Week 5

Week in Review

Monday February 6, 2017

The Gib Lewis Initiative team has arrived on the Cleveland Unit.  The members are Jason C, Davis H., Tyrell I., Thuan N., Jonathan O., and Isaac S.  We arrived at the Cleveland Unit with the understanding that we were brought here to learn PEP’s culture so that we could incorporated the tenents at the Gib Lewis unit. Man, we have been absolutely blown away by the culture of PEP here on the Cleveland Unit.

We thank all of our fellow PEP brothers, as well as PEP staff and the Cleveland administration for welcoming us with open arms.  Everyone has been very helpful and kind. We are excited to be presented with the challenge of taking this amazing fraternity and culture with us back to the Gib Lewis Unit.

We have begun our experience with Alfredo M. at the forefront of the ship.  He’s a great leader who is genuine in his walk and talk.  He communicates with sincerity and passion.  His resolve tells stories of his character, and we are overjoyed at the fact that he will be leading us as we journey back to the Gib Lewis Unit on a great task. Thank you all for your love and continued support.

Jason C.

Tuesday February 7, 2017

It was a very interesting day. We are learning a lot about public speaking in our Toastmasters class.  A lot of our brothers are really getting better in their speaking skills. You can see the confidence growing every week, and the speeches are getting better as well.

We are learning a lot that will help us develop our business plans. We are also preparing our pitches for the Venture Capital Panel (VCP) event. We really look forward to speaking with the executives and getting feedback that will help us hone our pitches.

We also received a chance to hear from Harvey M. and Manny R. about the re-entry process and resources that will be available to us upon release.  They answered a lot of our questions and eased a lot of our worries.  We also saw some pictures of our brothers who are now out working and living life.  We are growing from these experiences and the brotherhood is getting stronger.

Martin D. (a.k.a. Brown Sugar)

Wednesday February 8, 2017

Well it is Wednesday, February 8^th and the Chapter 5 test is in the books.  Our class did a tremendous job!  We celebrated our birthday boys: Eduardo V., Tyler P., Robert V., Bruce T., and Brian H.

After completing Bert’s challenging test it was time to move on to some much-needed fun.  After losing to the New England Patriots, Bert showed his best rendition of Jane Fonda, giving 50 “Fonda’s” to the Kings of Spring ‘17.  After the fun, we got down to business and reviewed the revenue models.  Bert explained the purpose of the Economics of One Unit (EOUs), their use and how this will be applicable to our business revenue model. The breakdown of this diagram is very informative and important to our sales model. Everyone learned a great deal from this class, and we can’t wait to see how the puzzle comes together, making us better businessmen.

As class came to an end, it was great to see growth continue to take place.  It is amazing to imagine where we have all come from and to see the vision many of the fellows have in their eyes. Inspiring is what it is!  As always, it has been a very motivating day in our transformation as men.

William E. (a.k.a. Elmo)

Thursday February 9, 2017

Today was a fun but challenging day.  We were surprised by the names test and it was not very pretty when the test scores came back.  We will come together and make sure it doesn’t happen again.  It is absolutely amazing to see just how far we have come since the start of Men’s Life and Leadership Academy. To have so many different religions, personalities and backgrounds of all varieties come together like we have is a blessing that we are thankful to be a part of.

Our class has the mentality that we can do great things in this world if we put in the hard work to do it.  That is why we appreciate our brothers who have graduated and taken the time and effort to give back to us.  Our brothers who came before us could have easily faded into the background, but instead they chose to continue to pour into our lives.  So as the next class starts to move in, it is on us to help them along the way.  The PEP brotherhood is strong.

The support that we have received from our families has been mind-blowing, and that includes all of our PEP family as well.  Every executive, every brother, mother, wife, friend, child, servant-leader and staff team member: we, the Kings of 2017, would like to take this opportunity to thank you.  Your efforts, love and support continue to be the backbone not only of us as individuals, but also of this revolutionary journey that we call PEP.

Xavier A. (a.k.a. Chocolate Drizzle)

Friday February 10, 2017

We were called out today after lunch to pray for of our brothers who will be released shortly.  It’s an amazing experience to hear some of the motivational things being said to the soon-to-be-released brothers. As a class we are starting to realize the importance of having strong men around us – men to support you, to hear you out, and to help guide you when we lose our way.  It’s vital to a man’s growth to have strong men around him who aren’t afraid to tell him when he is slipping, and to congratulate him when he succeeds.

Today my brothers and I were able to check out some books in the PEP library.  I know that doesn’t seem like much, but in this environment (or in fact any environment) having the ability to read quality books is a blessing that one cannot overstate.  PEP has a wide array of books about everything from fathering and being a great husband to economics, biographies, history … you name it, they have it.  My brothers and I looked like kids in a candy store standing in the library.

“Deep breath” – that’s the advice that one of my brothers gave me when I told him that I was buried in work.  That’s the beauty of this fraternity, in that we have brothers who are willing to listen to us vent, but we are surrounded by authentic men and not just “yes men.”  Rarely are you able to present a problem without presenting a possible solution as well. And for many of us that is what we have been lacking: the support of real men.

Donald M. (a.k.a. Jerome in the house)

Expressions

 “It is not the brains that matter most, but that which guides them: the character, the heart, generous qualities, and progressive ideas.”

-Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Success is often thought of something that we must pursue: a lofty title, goals, and priorities.  Happiness and success become an evasive carrot that we continue to chase throughout our lives, but this is a dangerous notion because it will cause us to live in constant flux between happiness and misery.  Happiness, or rather joy, is not attained by those who are intellectually inclined, but is instead a state of being for those who are morally established, those whose intentions are kept pure, those who give without reproach, and those who act upon their noble ideas.  Books can guide us, but it is our hearts that define us as men.

Jaa’far A. (a.k.a. Jolly Rancher)