 We did it! And thanks to so many of you, we were able to raise $10,000 as a team, and over $240,000 overall for the day! Gary Mendell, the Founder of Shatterproof, is one of those genuine guys that you just have to meet. Motivated by tragedy (the loss of his son to addiction), he is making incredible strides in addressing the stigma around addiction. He (and his MANY volunteers) is raising awareness, and opening discussions. This is an event, and a cause, that has to be seen, and experienced! www.shatterproof.org We were prevented from bringing our gear up to the roof to do the promised live feed, but I was able to put together this short video with highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW908JUawJM Pictures and other video clips are available here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/dZgFiYKcBKhyInIq1 We are in the process of putting together our GoPro footage (my camera died – but I did not!), and should have some of that up on YouTube (www.youtube.com/markokaar) in the next few days, if you’re interested… 1) Who is in for next year? 2) Donations can still be made (now that you know we did it) at www.bit.ly/mkshatterproof 3) Special shout out to Mr. Eacott who joined us for the festivities – you are the best Jim! THANK YOU ALL! Together – we are Shatterproof! Thank you again for your generous support. P.S. If you would like more information about the Shatterproof, how proceeds are used, or the other ways you can get involved, please visit www.shatterproof.org.  Hard to believe, right? Tomorrow morning, our Team will Rappel 22 Stories at the Hartford Hilton. It will be the single biggest Step I have ever taken. I will have with me, on my heart and in my prayers: Therese, John, AJ, Tim, Stephanie, Jason, Dan, JT, Chuck, John, Sally, Dave, Dan, Dave, Barbara, Jesse, Stuart, Jerry, Guy, and Bill - their families, loved ones, and friends... Please join us: www.bit.ly/mkshatterproof Try the Live Feed around 10:30AM - subscribe to the channel for auto notification when we start (and other helpful "stuff") www.youtube.com/markokaar Thank you so much!   It's only two days away! You've probably already read the story - if not, please scan earlier blog posts!
My donation link is: www.bit.ly/mkshatterproof I will make an attempt to do a YouTube Live Feed, starting around 10:30EST Wednesday morning...please subscribe to the Channel and you will receive an automatic notification when we start - www.youtube.com/markokaar Thanks for your help!  Thank you for donating to Shatterproof on my behalf. I am so grateful for your support which brings us closer to achieving our fundraising goals as well as advancing Shatterproof’s mission.
3 Days to Go! We are now The BBE-StopThinkPrevent-Oceanside Six! Our original team has joined up with Oceanside Recovery of Niantic (and Milford) to make it six excited rappelers ready to make a statement on July 26. Gary, Maks, Keith, Michele, Jackie and I have accepted the challenge to rappel down the 22 stories of the Hartford Hilton in Hartford, CT on Wednesday July 26 to increase funding and awareness for Shatterproof, a national nonprofit organization committed to protecting our loved ones from addiction to prescription and illicit drugs and alcohol and ending the stigma and suffering of those affected by this disease. Gary and I work for Bartlett Brainard Eacott, a Bloomfield based contractor. Maks works for Aware Recovery Care. Keith is VP of Arc Safety, and Michele and Jackie come to us from Oceanside Recovery in Niantic. I am founder of stopthinkprevent.com. Each of us has a personal story (or many), and each of us has a professional relationship with addiction. Each of us also has ties to the construction industry, whose employees suffer from addiction at nearly twice the national average. Our most recent team members, from Oceanside, are in the thick of the opiate fight in New London County, providing medical and behavioral assistance, counseling, and group therapy. Together we can change the conversation about addiction. Your support will enable Shatterproof to develop and support effective, evidence-based prevention, treatment, rescue and recovery programs and significantly cut the number of those addicted, the number of our loved ones who die each year, and the exorbitant costs to our society. We need this national movement more than ever, and with your commitment, Shatterproof will have an enormous impact Your contribution will make an immediate difference for Shatterproof’s efforts to unite a nation stronger than addiction. Thank you again for your generous support. Please pass on this link to friends, co-workers, your boss... anyone else you know who may want to help with this important initiative. Together, we are stronger than addiction. We Are Shatterproof! Thank you - see you on the ground...safely! Marko Kaar, Team Captain P.S. If you would like more information about the Shatterproof, how proceeds are used, or the other ways you can get involved, please visit www.shatterproof.org. Click here to visit my personal page. If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address: http://support.shatterproof.org/site/TR?px=1144872&pg=personal&fr_id=1742&et=iN2cGyu0UkRTl33daeAfJQ&s_tafId=6414 Click here to view the team page for BBE - StopThinkPrevent If the text above does not appear as a clickable link, you can visit the web address: http://support.shatterproof.org/site/TR?team_id=5241&pg=team&fr_id=1742&et=Wufq26VSP2CdTdTivGGi6Q&s_tafId=6414 The Construction Industry has twice the rate of alcohol and drug misuse as the United States as a whole. This affects safety, quality, production, insurance costs, and morale in our industry. This is measurable.
Immeasurable is "presenteeism" as workers who show up dutifully every day for work are distracted by the pain, the hurt, the anger associated with caring for their loved ones they simply can't seem to help. In the background, every day, families lose homes to medical bills. Divorce is common. Siblings are depressed, or act out. Next week, on Wednesday the 26th of July, I will rappel 22 stories off of the Hartford Hilton to help prevent addiction. Stories - over the past month after signing up for the Shatterproof Hartford Rappel Challenge, I have spoken to Dads who have cried as they spoke of the struggles of their sons. Uncles who have spoken of their nieces. Near death experiences. Multiple rehabs. Family devastation. Fast approaching 22 heartfelt, emotional stories of personal heartache and struggle – and some successes. Rappelling the Hilton has become a metaphor for overcoming challenges, and embracing action. Addiction is not simply something that happens to "them". It affects all of us, in some way, shape or form. It is in our homes, our schools, our churches, and our workplaces. Babies are affected. This story from the New York Times is heart-rending: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/07/13/health/opioid-addiction-babies.html Babies! Addiction is not a choice. It is a disease. It can be put into remission with support, medical care, and counseling. I truly believe our "Higher Power" plays a tremendous role in recovery as well, when His message is heard and embraced. Treatment is changing and improving as more research is being done. Folks like Shatterproof and Aware Recovery Care are pressing at a regional and national level - pressing Congress, pressing Insurance Companies, pressing Caregivers, and State legislatures. Gary Mendell, Founder of Shatterproof, is an outspoken advocate on the Substance-Use-Disorder-Treatment-Task-Force. They are teaming up with organizations like CIGNA, because they all recognize the importance of Prevention, and Intervention. There are so many more, families, friends, and small recovery care practices like Oceanside Recovery in Niantic, CT. Professionals and lay people. Working together to push back against this increasingly deadly scourge that affects homes AND workplaces. Every FOUR minutes a mom loses a child to addiction. How many moms work for you, or with you? We all have our charities of choice, or need. Many of you know that our daughter has Crohn’s Disease, and our oldest son has Type 1 Diabetes. We support these causes wholeheartedly, in a search for a cure, and proper care. As a consequence, we also support Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, the staff of which has helped care for our kids for nearly 18 years. Many of you have contributed to our fundraising efforts – and THANK YOU. We continue to receive fliers and emails for so many causes that we simply can’t support, given time and expense. We pick and choose, based on applicability – and ability to make change happen. Any cause that can say, and show, that one hundred percent (100%) of every dollar raised increases funding for the prevention, treatment, and recovery of an affliction demands our attention…and one that can show concrete results, gets our attention as well. Some of you have probably reached “charity overload”, which I can fully understand – but I urge you to consider this effort – it can affect SO many, in so many ways. With this particular cause, I have personal and professional reasons for being involved, not the least of which are the stories and the statistics referenced above. Many of you have similar experiences, or know someone who does. The news bristles with stories of this expanding problem, and ever-increasing fatality rates. Next week, my teammates and I will step off of a 22 story building. I will have the support of family, friends, co-workers, all of you, and many complete strangers. I will also have ropes. But it will still be a leap of Faith. I encourage you to join us. Let your voice be heard. Together, we are Shatterproof. If you haven’t joined us yet, please do…with as many e-mails and social media postings I have made over the past month, even $5 a person could raise THOUSANDS. Grass roots count in this important initiative! Please pass on as you see fit! Thank you. To Donate, please click here: www.bit.ly/mkshatterproof Sometimes the message doesn't get through the way you want it to...
Today I blogged two examples of the use of the Stop Think Prevent message...one from Gordy Koch in Wisconsin, the other from Cal Beyer in Seattle...here's what they said (somehow got lost when I hit "publish" last time): From Gordy: Hi Marko As promised, attached is a copy of a client's newsletter for which I write a regular column. I regret that they did not directly credit you as I requested for using Stop.Think.Prevent. in the article. It was a very nice add to my column, even though the focus this month was not on fall prevention. Thanks again for all you do and for allowing me to use your promotion. To which I responded: Gordy, thank you. This is exactly how I intend the thought process and the message to get out. There are so many of us trying our hardest to come up with meaningful and effective ways to motivate safe behaviors. Each of us has a unique way of expressing ourselves, and very specific environments that we work in. Changing the approach, or the terminology, helps us be heard and understood. But at the end of the day, the message can be boiled down to three simple steps. Stop. Take a moment. Don't move past that "question mark"... Think. Use your knowledge. Common sense. Training. Consider the downside on the other side of that "question mark"... Prevent. Apply the aforementioned time and knowledge to a plan. Remove the "question mark"... Repeat. It can be that simple. And with hundreds (thousands?) of us applying the same simple mantra, we may just save a life... Awesome. Thanks for your help, and for your passion. Stay in touch my friend! Wisconsin... And Cal said: Marko, Please see the cover of the Fall Protection PPE Inspection Record my team and I developed. We used YOUR iconic sticker from Stop. Think. Prevent. Thank you for the inspiration! Seattle... It's as easy as that - if you think the message works, use it. It doesn't cost a penny. But if you want to help us spread the word far and wide, you are welcome to become a patron! It does take us time, website fees, hosting, marketing dollars...indeed, every penny counts. Be a part of the changing paradigm. Spread the word. Simplify the process. And send us examples of how YOU have implemented Stop. Think. Prevent! www.patreon.com/stopthinkprevent One is Too Many. Stop. Think. Thanks! |
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