Storytelling

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You never know who you are going to meet!

I never know who I am going to meet on any given project. This is what I love so much about what I do…everyone has a story to tell. When I was a journalist, I never knew on any given day where I was going to be, who I was going to meet, what story was I going to capture and tell. It brings me joy that this daily epiphany has translated into my business routine.

Laura Beach is one of those stories that is so wonderful and pure, one that restores my faith for the next wave of clergy leadership in rural North Carolina.

Way out in the middle of the country, I found my way through the windy roads where Longtown United Methodist Church was perched on a hill. Laura is the new pastor, fresh out of Duke Divinity School.

“Laura didn’t always know she wanted to be a pastor, but she has always loved life in a rural setting. She grew up in Ferrum, Va., in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and the slower pace and strong sense of community became part of her.”

Longtown UMC is her first appointment for the United Methodist Church.

“I remember turning onto Longtown Road and thinking, ‘Oh, I’m going to fit in here. This is going to be home,’” she says.

The congregation embraces her youth and her passion. They shared their desires to be a part of the maturation process for young ministers. Their commitment to this ministry can be felt throughout the congregation…one that makes me think is the under current of the Thriving Rural Communities initiative.

I enjoyed meeting Laura and hearing more about her story. if you would like to read more about Laura, you go go The Duke Endowment’s website to learn more.

*** Excerpts from this blog post are from Laura’s Profile of Service Story on The Duke Endowment’s website, indicated in italics.

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Thankful for people like Pearl

I was thinking about Thanksgiving and the numerous things that I am thankful for…I started to think about Pearl. As I think of the things I am thankful for, I begin to think of the people I think are heros. People that I have crossed paths with…ones that have inspired me to look at life in a different way.

I challenged my MBA class to write about their hero this past week. Many of the students jumped right into the assignment, but others began to question who to write about. Riley Csernica has me thinking.



I met Pearl Johnson last year in the mountains of Western North Carolina. The moment I met her, I knew I had another mother in my life. It was 5:30am and it was time to get ready for the day. As I made my way through the mountains, I pulled into this little parking lot…and walked into the side door of the kitchen.

Normally I have to spend some time with people I am working with…to train them to get used to the camera following them everywhere, recording every sound from the microphone hidden under their collar. She did not miss a beat and let me say…she did not stop talking. Yes, I was pulling away in my car late that day and she was still talking.

She told me her story, her passion, her mission…to feed those seniors who do not have access to a warm meal. She feels everyone deserves a warm meal. This is such a simple idea, concept, and passion. But, she has converted her passion to action.

I would be willing to bet she will be traveling the mountains this Thanksgiving, making sure those seniors have a warm meal and a side of her warm conversation. Pearl is just one of the many individuals that the Duke Endowment supports…and I am thankful to listen, capture, and share her story.

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My Lesson 11 … I am still learning

There is nothing better than having someone share their story, their experiences, their passions to a group of aspiring entrepreneurs. Robbin Phillips of Brains on Fire joined my MBA class for a morning of discussion and sharing.

So here is what I walked away with…

1) I am still a student of this entrepreneurial journey.

2) Passion is a must…so don’t be afraid to share.

3) Our story is our story…

4) Listening is one the most important parts of connecting with like minded people.

5) To lead a successful company, initiative, or movement…you must be healthy from the soul outward.

So here is to Robbin for filling up my cup, giving me a new breath of passion, and reminding that regardless if I am the teacher…learning never stops.

So there is my Lesson 11 for the evening. I am still learning!  Read the Brains on Fire book and you will understand.

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What is your legacy?

For the past few years, I have been working with Clemson on a small project each year called Legacy Day. A great event to share the Legacy of Clemson University.

Above are short videos we have been creating each year to encourage students to get involved. Each video is a short vignette that includes Thomas Green Clemson helping students around campus.

Who Is Thomas Green Clemson?
“Clemson drafted a final will in the mid 1880s. The will called for the establishment of a land-grant institution called ‘The Clemson Agricultural College of South Carolina’ upon the property of the Fort Hill estate. He believed that education, especially scientific education, leads to economic prosperity. He wanted to start an agricultural college because he felt that government officials did not appreciate the importance of agricultural education.”

This year, we thought it would be great to introduce his wife Anna Calhoun Clemson. Anna was John C. Calhoun’s daughter. John C. Calhoun was a Senator and Vice President of the United States. His home now sits on Clemson’s campus which is the location of the Legacy Day event.

Each video, we see Thomas Green Clemson providing the metaphor of his determined spirit, ever present helping students across the campus. The hope, students at Clemson learn his legacy and want to join in this yearly event.

This year’s event description:
“Come leave your mark this November at Fort Hill! Take a tour of the historic home and join us in celebrating when Thomas Green Clemson signed the university into his will.

There will be FREE long-sleeved t-shirts, koozies and more. Free food will also be provided! The Clemson University Gospel Choir will be performing, as well as a string quartet!”

Here is a link to the Facebook Event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/332124476886083/ 

Here is a link to the Clemson University Calendar Event:
http://calendar.clemson.edu/event/legacy_day#.UKEcEeOe9QY 

About the project:
This project began in 2009 with the vision of creating a day where students, faculty, staff, and alumni come together to share the legacy of Clemson University. The first Legacy Day featured the release of the new book called “Thomas Green Clemson”.

“The book was written by 12 authors, most of whom are Clemson faculty and staff members, and edited by English professor Alma Bennett. Each of the 13 chapters focuses on a certain facet of Clemson’s life, including his education; his relationship with his wife Anna Calhoun; his time spent in Europe and Washington, D.C.; his career as a scientist and farmer; his love of art and music; his role as a national advocate for agricultural education; and his vision to found an agricultural college.”

Students and staff collaborated on the project using video as a way to engage other students on campus. Short vignette videos were created by students and staff to share Thomas Green Clemson’s commitment to students. The videos were then shared by students on Facebook.

The first year, there were close to 350 in attendance. Attendees were able to tour the Fort Hill Mansion, purchase a signed copy of the new book, and meet other individuals who wanted to learn more about Clemson’s Legacy.

Learn More & Credits:
Thomas Green Clemson – Wikipedia Page, Clemson History Information
Anna Calhoun Clemson – Wikipedia Page
John C. Calhoun – Wikipedia Page
Fort Hill Mansion – Clemson History Information
About the Book “Thomas Green Clemson” – Clemson Description
Purchase the Book “Thomas Green Clemson” – Clemson Book Store

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Stacy Seegars Loves What He Does…Building Docks

I am not sure if many of you remember Stacy Seegars from the early 90’s? I had a WOW moment when I learned he was one of the inductees for the 2012 Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame. Well…I was just plain excited.

I just so happened to cross paths with Stacy when I was an undergrad at Clemson. We weren’t really fist bump tight…but I think we crossed paths a few times.

I worked for Clemson Athletics as a student. Starting my Freshman year…I worked in the Video Services Department helping shoot/edit practice and game-day video for football. I was out there for every practice, every game, every down for five years. Yes, I was on the five year plan.

I was a freshman in 1992 and Stacy was in his final seasons as an upperclassman. He played offensive line and he was an All-American and a heck of a football player.

As a young freshman, he scared me. Yep…I am not afraid to admit it. I was this little 135 pound freshman and here was this huge offensive lineman that looked like he could crush me with his pinky finger.

So when I drove to Ridgeland, SC to meet with him…I was a bit anxious. But once I pulled up and shook his hand, I thought what a great guy. Why did I not get to know him while were at Clemson in the early 90’s.

Here is a guy that still looks like he can play. His arms looked bigger than my whole head and very much in shape. Why…this All American is living the American Dream.

He lives on a lake and he has practically built everyone of the docks on this lake. Yes, he is a dock builder and loves everyday of it. He had a chance to play for the Seattle Seahawks…but after a week of training camp, he knew his place was somewhere else. And as he states in the video, “It is so much easier to go to work, when you love what you do everyday.” I agree!

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Remembering Gaines Adams

I have a helmet on my shelf that was signed by Gaines Adams. Each time I look at it…I think about that amazing play he made against Wake Forest in 2006.

Clemson was trailing 17-3 at the end of the third quarter. Wake Forest was attempting a field goal to take a 20-3 lead, but let time run out in the third quarter before taking the snap.

After changing sides of the field, the botched snap was knocked in the air by Gaines Adams, who snagged the ball and ran it 66 yards for a TD. This sparked Clemson’s offense, scoring two more touchdowns and a field goal in the 4th quarter to tbeat the Demon Deacons 27-17.

That play was named one of the top four game-changing plays of 2006 by ESPN.

Clemson is playing Wake Forest this Thursday night in Winston Salem. I think many Clemson fans are thinking about that amazing play and remembering the life of Gaines Adams.

Gaines passed away tragically after going into cardiac arrest in January 2010. It shocked his family, the Clemson family, the Chicago Bears family, and so many people that knew and loved Gaines. I wish I was one of the fortunate ones to meet Gaines. My mother knew Gaines and had the helmet signed for me as Christmas gift.

This year, I was fortunate to work on a project for Clemson Letterwinners Association. Gaines was one of ten Clemson athletes to be inducted into this year’s Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame. When I learned Gaines was going to be one of the inductees, I spent lots of time thinking how could we tell his story.

Many times we try to tackle something from a 30,000 foot perspective, covering all aspects of a person’s life. Gaines was so gifted, with so many accolades both athletically and as a person…I knew it would be hard to fit it all into one 4 minute story.

So we decided to go micro, tell the one story very few people knew and one that really illustrated how one person could impact so many others.

Gaines’s high school coach was Steve Taneyhill. Yes, Steve Taneyhill! The last memory I have of Steve was when he was quarterback for the Gamecocks and he tore up the turf at Death Valley after beating us.

Steve and Gaines had a special relationship, a special friendship, and a special commitment to what they loved…they game of football. Steve is probably the reason why he chose Clemson. In the video above, Steve tells his story of watching Gaines play against the Gamecocks. Steve shares the internal debate he was having, trying to restrain his joy as he watched Gaines sack the Gamecock quarterback numerous times.

I hope you enjoy this story and I hope you will always remember Gaines for being Gaines.

I cherish the signed helmet on my mantel.

If you would like to watch all the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame Stories from this year’s ceremony, CLICK HERE.

Links used as reference for this blog post:
http://espn.go.com/blog/acc/post/_/id/8881/clemson-mourns-loss-of-adams 

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Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame – Telling Stories with Layers

A few months ago, Clemson Athletics came to me in the hopes to find a new way to share the successes of those being inducted into 2012 Hall of Fame. They wanted to find stories that would allow the audience to see these individuals in a new way, from a new perspective.

Here was the challenge, three of the ten individuals were no longer alive and one of the individuals was currently living overseas. Yet, we were still in search of special stories of each person. It was a two and half month journey that yielded ten stories that shared more than accolades and impressive statistics, it shared their path to success.

It was a pleasure to work with John Seketa of Clemson Athletics who had the vision to make these stories the focus of this years Hall of Fame Ceremony at the Brooks Theater on Clemson’s Campus.

The videos above are in the following order…I hope you take time to enjoy!

Gaines Adams
His high school football coach was Steve Taneyhill, former quarterback for South Carolina. Coach Taneyhill tells the story of their close relationship.

Deliah Arrington
She was part of the team that won the first ACC Championship for Women’s Soccer *and* her father was on the 1981 National Championship Football Team. They shared their story of a championship legacy including pictures of Deliah as a child with her father when he was in his football uniform back in 1981.

Julie Coin
Her story is pretty simple, as an amateur she beat the #1 player in the world during the quarterfinals of the 2008 US Open. We found the NYTimes writer who witnessed the defeat and shared his perspective of this tremendous upset.

Sarah Cooper
Sarah was not a rower until she came to Clemson. She was recruited out of West Oak High School where she played basketball and volleyball. She went on to lead her the rowing team to break numerous records. She takes us on the water to recount those memories.

Karen Ann Jenkins
Karen Ann could not afford to go to college, but her talents attracted the heart of Coach Annie Tribble who brought her to Clemson to lead a Women’s Basketball Team. What they found was similar to a mother/daughter relationship, one they shared with us together.

Wojtek Krakowiak
Here is a guy who was on the St. Johns National Championship Soccer Team and chose to come to Clemson. When he came, he won the Herman Trophy (soccer’s version of the Hsisman Trophy) and went on to the coaching profession. We get to witness a camp as he shares his tricks of the trade.

Billy McMillon
Billy was from a small town in South Carolina who was supposed to go play baseball at Presbyterian College. Coach Bill Wilhelm found him, brought him to Clemson where he WOW’d the professional scouts, then went on to play for the Florida Marlins. He pays tribute to his coach who he is being inducted alongside.

Stacey Seegars
Stacy was an All-American Offensive Lineman who could of played in the NFL. His heart led him back home to carry on his father’s profession in small town South Carolina. He literally took us on the water to share his passion.

Coach Bill Wilhelm
The legend lives on and we get to share thoughts from his former players including his 1958 team that went to the College World Series. We also hear from Billy McMillon who was humbled to be inducted along side the coach that recruited him to Clemson.

Warren Wilson
Warren was a boxer who came to Clemson in the late 1930’s to box for Clemson. We hear his story, tales of a match where a Virginia Tech boxer forfeits because of fear to meet him in the ring, and how Jack Dempsy wrote him a letter about his talents.

I hope you enjoy these stories of these accomplished Clemson Athletes.

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Are you a storyteller? A practitioner or a technician?

So as I was sitting in the morning church service, there was a piano selection performed right at the beginning. As I was sitting there listening to this beautiful melody coming out of this grand piano; I thought this grand piano has been sitting at the front for a long time but I have yet to notice how beautiful it sounds. The soloist was playing this instrument in a way that brought out the tremendous musical range. The soloist was completely engaged with the piano, focused on the song, the notes, the stanzas. Why have I never noticed this piano before?

The audience was completely engaged in the music, tied to every note, anticipating the next stanza, watching as the soloist’s hands interacted with the keys, playing notes with methodical movements from one to the next. The piano has the potential to play that well…but it is the soloists interpretation of the music selection as she used this instrument to bring the story of the song to the ears of the audience.

About a week ago, I had someone question me whether the advent of Flip Video devices would create a drastic reduction in online video production industry? A great question. But as I listened to this soloist interact with this grand piano, I began to think about this question even more. My first response to this individual was simply whether I am using a Flip Video device, a high definition pro-sumer camera, or a $70K Sony HDCAM….it is not the device that tells the story…it is the practitioner who interprets the technology to create and deliver the story.

True practitioners, real storytellers know how to evolve with technology and maximize it’s potential to meet the needs of an audience. I think of a story I produced a few years ago about an Opera Singer on his way to re-merge as an Opera Sinder, my friend Ron Gattis.

When I first started working in video production (broadcast video production), I used what was called BetaCAM video devices. The camera weighed 30lbs and was the size of medium size briefcase positioned on my shoulder or on a tripod heavier than the camera itself. We would take the results of the video taping and use two large BetaCAM decks (Two large VCR’s) to edit between in a linear mode. One mistake and there was no going back…time to re-edit. Using that set-up, I won six Emmy Awards and numerous other AP awards for Television Excellence.

I tell this story…and many journalists before me endured broadcast video camera larger than this where the camera was split into two pieces.

Now, I work with a camera less than half the size, half the price, and edit on a laptop. I can deliver my stories to audiences broader than the DMA I was working in during my broadcast television days. I put the video into the laptop and can move the video around, manipulate it in ways that would take a major post-production house of 10 years ago tons of money and weeks of production.

The technology is changing, but I still have to use it appropriately to deliver a high quality story in a manner that allows the audience forget they are watching this story on a screen, remove their peripheral vision. Whether it is a theatre or a computer screen…I want to create that story within an interface that is interactive. You know what I mean, that moment when you are sitting in a movie and you are so involved with the story-line, you forget you are in a theatre. It is all about being in the “Zone” from both an audience perspective and a practitioner perspective.

Do you think that if the soloist was given a keyboard device that was no bigger than a laptop, she could render a melody worth sitting and listening too? Do you think Ansel Adams could render a beautiful landscape using a pin-hole camera that was created from a Quaker Oats cylinder? The ability for a practitioner to tell a story is embedded in our DNA, whether it is a Flip Video Camera or beautiful state of the art Grand Piano.

So next time you hear that beautiful melody/harmony coming from a Grand Piano…think for a minute, is it the Grand Piano rendering those beautiful notes….or is the vision of the soloist interpreting the potential of those keys and bringing you the audience into “their” world. I love telling visual stories!

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When does creativity strike…forcing ourselves into the box.

When do you find yourself creating your craft or your works of art? I find myself completely in my creative zone in the middle of the night. I do my best work probably around 11pm. I have even found myself getting out of bed at 3am to execute a creative idea in the edit bay.

I am a procrastinator…yes, when the pressure is on – I perform my best. I wonder if it comes from days as a journalist? Each day I had two or three hard deadlines where I had to deliver final products from a story we found that day. I wonder if it is because I have to force myself into the creative box. Yes…when I cannot figure out how to create and execute…just force myself into the creative situation.

I found the video above and it spoke to me. Creativity sometimes has to be forced. We sometimes wait and expect inspiration to mystically appear with some pixie dust or an epiphany. When I need creative inspiration, I find myself jumping in the car, rolling down the windows, and blasting Elton John, Adele, or Billy Joel as I scream down the interstate. Some people ask, what happens when it rains? I just roll up the windows and sing louder.

I like the rush of creating under pressure, delivering when no one else can deliver. Sometimes we hope that inspiration will find us, but in the business world…sometimes we have to force ourselves back into the box!

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The #DomesticViolence Story – We must share to become aware!

The domestic violence story is all around us. We don’t realize it, but we know someone who has been impacted directly by domestic violence. 1 in 4 people have been directly impacted by domestic violence…YES, 1 in 4.

If you listen above, Michael Cogdill helps us define domestic violence. How does he know, well let me count the ways. Not only did his father beat his mother, but he bears the burden of sharing the numerous stories everyday how domestic violence invades our living rooms.

It was just a few months ago, Marge Putnam from Seneca was killed by her husband. This story has impacted so many of us in the Upstate of SC. She was engrained in the Clemson University community and loved by so many friends and her family.

So sharing Marge’s story, Michael story, and the stories of so many others is so important…it helps us become aware. It helps us learn that it is not okay to hurt and abuse those we love inside our homes. We must share so that when we understand what it means, we will feel empowered to speak up and call the authorities.

As a legislator said this morning during the #DomesticViolence Awareness Month kick-off Press Conference, this is a community effort. Yes…we must share to become aware.

To learn more about #DomesticViolence and it’s impact on the community, go to SafeHarbor.org’s blog to read more.