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Truckin for Katrina

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Truckin for Katrina: Michigan Families Adopting Gulf Coast Families Affected by Hurricane Katrina

Not long after Hurricane Katrina hit, Sherrill Sundberg learned that one of her neighbors had 4 separate family members who each lost their homes. She was participating in the Landmark Team Management and Leadership Program. Utilizing the concepts learned from her Self Expression and Leadership Program Project she immediately knew what she was going to do for her next project which included enrolling and inspiring a team to fulfill on the “Rebirth of New Orleans” Project she created.

Over 100,000 people literally lost everything they had in Katrina and now nearly two years later, the scope of the need has barely diminished. Like most people Sherrill wanted to do whatever she could to contribute to the relief effort. Her initial goal in her community project was to get donations for the households for the 4 relatives of her neighbor.

While attending her next Landmark Education weekend of the Team Management and Leadership Program she initially created “Christmas in New Orleans”. This was to invite 4 leaders to provide Christmas for the 4 original families by determining: 3 gifts each person wanted, what they would like to wear and what they would like to have for a Christmas dinner. She was challanged by another participant to expand the scope of her project. She accepted and soon the project exploded such that 25 families received “ Christmas in New Orleans”. In total, 25 leaders and 250 families had the experience of generous sharing by sending the desired Christmas gifts by December 16, 2005 to 25 families devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

As it turned out, this was just the beginning of an odyssey of contribution for Sherrill. After that first Christmas, Sherrill knew that the project had to continue in some way, as they had not even scratched the surface of what was needed.

As an active member of her local Methodist Congregation she naturally had invited other church members to participate in the project. Sherrill met a lady who so inspired by the purpose of the project, cashed in the equity of a life insurance policy in order pay for trucks that would transport donations from Michigan to the Gulf with the condition that the trucking companied would give a significant discount off of their normal fees. Sherill managed to enroll a local private trucker who has taken on the project while charging less than half his normal fees. “Truckin for Katrina” was born.

As the word spread about “Truckin for Katrina” Sherrill soon began to work with the First United Methodist church in the Pascagoula, Mississippi. Many homes there were flooded or totally removed by the tidal wave as it entered that community. Many families requested to participate in the project. A network quickly developed that today is allowing Gulf Coast families in need to be able to request specific durable goods. Sherrill’s community share items that are in good condition and often purchase new items to send to the families. Sherrill calls the donated goods, “Early Marriage and Pre-attic Furniture like we all had when we first got married”. It is allowing families to move out of their FEMA trailer and into a furnished home. Eventually they will be able to purchase their own style of furnishings. This project has allowed families to attain some sense of normalcy. As of August 2007 four semi trailers have delivered durable goods to 32 families

It has not all been smooth sailing. Sherrill has had to overcome huge challenges, from trying to get donations to fulfill the unique requests of families to dealing with tons of donations and a few that were unusable and nothing more than junk, to a truckload of carefully collected goods being left on a curbside with imminent rain without notifying the families beforehand of the delivery date and time to come and pick them up.

Now nearly 2 years later, the scope of the need has barely diminished.

Since this whole project began, Sherrill has heard stories that she could not have ever imagined. She tells the story of one lady named Debra who lives in Pascagoula, Mississippi. When Katrina hit, Deborah was one of many people who did not leave her home. At the height of the storm surge, Deborah swam out the front window of her rented house after breaking a window to prevent drowning. She was carried over 2 miles inland before she was finally able to grab hold of a pillar in the front of a church and be rescued. After her ordeal during the storm, Debra lived in a tent for 3 months. Finally she resided in a FEMA trailer. Her former employer offered the opportunity for her to rebuild a house with the promise that she could live there at a reduced rent. After months of work to re-built the house, which was then furnished by Sherrill’s project, Deborah has discovered that she is being evicted because the landlord is able to get much higher rent or sell the newly rebuilt house at a great profit.
Deborah’s story is not unique and is only one of thousands that are similar. Sherrill remains not only undaunted but is more inspired than ever. Her project is connecting people and families and waking people up to the difference they are able to make.

Sherrill says, “Having identified a need in the world I have discovered with a team you can do anything. Through Landmark Education I have had world class training in communication such that I am able to touch, move and inspire people to participate in what ever I am up to. This project has taken on a life of its own because it gives people an opportunity to express their unique desire to make a difference. You get back far more than you give.”

Creating a 'Habitat for Humanity' home

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Suzanne Perrin and Denise Inskip-Seale created a project to beautify a ‘Habitat for Humanity’ home. They used exclusively donated material, labor and furnishings. Their concept was simple: many of the families that work with Habitat for Humanity in building a home, do not have the resources to furnish them after they move in.

Suzanne and Denise involved as many people from the local community as possible to donate their time talent and resources to fully furnish the new Habitat home.

The project, developed while they were both on the Landmark Education program was a big success. This video chronicles the development of the project. It also features moving coverage of the day the family who helped build the house got to see it finished for the first time.

New Home

Team Managment and Leadership Program participants use their wedding as an opportunity to raise money for charity

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frarys1.jpgRichard Frary is a participant in the Team Managment and Leadership Program

 

On most bridal registries you will find things like coffee makers, china, linens and other household goods.

 

If you were on the guest list of Linda and Richard Frary’s wedding last spring, you would have found goats, pigs and trees; all items that they were asking be purchased through Heifer International in order to benefit children and families in rural villages around the world.


Richard and Linda were both participating at Landmark Education when they met. They say that as they began to plan their wedding they wanted to make sure that it made a difference in the world. Instead of having people give customary gifts they requested that people make donations to Heifer International.

Heifer International is a global non-profit that provides farm animals and trees to families in developing countries so that they can create economic self-reliance. Each donation pays for at least one animal that goes to a family in need and to date the Frary wedding has resulted in 55 donations.

Both retired from previous careers, Linda and Richard are dedicated to helping others fulfill their dreams. Said Richard, “You get nothing if you don’t give something away.”

You can read more about Richard and Linda’s wedding in this story from the Sarasota Herald Tribune.

Couple proves it’s never too late to find true love


BY AIMEE CHOUINARD CORRESPONDENT

The Frarys are new homeowners in Beneva Pines. Married just a few weeks ago, Richard, 66, and Linda, 59, are a testament that finding love late in life is possible. In two weeks, they will embark on a three-week honeymoon toBora Bora. The Frarys dated for two years before they married. One year into the relationship, Richard Frary asked Linda to marry him.”I asked her, and she said, ‘No,'” Richard said with a laugh. “I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to get married again,” Linda explained. “And that was OK,” Richard said. “A couple months later, we were at the beach, looking out at the ocean, and I asked her again.”

 

They were married on Turtle Beach on Siesta Key, surrounded by family and friends, including Linda’s newly found birth family, whom Linda, who was adopted, never knew.Instead of registering for gifts at a department store, the Frarys registered with an organization called Heifer International, a nonprofit organization whose goal is to help end world hunger and poverty through self-reliance and sustainability. More than 60 guests visited the Web site beforehand to donate goats, pigs and trees to help children and families around the world become self-reliant. Richard Frary has been retired for 10 years from his Miami wholesale air-conditioning and heating products company. Linda Frary owned a picture-framing store in Connecticut and opened the same business here in Sarasota. She recently closed Sarasota Framing and Design to retire.” We’re getting younger, so we need more time to play,” Richard Frary joked. The Frarys both have children from previous marriages, Linda has a daughter and Richard has a son and a daughter.Richard Frary recently moved from Miami to Englewood, leaving his Englewood beach home to live with Linda in Sarasota.

Some of their best memories are of hours they spent engrossed in long conversations about their lives, their families and their dreams at the beach house.” It was during those intimate conversations that I realized Richard was such a special guy,” Linda said.

Intimate conversations have been a part of the Frarys’ relationship since they both participated in personal development work with a company called Landmark Education.” Landmark has had a lot to do with the incredible relationship we have created. When I did the Landmark Forum, I got over my past. Linda was a huge support during that time. That’s when I fell in love with her,” Richard said. The Frays are committed to making a difference in their community and the world. “We have great friends,” Linda said. “We meet people everywhere we go and just start talking.

“We love to meet people when we travel and are looking for ways we can contribute in other countries. We strive to be an example of a loving relationship in the world.”

The Frarys say they love Sarasota because of the arts, the entertainment and the creative spiritual community with so many organizations to be a part of. They plan to keep Sarasota as their home while traveling the world. Linda volunteers with Girls Inc., assisting with classes and programs. She says she loves being with the kids. She plans to also continue her already established involvement with the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce.” We have an easygoing life,” Linda said. “We’re always running somewhere and always have something to do.”

In addition to traveling, the Frarys garden together and especially enjoy growing orchids. They kayak, snorkel and go boating together. Richard’s passion is windsurfing.“People ask, “How can I have what you and Linda have?” says Richard.

In unison, the Frarys say, “We just choose it!”

Turning into a Winner in Business

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My name is Rowan Andrews and when I started the Team Management and Leadership Program, I got to see how the point of view I have of myself, that I’m just a loser and my life will never work out the way I want it to had total control over me. And while it was really upsetting to see, it was at the same time, liberating.

I also saw for myself all the structures I had created in my life, that ensured I fulfilled on being that point of view.

One structure that soon showed up was in my work. I had a business that was not doing very well, and really had no future, wasn’t going anywhere, and had very little income. When I looked at my company’s board I saw how it was a structure to fulfill on my business being a loser because I was the only person on it!

So after my first weekend on the programme, I created the possibility of being a winner and enrolled a team of winners to join my board. So now I have a group of board members who advise me and help me run my sports marketing business and they are all winners. They include one of the UK’s top marketing experts, a top city lawyer, the chairman of one of the largest privately owned public relations companies, and an Olympic gold medallist! Since I’ve had that team in place we’ve overhauled the brand, our proposition, and the services we provide. We’ve also won several substantial and prestigious pieces of business, and have created a firm financial footing going forward. And I’m now working on the most exciting work of my career and I’m a winner. It’s amazing!

Police Inspector Trains as Hostage Negotiator

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My name is Paul, and I am an Inspector in the Metropolitan Police Service. In July 2003 I was selected for the National Hostage and Crisis Negotiator’s Course – a result that would have been inconceivable prior to my participation in the Team Management and Leadership Programme. My interest in becoming a Hostage Negotiator was fostered through my participation in the Landmark Communication Programme and in particular in my training in listening what another person is saying, to get behind the words, to hear their concerns and to be in their world. I formed a team with other MPS Negotiators to support and coach me through the application process. I successfully completed the National Course in November.

Since then I have been called in to negotiate on two occasions: one where a young man had climbed onto the roof of a three-storey building and was threatening to throw himself to the ground, and the other where a woman had barricaded herself into a house with three children and was on the point of setting it on fire. Both incidents were resolved without bloodshed.

This is just one of many examples of the way that bringing my experience of participating in this Programme into the workplace continues to have a profound and positive effect. In another project the outcome has been a measurable, sustained reduction in serious assaults on the streets of my district of South-East London, and improved public reassurance.

Finding Love and Romance

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My name is Konnie Daniel. I was working as a Make-up artist in films and television before I started the Team Management and Leadership Program in December 2002.

Work was the only important thing in my life. I had hardly any contact with my family back in Germany. Having a family myself was not possible because the world is a scary place and you have to be independent and self contained so you can’t be hurt.

In the Program I came to see it is a very limited life I had allowed for myself. I created that, over the course of the year I could give up my internal story that ‘this is the only way to live my life’ and let other people in and allow them to contribute. Now I have got my family in Germany back and I see them on a regular basis. I have a Partner I love and we are having a baby in October.

I am still working as Make-up Artist, but now I have love and contribution from other people in my life. All this was not possible for me before the course.

Software Engineer Turns Musician

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My name is Ian Sykes and I am a 39-year old software engineer. Although I have played electric guitar since the age of 15, before I participated in any Landmark courses I had not played in a rock band. Indeed I used to tell people that I didn’t want to play in a band, professing that I was not talented enough to do so and that “I did not want the hassles that accompany fame”. What was actually the case was that it had been my dream for years to play in a band but I’d been too confronted by a fear of being in the limelight.

By the time I started the Team Management & Leadership Programme (TMLP), I had gained experience of playing in a rock band, formed as my project from Landmark’s “Communication: Performance & Power” (CPP) course. That band, a trio comprised of myself and two other musicians I’d met on the CPP course, had come to an end when the bass player (who was also one of the lead vocalists) had returned from the UK to his native Northern Ireland. But not until after we’d played a gig at London’s Imperial College.

During TMLP I set out to either join or create a new rock band playing Britpop and indie music, rehearsing within 30 minutes drive of where I lived. I was convinced that forming this band would be far more difficult than it had been to form the first one because I knew that, this time, other Landmark graduates were not eligible to be band members; I would have to pitch myself on the “open market”. Nonetheless, within about three months the band, comprised of myself and four other musicians, was complete. We were rehearsing variously at three venues, each of which was within 30 minutes of where I lived, most of the music we were playing was indie or Britpop and the sound that we made collectively was inspirational. From this I saw that I can ongoingly be fulfilled throughout the rest of my life by creating whatever I set my mind to.

Adoptee Finds Birth Parents Against All Odds

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My name is Virginia McLean, I am 34, a writer, historian, public relations consultant and Adjunct Professor at a University in London. I am also adopted, and this is my story.

When I did the Landmark Forum in November 2001 I decided to look for my birth mother, something I had denied that I wanted or needed to do. My birth father had died before I was born so finding him was not an option. I took the painful step of telling my mother and we ended up going to find my adoption files together. It looked liked it would be easy to find her, we had so much information now – names, dates, addresses, their University.

I gave the job of tracing her to a researcher. Over one and a half years later and we hadn’t found her. The facts my birth mother had given to the adoption agency were not adding up. She had lied, most probably about their names. I decided it was impossible, that I would never find her, that there must be some deep dark secret that had had her lie.

It was whilst on the Team Management and Leadership programme, coaching on the Communication: Performance and Power course that the course leader Naomi invited us to take on “derailing” our lives. I told her that I wanted to find my birth mother but didn’t even have her name. She invited me to take it on, standing in anything’s possible. So in my fourth quarter of TMLP I took on finding my birth mother and being in communication with her within 3 months as a team game in the world, using the distinctions around team, enrollment and structures for existence that you learn in Communication: Performance and Power.

The possibility I invented was of being vulnerable, generous and courageous and I really had to be that. I enrolled professors, students, journalists and even the registrar at Cornell Law School to help me. Using the address where we knew the courts had written to my birth mother I persuaded Cornell Law School to trace all the people who had lived there in the late 1960’s. One of them was my birth father. My birth mother had used his Christian name as her surname and his mother’s maiden name as his last name. Once we knew this, all the pieces fell into place and I was able to find him, still alive and living in New York. Then through him I found her. It took just under 3 months.

I met my birth parents six weeks later in December last year and we now see each other regularly and are creating an extended family in which I have 4 parents. My birth mother and brother have met my parents, and they are welcoming my new family as theirs.

I am clear this would not have been possible without the distinctions of the communication programme and the rigour of the TMLP. I am now doing Team 2 and using this course to fulfil on my dream of becoming a successful author, film maker and mother. I am also creating a network for adopted people and all of their parents to share stories and provide mutual support called ‘In the Same Boat’. This is a course that makes you face your fears to enable you to live your dreams.

Website for Musicians to Distribute their Own Music

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My name is Derek Dearden and I have been running my own business, developing software and designing computer systems for over twenty five years.

I would have claimed to be entirely content with my life – after all, I could generate a comfortable income doing work that I enjoyed and arranging the structure of my day to suit myself. But the reality was that most of the projects I was spending my time on did not really satisfy me.

When I was listening to a friend of my son playing a piece of music that he had composed, I suddenly thought “This is much better than a lot of the music you hear on the radio or can buy in the shops, but what chance does he have of breaking into that world? And how poor a deal would he get if he did?” I realised that with today’s technology, it would be possible for people like him to put their music in front of a Global audience. I created the idea of a website where musicians could just put up their music and it would be available to all the world. I saw that it would be possible to offer this without creating an artificial scarcity for the sake of the publishers’ inflated profits, and that there could be a simple and fair scheme for channeling the income back to the musicians. What would have been predictable before I joined this Program was that this would have remained merely a nice idea that I was sure I would do “someday”. With the training, the coaching and the support that it provides, I got my website – beatbiz.net – up and running within three months of joining and I’ve now got about a hundred musicians from all over the world contributing to it and hundreds of visitors every day; and this is only the beginning!

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