trailleg-blog

[trailleg-blog]

Start The Bus

People follow passion.  Leaders have the ability to inspire and compel people to move, to change, to evolve, to hope.  I grew up in a small, cowboy town in Northern Arizona where a nationally recognized wrestling coach has invested in the lives of young people for more than 40 years.  Because of him, the most popular sport in my home-town is wrestling.  In a nation where football, basketball and baseball dominate the interest and participation levels of young males, an obscure sport has become the identity of this small, blue collar community.  Why?  Passion.  The energy and enthusiasm produced by this coach is contagious.  It’s almost unavoidable.  If you live in this remote community, mostly likely you’re connected in some way to the program.

One of his mantras, a phrase he’d use to rally the athletes and school around his program was, “Start the bus.”  It meant - get that bus warmed up, because we’re going to walk in here and win quickly and get the job done.  I think I may even still have my “Start The Bus” t-shirt.  It doesn’t fit anymore, but I have trouble letting it go.  It’s a memory of possibility.

Full Armor seeks to approach this community in the same way.  Our hope is to inspire people to come together and support a cause that promotes life change.  We live in a world where the media bombards us with negativity and fear.  What would happen if we started to see our world differently?  What if the collective investment of our passions, talents and cultures caused our city to focus on hope and a better future for our schools, neighborhoods, city, state, country...and world?  Passion can be a powerful thing.