Contagious Enthusiasm…

 

The Great ones are positive thinkers, they are enthusiastic, and that enthusiasm rubs off

One of the best parts about sending these newsletters is hearing back from you about examples of Greatness you’ve seen in your own community. Sometimes these stories are run in the city newspaper or broadcast on the local news, but no one outside the area ever gets to learn about some of these GREAT individuals in our midst.

Louise Jones, of the Alabama Pharmacy Association, recently sent me the link to a story about an extraordinary young man named Gabe Marsh, and I am so glad that she did. As I read Gabe’s story, I was struck by what an inspiring example of Greatness this six-year-old sets for us all. Reading his story made me call his parents to learn more!

Do Unto Others…

The Great ones know character is defined by how they treat those who can not help them.

As many universities begin their fall semester this month, one of the most innovative yet under-publicized periods of the college sports calendar begins. Several years ago, NCAA rules changed to allow college basketball teams – both men’s and women’s – to take one pre-season out-of-country trip every four years, where the teams compete against their contemporaries from other lands. I’ve always been fascinated by these trips and almost every coach or player I’ve talked to over the years has said the trip changed the dynamic of that year’s team, opening players’ eyes to parts of the world they’ve never seen and inspiring an esprit de corps that bonds players together.

But no story of a team and its pre-season trip rivals the one I heard a year ago from Sue Semrau, the head women’s basketball coach at Florida State.