcoFactor.

he Global Trade issue addressed several trade agreement related topics. At the end of FY2009, the Obama Administration through the USTR announced that it will continue to work to identify and resolve outstanding issues and seek solutions to move the proposed Colombia, Panama, and South Korea pacts forward.

ICOSA celebrated its Global Trade issue with a reception at The Cable Center in Denver. Over 150 domestic and international corporate representatives attended the event. It was a great opportunity to meet and connect with contributors, writers, and organizations affiliated with ICOSA.

Innovation & Continuous Improvement

I

n late 2008, after a multi-year effort, Poudre Valley Health System (PVHS) was awarded the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) in the healthcare industry category. The MBNQA is the nation's most prestigious award for quality.

PVHS is a private, not-for-profit health system serving northern Colorado, western Nebraska, and southern Wyoming. It includes two hospitals: Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colo., and Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland, Colo., plus a network of clinics and other healthcare facilities, including a 50-bed behavioral health center. PVHS was featured in the inaugural issue of ICOSA in September 2008.

S

EDUCATION & WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

ince running the interview with Blair Sheppard, Dean of Duke’s Fuqua School of Business, they have launched the Duke MBA - Cross Continent program. It is designed to help full-time working professionals earn a world-class MBA in 16 months, while building a global, culturally-diverse peer network.

Unique to the program, students have the opportunity to study in locations across the world - London, Dubai, New Delhi, St. Petersburg, Shanghai, and of course Durham, North Carolina - as well as at home via a distance learning platform.

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In 2008, the Operation Respect (OR) organization launched its curriculum into schools across Israel/West Bank and other areas of the Middle East, with the assistance of many dedicated volunteers and the U.S. Embassy. The OR curriculum, translated into Hebrew and Arabic, lays the groundwork for the possibility of interrupting the cycle of alienation, non-acceptance, fear, and hatred among the different populations of Israel and beyond. Says Peter Yarrow, founder of OR, “there is a need for safe school environments to enable learning to take place. Music can make a community in which kids can feel safe, open their hearts.”

Conscious Capitalism

t

he Third Annual Business/ Social Entrepreneurship Event was held in Colorado Dec. 1 & 2. Peter Kellner, named Young Global Leader in 2009 by the World Economic Forum, was the featured guest and speaker and was accompanied by Justin Rockefeller, another social entrepreneurship proponent.

During this event, the City of Denver announced its partnership with Ashoka through its participation in Ashoka's "Change Your City Initiative."

by raising awareness of HIV among employees, their families and communities, reducing the stigma of infection and reinstalling hope.”

The Pachamama Alliance participated and insured that indigenous voices were involved, in a series of Amazonian regional workshops and international conferences in Norway, Germany and Thailand in the lead-up to the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen during December 2009.

Hundreds of pajama-clad party-goers celebrated success at the 5th Annual PJ Party on January 28th, to benefit Denver’s Road Home - Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper’s 10-year-plan to end homelessness.

More than $860,000 in cash and in-kind support was raised throughout the week leading up to the PJ Party! That’s a new record.

Mayor Hickenlooper donned his signature red nightshirt at the PJ Party, hosted by the Residence Inn in Downtown Denver. He thanked the growing number of corporate and individual donors who made the 5th Annual PJ Party a resounding success.

PJ Day is the annual, major fundraiser for Denver’s Road Home. The monies raised help to support the critical safety net of homeless services in Denver like emergency shelter, substance abuse counseling and transitional housing- to name just a few. Mile High United Way is proud to partner with Denver’s Road Home in providing long term solutions to the important issue of adult and family selfsufficiency.

Since publishing the MillerCoors article in the November/December issue of ICOSA, they have launched a new Corporate Responsibility website that prompts consumers and stakeholders to “be great.” Check it out at www.

GreatBeerGreatResponsibility.com.

Since the story on Atlas Copco was printed, Atlas Copco South Africa was recognized with the Swedish Workplace HIV and AIDS Programme (SWHAP) Achievement Award for their efforts to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS among employees. The award recognizes corporate commitment at the workplace level to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS and alleviate the effects of the HIV pandemic. “We are very proud of this acknowledgement that our efforts have made a difference in helping people live a better life,” says Jo Cronstedt, Vice President Public Affairs at Atlas Copco AB. “We want our programs to contribute

THE BUSINESS OF DOING GOOD

After three years of effort, in January 2010, the American Transplant Foundation introduced the Donate Life license plate in Colorado. With the introduction of the plate, Colorado has joined 22 other states around the nation in raising awareness for organ and tissue donation through license plates.

Ato Yohannes Gebregeorgis, Founder and Executive Director of Ethiopia Reads, was the featured speaker at the President’s Program of the American Library Association Mid-winter Conference in January 2010 in Boston, MA where over 11,000 of the nation’s library leaders convened.

T

he Vail Veterans Program continues its operations in both the summer and winter, offering a slew of great sports alternatives for our wounded warriors. This year was no different. The vets who participated this year, were inspiring, enthusiastic, and truly “AWE”some!

Beginning in the fall of 2007, Project C.U.R.E. and First Lady of Mexico Mrs. Margarita Zavala, began to rebuild the hospitals and clinics in the states of Tabasco and Chiapas, Mexico. Because of torrential rains and flooding, approximately two million people were displaced from their homes and the medical infrastructure was devastated from the disaster. Since that time, Project C.U.R.E. has worked with the First Lady to deliver several 53-foot trailer loads of donated medical supplies and equipment to the area, valued at more than $2.5 million.

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Would Like To Thank The Following Friends For Their Inspiration

Molly Ancell

Troy Garnhart

Richard Beardan

Karen Gay

Chauncey Billups

Bill Gibbs

John Boner

Sarah Holloway

John Brackney

Dr. Douglas Jackson

Rob Cohen

Cheryl Jensen

Claire Cunningham

Alison McFarlane

Deb Dowling-Canino

Jeffrey R. Messner

Dale Eisler

George Mitrovich

Elyse Feldman

Priscilla Nuwash

DA Franklin

Lonnie Porter

Dick Franklin

Kimberly Reed

Dr. Tom Friermood

James Smejkal

Leah Fotis

Susie Wargin

Lauren Gardner

Luke Wyckoff

Sports: Determination, T eamwork & L eadership January - M arch 2010

4120 Jackson Street Denver Colorado 80216 I www.icosamag.com

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