ALL IN AT 55…Thank You!

I just turned 55 on September 24, 2009.

It is time to go ALL IN.

I am fully engaged and will work to fully engage others.

Watch for many development for the next 20 years.

I have so many people to thank. Here is just a handful…

• Jack Zinger, my sandwich of father and son
• Genevieve Hornstein (my mother who changed her name but never lost empathy),
• Susan Gerlach, who else would stay married to me over the past 20 years and be the mother of 3 children we both adore,
• Jack who I mentioned already and Katharine and Luke Zinger, you have given me the gift, challenge, and learning of being a father,
• Neil and Valerie Zinger my brother and sister who took me under their wings and helped me take flight
• John Junson and Tony Fast who have been my friends for over 35 years…I am so loyal to both of you and value a friendship that has lasted a lifetime
• Peter Dyck who has been my mentor and friend and the person who has been to more “M” restaurants we me than anyone else,
• David Hewlett and Susan Morrow, how often as a couple do you find friends with the same name,
• Jack Gerlach for his incredible stories and Betty who was the best mother-in-law a son-in-law could ever ask for,
• My neighbours on Harry Wyatt who taught me about a neighbourhood community,

• Bruce and Debbie MacLeod who keep me running and moving quickly at cards,
• Andy and Marie Wheeler who open their hearts and cottage to Susan and I.
• Sarah and Joey Bertschinger and Rico and Deneen and the rest of that family for letting me have a wonderful black lab without having to do the daily dog owner stuff,

• Dushyanta Persaud my PZ partner, friend and co-worker,
• Richard Carreiro my mentor friend, and thesis advisor,
• Ray Perry my mentor from Psychology
• Jean-Francois Hivon who will always be Jean-Francois and not just JF,
• Gail Pishack my Saskatchwan soul mate,
• Denise Bisonnette who evoked poetry from a pragmatist,
• Peter Hart a wonderful people artist who recognized me and helped me to recognize myself,
• Aganetha Dyck who taught me about bees and plans to teach me so much more,
• All my fantastic blogging buddies (Rosa Say, Phil Gerbyshak, Lisa Haneberg, Steve Roesler, JD Meier, Dan Oestreich, CV Harquail, the JJL community, and about 400 others) who have given me so much of themselves over the past 5 years.

It is my birthday and I will not blow out candles because all of you listed above and so many many more of you that I failed to mention here…have lit my fire!

I would not be me without all of you.

Thank you for the best gift I could ever imagine…a small piece of each of you. WOW.

Thank you to those I mentioned and thank you to everyone else I failed to mention who have given me so much.

I plan to fully honor each of you during the next 20 years of my work in engagement!