From Rock Bottom to Rockin' It

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15: Double Suicide Attempt Survivor & Pro Golfer in Canada to Mental Health Ambassador // The Story of Andrew Jensen Jun 30, 2020

Show notes

Andrew Jensen is a professional golfer and mental health Bell Let's Talk Ambassador. In his teens, Andrew began to suffer with depression, culminating in a suicide attempt at 16 years old. In those difficult teenage years, golf was his refuge and the one place he felt meaning and purpose. It wasn't until having to deal with the immense stress and pressure of professional golf that the game became his undoing.

After struggling through an extremely difficult rookie campaign in 2008, being dropped by his sponsors in 2009, and finally an injury in 2010, Andrew's poor play and off course struggles re-opened the door for his depression and suicidal thoughts to enter his life. His 2011 season was his worst to date, forcing him to retire and give up on the game he loved for so many years. In the fall of 2011, two failed suicide attempts in a 3-week span had Andrew hospitalized. Most importantly, he was finally ready to get help and walk a road of recovery towards better health.

Returning to professional golf in 2013, Andrew gained status PGA Tour Canada. Though his starts were sparse, the Tour took it upon themselves to share Andrew's story of strength and courage on the PGA Tour Canada TV show and YouTube channel. The response Andrew received helped him fully realize his place as an advocate for mental health across Canada.

Andrew now finds himself at the forefront of the dialogue on mental health overall and as a Bell Let's Talk Ambassador, and the effort to eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health as a public speaker traveling the country and sharing his story with charities, schools, associations, and corporate Canada.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit our website: RockBottom2RockinIt.com. ***

Feedback? Questions? Comments? I would love to hear from you! Contact me at us via: Email (eric@ericgilbertwilliams.com), LinkedIn (@ericgilbertwilliams), Twitter (@ericgilbertw), or Instagram (@ericgilbertwilliams).

EP Tags: pro, golfer, canadian, suicide, attempt, mental, health, pga, ambassador, stress, support, professional, sports, relief

14: Golden Gate Bridge Jump Survivor Helps Thousands Heal from Racial Hate Crimes & Black Lives Matter (BLM) // The Story of Kevin Hines Jun 23, 2020

Show notes

Kevin Hines is a best-selling author, global public speaker, and award-winning documentary filmmaker. In the Year 2000, Kevin attempted to take his life by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. Many factors contributed to his miraculous survival including a sea lion which kept him afloat until the Coast Guard arrived. Kevin now travels the world sharing his story of hope, healing, and recovery while teaching people of all ages the art of wellness & the ability to survive pain with true resilience.

Kevin's will to live and stay mentally well has inspired people worldwide. His compelling story has touched diverse, global audiences within colleges and universities, high schools, corporations, clergy, military, clinicians, health and medical communities, law enforcement organizations, and various industries. Thousands have communicated to Hines that his story helped save their lives. He has reached millions with his story. His story was featured in the 2006 film The Bridge by the film director and producer Eric Steel.

Currently, Kevin is in pre-production of his new Documentary Series The Journey, and is working on a comic book version of his life in cosmic & supernatural form called Hope Dealers. His fight has been long and arduous, but he is determined to remain committed to life until its natural end.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit our website: RockBottom2RockinIt.com. ***

EP Tags: black, lives, matter, best, selling, author, golden, gate, bridge, film, feature, hope, healing, murder, racial, crimes, survivorship, free, falling

13: Cancer Survivor and Multiple Olympic Gold Medalist // The Story of Shannon Miller Jun 16, 2020

Show notes

Seven-time Olympic Medalist, Shannon Miller is the only female athlete to be inducted into the US Olympic Hall of Fame – Twice! [Individual (2006) and Team (2008)]. Shannon has won an astounding 59 International and 49 National competition medals. Over half of these have been gold. In 1993/94 Shannon became the first US gymnast to ever win back-to-back World All-Around Titles, and she is the first American female to medal in the individual all-around of a non-boycotted Olympics. Her tally of five medals (two silver, three bronze) at the '92 Olympics was the most medals won by a US athlete in any sport. At the '96 Games, she led the "Magnificent Seven" to the US Women's first ever Team Gold and for the first time for any American gymnast, she captured Gold on the Balance Beam. She is the first American gymnast to win an individual gold medal at a fully-attended summer games and cemented her place as the most accomplished gymnast, male or female, in U.S. Olympic history.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: olympics, gold, medalist, b2b, gymnast, hard, work, magnificent, seven, history, gymnastics, team

12: Double Tragedy to President & Civic Leader // The Story of Zane Novak Jun 09, 2020

Show notes

Zane Novak, from Calgary Alberta, Canada, is the President of the Kerby Centre, a charitable organization that has a mission to assist older people to live as well as possible, for as long as possible, as residents in the community. His love for Calgary has led him to become very involved in the charitable side of the community. He is also the President of the ZKO Oilfield Industries, which introduces unique and innovative products and services into today's industry.

Zane has experienced two tragic events that took the life of his mother and his son. These rock-bottom moments have made a big impact on his life and molded him to become the person he is today.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: civic, leadership, family, tragedy, canadian, support, mother, son, death, pillar, hope, ambition, leader

11: A Burn Survivor's Journey to Discover True Beauty // The Story of Kelly Falardeau Jun 02, 2020

Show notes

At the age of 2, Kelly Falardeau was severely burned over 75% of her body in her childhood home. Her life was forever changed in that moment. It led to numerous surgeries throughout her life. Because her scars are so visible it led to a life of being highly visible, to being bullied, to being shunned, to being avoided because they were uncomfortable knowing how to talk to her, and to her not feeling wanted, needed or even loved.

But she has a beautiful story of discovering for herself that she wanted herself, she needed herself and most of that she loved herself. She became herself and she owned who she was. She was not defined by what happened to her, not by any event that happened to her.

Kelly found a way to go from near-death to success; from the ugly scar-faced girl to the Top 10 Most Powerful and Influential Speaker, Fierce Woman of the Year, Best-Selling Author (4 times), recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and most recently a YWCA Woman of Distinction 2013.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: burns, adversity, speaker, survivor, discovery, female, voice, survival, true, beauty

10: Biker Gangs & Drug Addiction to helping Kids Heal & Grow // The Story of Joe Calendino May 26, 2020

Show notes

Drugs, gangs, and violence represent the dark side of society and have taken many young lives on a destructive path. Back in the early 80's one of those lives was Joe Calendino. Drug use started at age 14, involvement in gangs a year later, and by the time he left high school, Joe had a record of over 300 fights, according to his famed drama teacher.

Joe's adult life became marked with time as a full patch Hell's Angel and a full-blown drug addict, an addiction that almost led to his death in 2006. Fortunately, from that day forward, events would transpire to transform Joe's life for the better.

Through his lived experiences, Joe has the unique ability to connect with youth to educate, inspire, and mentor them to avoid the same path he took. It is the reason why the Yo Bro Yo Girl Youth Initiative exists, and why its programs are so essential in today's urban society, riddled by the perils of drugs, gangs and violence.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: gangs, violence, youth, drug, school, help, fighting, dark, side, voices, justice, aid, dependency, fixation, tribal, support, bikers

09: Surviving a Near Death Stabbing to Building a $20 Million Dollar Business // The Story of Gigi Stetler May 19, 2020

Show notes

Gigi Stetler is an entrepreneur, life coach, CEO, author, designer, equestrian, mother, and survivor. She has made a very successful career in the RV industry. Her decades in the business of buying, selling and servicing RVs, trailers, and campers have given her unprecedented firsthand knowledge and experience to become one of the nation's top RV experts.

Gigi's walls are lined with plaques and certificates of achievement for outstanding sales and service for every year dating back to 1988. In 2004, Gigi helped set up and run a 170 RV camp in a remote region of Guatemala for the hit show Survivor on CBS. In 2005. Gigi set up a 200 RV camp for first responders and victims of Hurricane Katrina.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: solved, murder, recreational, vehicles, entrepreneur, mother, unsolved, survivor, equestrian, lover, crime, park, predators, life, rebound

08: World's First Armless Pilot... & How She Obtained her Pilot's License... with her Feet? // The Story of Jessica Cox May 15, 2020

Show notes

Jessica Cox is best known for becoming the first armless pilot in aviation history. Her achievement earned her a Guinness World Record medal, invitations from six continents, and featured on tv programs like Ellen, Inside Edition, Fox and Friends, Oprah Winfrey Network, CNN, CBS Evening News, and the BBC.

Jessica continues to travel the globe motivating people to overcome their perceived limitations with her inspirational speeches. With Jessica's experience speaking to audiences in 23 countries, she codified her message into Possible Thinking and the Achieve Model.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: flying, pilot, missing, arms, armless, worldwide, traveler, aviation, history, filipino, guinness, world, record, countdown

07: University Dropout to NASA Project Leader // The Story of Dr. Erika Hamden May 13, 2020

Show notes

Dr. Erika Hamden is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Arizona. Her observational focus is on measuring and mapping diffuse hydrogen around galaxies and within star forming regions in our own galaxy. Her current projects include FIREBall, a UV balloon-borne telescope; KCRM, a spectrograph for the Keck telescope; and Hyperion, a UV space telescope she is currently developing. Her work is driven by a desire to know and understand more about the universe around us.

Hamden received a bachelor's from Harvard in 2006 and a PhD from Columbia in 2014, both in astrophysics. She has held an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellow and the R.A. and G.B. Millikan Prize Postdoctoral Fellow in Experimental Physics at the Caltech. She was awarded a Nancy Grace Roman Technology Fellowship for her detector work in 2016. She worked as a chef for a year before beginning grad school and has a serious yoga practice.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: mental, health, doctor, nasa, colombia, caltech, university, astrophysics, space, leader, dropout, galaxies, hydrogen

06: OCD & Suicide Survivor to NHL and Mental Health Ambassador // The Story of Clint Malarchuk May 11, 2020

Show notes

Clint Malarchuk, who was born in Grand Prairie, Alberta, played junior hockey in the Western Hockey League. He went on to play professionally in the NHL for the Quebec Nordiques, the Washington Capitals, and the Buffalo Sabres, and in the IHL for the Las Vegas Thunder. When his throat was slashed during a collision in the crease, Malarchuk nearly died on the ice. Forever changed, he struggled deeply with depression and a dependence on alcohol, which nearly cost him his life and left a bullet in his head. Both Clint and his wife Joanie are on the Board of Visitors with Mclean University. They are part of the Outreach Ambassador Group IOCD.

*** For Show Notes, Key Points, Contact Info, Resources Mentioned, & More on this episode please visit my website: EricGilbertWilliams.com. ***

EP Tags: nhl, hockey, suicide, survivor, gruesome, injury, pro, player, mclean, university, missing, alaska, washington, capitals, buffalo, sabres

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