Never Alone Foundation

Today is the day for the 5th Annual Never Alone Luncheon to be held in Winnipeg. And I am in Kelowna, feeling a pang of loneliness - frowning at the irony of the titled event and Foundation "Never Alone". As a champion of the cause, and an active participant over the past 4 years - Why am I alone? I ponder. Loneliness is a funny thing, like a hungry wolf rising from the dark pit of my tummy, taunting me, teasing, venting, howling - "nobody likes you, you make bad choices, you wanted to be alone, deal with it...."

Reminding me of the story of the two wolves, that fight within the soul of man. The winner of course, is the one you feed.

Mustering up all my strength, I shout my 'stop' word of the year: GROW - silencing the growl, refusing to feed him any longer, instead focusing on the wonderful event happening 1200 miles away, where my friends are gathered, being fed, and raising money so that others suffering from Cancer will never have to feel alone. Thank you, Sam, Lyle, Ray, The FaQtory and all my wonderful, beautiful friends. I love you guys!

5th ANNUAL NEVER ALONE FOUNDATION LUNCHEON

The FaQtory is proud to be the creative force behind the 5th Annual Never Alone Luncheon that will take place on November 17, 2010 at Canad Inns at Polo Park.

With Lyle Bauer, Dave Black, and Sam Bracken leading the charge, the Never Alone Luncheon promises to deliver hundreds of pounds of hope and inspiration. The proceeds from this year's luncheon will go towards the refurbishment of rooms in the Riverview Health Centre Palliative Care Unit.

In addition to raising money to support the Riverview Health Centre Palliative Care Unit, everyone who attends will leave empowered by Sam's inspiring story and his journey to radical change. Sam will also introduce his 7 Rules for the Road (Desire, Awareness, Meaning, Choice, Love, Change and Gratitude), which are road-tested strategies that can guide everyone on their own paths to change.

Sam Bracken will share his story of growing up in Las Vegas with mobsters and motorcycle gang members as his role models. Abused by his wannabe mobster stepfather and a sadistic older stepbrother, Sam started drinking and doing drugs by age 9. As a 13-year-old his love and passion for sports helped him to quit drugs and drinking.

His mom suffered a mental breakdown and abandoned Sam, then 15. Despite being essentially homeless throughout high school, Sam graduated with a 3.9 GPA as #11 out of a class of 720 and won a full ride football scholarship to the Georgia Institute of Technology. When Sam left Las Vegas, everything he owned in the world fit into an orange duffel bag.