Think pink. The Retirement Guys and staff recently had the opportunity to participate in The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Downtown Toledo.  I (Mark) had known that there was a lot of support for this cause and had became more aware of how widespread the effort has become. I am a big sports fan, and because of this my awareness increased. The color pink is everywhere in major league sports. Pink shoes, pink hats, pink sweatbands, pink batting gloves and even pink bats?  Wow! Who would have thought we would ever see a macho major league ball-player use a pink bat? During the race, there was a sea of people as far as the eye could see with folks wearing all forms of pink.  I pray that a cure is found soon.

Speaking of great causes, I had to leave the Race for the Cure to attend another charitable event the same day spearheaded by my son Ryan, who is a junior at Kent State University. The cops standing in the middle of Downtown Toledo informed me that I would never be able to get out of town because all the roads were blocked off for the race. I was afraid I would not make it in time, but I got lucky and found a way out. Ryan’s fraternity participates in many charitable events and he had the pleasure of organizing an event to raise money for ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). The first Portage County Cup was modeled after horse racing with all proceeds going to the charity. The interesting thing was, instead of horse racing it was tricycle racing. The guys and gals even dressed up in attire they would normally wear to the Kentucky Derby. It was a great time and I was proud of my son and all his fraternity brothers for their great effort and creativity in putting on the event.

Already inspired by the events of the weekend, I was inspired further at church on Sunday listening to Pastor Andy Weigand. Andy shared what the Book of Romans was about. It was time for the Apostle Paul to further his ministry to new areas, specifically Spain, and he was to pass through Rome on his way and wanted to let his friends know about his plans and his itinerary. The theme of this letter was spreading the word about the cause of Jesus Christ. Andy pointed out the success of a cause requires inspiration and action. Paul and his followers were inspired to spread the gospel. Folks affected by cancer and even many that have not been directly affected have been inspired to find a cure. Lou Gehrig and others affected by ALS have inspired many to support finding a cure for this dreaded disease. They have been inspired to action as evidenced by the number of people showing up to make a difference. Speaking of inspiration, at the end of Romans there is a list mentioning people that Paul wanted to send his greetings to.

At first glance, this seems to be a boring part of the chapter. Why list all these names? Pastor Andy said this was one of the most inspiring parts of the chapter for him. Because these were all people who had taken up the cause. They all had a story to tell. They were all taking action in what they believed to be the most important cause on earth. They were working together to change the world. According to what I read on Wikipedia, the late Steve Jobs once was trying to convince a man to leave PepsiCo. and join Apple as the CEO. He said to him, “Do you want to sell sugar water for the rest of your life, or do you want to come with me and change the world?”

This surely would have inspired me to want to change the world. When people band together they can make a huge difference. Paul’s friends in Rome were working together making a difference.

The mass of people wearing pink in Downtown Toledo at the Race for the Cure were working together to make a difference. The young people at Kent State University riding tricycles were spending their time and effort to make a difference.

If you are reading this column and you have participated in a good cause and helped make a difference, then thank you. It is people like you, people like the Romans, people wearing pink, even people riding tricycles that are a great inspiration. Let’s continue together to press on for the cause.

For more information about The Retirement Guys, tune in every Saturday at 1 p.m. on 1370 WSPD or visit www.retirementguysradio.com. Securities and Investment Advisory Services are offered through NEXT Financial Group Inc., Member FINRA / SIPC. NEXT Financial Group, Inc. nor its representatives provide tax advice. The Retirement Guys are not an affiliate of NEXT Financial Group. The office is at 1700 Woodlands Drive, Suite 100, Maumee, OH 43537. (419) 842-0550.

Tags: Race for the Cure, Retirement Guys

This entry was posted on Friday, October 7th, 2011 at 2:10 pm and is filed under Retirement Guys, Toledo Business Link.
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