Our single purpose is to help educate every youth, teenager and young adult of your community about the horrors of underage drinking and ALCOHOL ABUSE.

     In order to be successful with our efforts we want to associate with your Booster Organization and others within your community that share our interest and the intent of our objective.

     Since all of our efforts are directed towards helping young people, we?ve produced a financial incentive package that is the very best fundraiser imaginable. Our program will be a tremendous enhancement in support of your schools athletic activities and at the same time we create a very positive impression on every student. We are making a difference and we want you to join with us.

     Please take time to read and digest what we are all about. This program is extremely important and very, very necessary.

My Personal Commitment

    I personally developed this program based on a set of values that needs to be presented to, and considered by, every student. I have an ingrained, deep-rooted passion to make a difference in the life style of young people and I will not fail because our goal is crucially important.

    As we go about scheduling your event you and I will be speaking personally because our entire program is built on a person-to-person relationship.

Ronnie’s Purpose in Life

     While taking time off and relaxing around home after a prostate procedure, my daughter Ashley brought me a copy of “THE PRAYER OF JABEZ”. The book so fascinated me that I read it methodically three or four times. I knew for certain that I, like Jabez, wanted God to bless my life, make a miracle within me and increase my territory so that I may spread Ronnie’s story far and wide to all who would listen.

    A week or so later a friend gave me a copy of “THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE”. This magnificent book also had an immediate impact on me. There is no question that we are put on earth for a specific purpose and it’s up to each of us to find that purpose and fulfill our obligation to the Almighty.

    Upon recovery, my future was set in concrete; I had to tell ”RONNIE’S” story and I knew that no one could tell it better than someone who had been as close to becoming an alcoholic as I had. Perhaps I even had my nose over the line but I was able to reclaim my freedom and I’m certainly convinced that which does not kill you, makes you twice as strong.

    We lost our Father four years prior to Ronnie’s tragic death and our Mother a year after Ronnie. Mom was despondent and hopelessly downcast from thinking that Ronnie’s life had little meaning. She prayed for a means that would personalize his death in a manner that could help other young people fully understand the dangers and pit-falls of alcohol.

    My Mother’s prayers and dreams keep me going. As THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE teaches, we are all put on earth for a specific purpose so I’ve come to believe that perhaps Ronnie’s purpose was not his life at all; but his death and the manner in which he died. His tragedy, i.e. his purpose, enables me to write his story which is the catalyst that gives meaning to our program as we push even harder in quest of changing the life style of thousands of youth, teenagers and young adults.

    Our goal is to do everything possible to prevent others from falling into the pathetic, miserable depression of alcohol abuse that consumed most of Ronnie’s every waking hour and then tragically stole his life. With your help, our program will quickly become Ronnie’s greatest accomplishment and through this achievement we’ll make a positive change in the life of thousands of the most precious people on earth, our kids.

Rev. Rick Warrens Letter

Expanding our efforts
To touch the lives of countless numbers
Of young people in every community

     In mid 2004 Rotary International licensed our “A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE” program and my book RONNIE so that I could spread his story to Rotary clubs far and wide for the purpose of making a difference in the life of young people. During 2005 I addressed one hundred and three Rotary meetings across the southeast and have been received with great success at every function.

     After each Rotary engagement, without exception, I was asked if I had an interest in bringing our program to one or more of their local churches and/or schools. My stock answer was always “yes”, but then I explained that I could not do it on this trip but would return for the purpose. Because of this enormous interest I expanded and broadened our goals by developing “A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE OUTREACH” (AMFRO), and I want to speak in your community.

     I am not a minister, nor a social worker. I do not preach to our young people, but I tell them about a life style and story that will challenge each to look deep into the life they are living and if it’s not what makes them happy they should begin a transition of change.

     I’m a senior citizen who has gained immeasurable lifetime experiences that will benefit many. My purpose of speaking in your community is to do everything possible to make citizens totally aware of the problems of underage drinking and ALCOHOL ABUSE. Mine is a burning passion to express my views and ideas that have overwhelmingly been tested and approved by countless numbers of assemblies of civic clubs, educational associations and a variety of other venues both public and private.

     There is much to do and we’ve only scratched the surface. With the success of our Rotary program, I realized that it was not only possible, but also required of me, to expand our efforts to touch the lives of countless numbers of young people in every community.

     In order to take our message to a much broader audience I have to connect at the community level with citizens who believe in our purpose. I have to reach out and make them understand that we together can truly make a difference in the lives of their youth.

     I’m aware that Booster Organizations in every state often search for new, innovative and meaningful opportunities of raising funds for their athletic programs. In today’s challenging economy every principal, coach, athletic director and booster understands this necessity.

     Quite often, support groups put together fish fries, cookouts, car washes, rodeos or similar events that provide a degree of funds but only a limited measure of a positive and meaningful message to their young people. On the other hand, our program is an incredible financial package wrapped securely around a profound, genuine program that is making a difference in the life style of our youth. I can assure that you will not find a more effective and thoughtful fundraiser than A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE. With this in mind, and because it’s imperative to work directly with our youth, I designed my comments around an association with young people, their parents and grandparents.

     I’ve set aside a portion of all receipts that are derived from the sponsorship of “RONNIE” and earmark those dollars for athletic programs of schools that participate in the success of our program. These dollars are quite handsome and will go a long way in providing funds for athletic departments.

     Over many years of being involvement with a variety of political campaigns, I learned that any agenda that is a win, win, win situation for all concerned should be aggressively pursued. Our program is one of those and I trust that you and your Booster Organization will join hands with us to make it a tremendous success in your school and community by challenging your youth, teenagers and young adults to become more aware of their surroundings, what is taking place among their friends and neighbors concerning underage drinking and ALCOHOL ABUSE.

     Herein are most of the answers you seek but please call me with other inquires you may have. I look forward to beginning a long term relationship between our program and your school.

Newspaper Articles

“A Message from Ronnie Outreach”

     On April 20, 1999 at Columbine High School, Littleton, CO., fourteen students and one teacher were murdered by two of the students who then turned their weapons on themselves.

     I am not recalling this horrendous episode to associate it with underage drinking and/or ALCOHOL ABUSE because I simply have no idea if alcohol had anything to do with it or not. I do, however, recall the atrocity to everyone’s attention because for 24-7, weeks and months on end, that’s all we heard about on radio, television and newsprint: “The Massacre at Columbine High”.

     This act of violence was a dastardly deed and each of us mourned for those lost in the tragedy. I recall the details vividly as they are frozen in my memory. But did you hear what happened yesterday? No you didn’t. You didn’t because it was not to be found anywhere in any news media.

     But yesterday, today, tomorrow and the next day, and next, more youth, teenagers and young adults - than the fourteen murdered at Columbine High School - will either lose their life or take the life of some innocent person because of underage drinking and/or ALCOHOL ABUSE and hardly no one is saying anything other than a very weak, “Drink Responsibly”. And could anything better magnify the need for our program, could there be any better measure, than what recently happened to Natalie Holloway in Aruba?

     It is my intent to take Ronnie’s story and our message to as many assemblies as we can schedule. Our voice will be heard. We will make every community well aware of our purpose and goal. Every citizen will know and fully understand that we sincerely care about our young people. I’ve prepared this document to outline and detail exactly how we intend to go about being successful with our intent.

     AMFRO is an uncomplicated, fail-safe means of accomplishing our goals. Within most communities there are no less than one hundred business and/or professional men and women who will support this program by sponsoring a case or more of RONNIE if they were asked. These sponsors are the key to our success as we make know our goals throughout America.

Our Live Presentation

    This presentation highlights the pit falls that ultimately cost RONNIE the loss of his life. His abuse of alcohol destroyed him and we are making the best use of his personal misfortune and tragedy to convince others not to follow in his footsteps.

    If I can say or write anything that prevents this tragedy from happening to just one young person, then I will have reached a milestone. However, to accomplish this goal we have to go direct to the heart of the matter, to the young people themselves. We have to interact, socialize and mingle with them on their level. They are not interested in being overloaded with a ton of statistics, but they will connect with a true story of a real person in which they can relate. It is incumbent upon all of us to bring to them a message in which each can personally identify.

    In order to do this, through your boosters we will affiliate with ministers, local community leaders, elected officials, teachers and coaches, principals and school administrators, PTA’s, boosters, civic clubs and other groups of individuals. We will work with all who sincerely care about the education, welfare and future of the young people of their elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, colleges and churches. These interested parties, second only to the parents of the students, have the closest bond with this circle of young men and women. We must call on these groups of individuals and encourage them to become involved as partners in this endeavor.

The following is a short resume’ that will tell you a few things about me. This may be used as introduction material for speaking engagements.

• A true FLORIDA NATIVE, (there are only about 300 of us left!), born in Leesburg and raised in Pensacola.
  
• Served in the U. S. Army. Owned and operated four businesses around Pensacola.
  
• Served on the staff and/or administration of three Florida Governors and as Director of Legislative Affairs for the Florida Insurance Commissioner.
  
• Chaired a multitude of political campaigns and lobbied in Tallahassee and Washington.
  
• Served on Board of Directors of Pensacola Jaycee's and Florida Road Builders Association. Chairman of Northwest Florida Regional Planning Council and on the Board for Northwest Florida Water Management District, Santa Rosa Island Authority and the selection committee for the appointment of young men and women to the United States Military Academies.
  
• Own two U.S. patents and have three others pending.
  
• Wrote, designed and presented to the Florida Department of Transportation, the Federal Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration a program that privatizes Interstate I-10 from Jacksonville, FL to the Mississippi State line.
  
• In May of 1997 I founded a company entitled PEOPLE'S COALITION FOR JUSTICE. The goal and intent is to shorten the longevity of death row inmates. We do not believe an inmate should remain on death row 18-20 years or more after being given the death penalty by a jury of his/her peers.
  
• I have written four books, TIT FOR TAT, ACIREMA (Pronounced) “A-Sa-Re’ma”, RONNIE and WORM

“and of this and that”:

• I … Witnessed an execution in Florida's famous "Ole Sparky"

• Went on Florida’s death row to interview Ted Bundy

• Been invited twice to the White House for Dinner

• As a teenager had a date with recording star Brenda Lee, who at the time, had a top ten record on the charts

• Have three personal friends who became Governor of Florida and two more who almost did

• Own the most valuable musical instrument in the world – Elvis Presley’s very first guitar

• Have visited in 38 states within the past 30 months promoting my books and discussing our program.
  

I Had to Make a Difference

     Several years had passed since Ronnie’s sad and lonely death but with the dawn of every day I became more obsessed with the cause and circumstances of his demise, but even more so, about how to use his death as a positive factor in preventing others from falling into the same pathetic, miserable trap that took his life.

     As difficult as I knew it would be, I had to write his story because I knew just how miserable he was and I knew about the daily firestorms that besieged this former football star. I watched him deteriorate from a fine tuned athlete into someone who literally gave up on life, lost all self-worth, self-esteem, self-control, his family, his identify and then his tormented life to ALCOHOL, the demon that ultimately consumed him.

     Although I had completed the manuscript of RONNIE, I knew the task would not be finished until I developed a program that would give me the opportunity to take his true story to every young person in America through the book or in person. Often times I direct my message toward student-athletes simply because they are frequently looked up to, emulated so to speak, by many students. However, make no mistake about it, this message is meant for every youth, every teenager and every young adult across America as well as their parents and grandparents.

     Ronnie’s story is of a person who forfeited his life to ALCOHOL ABUSE that began with casual, social drinking in high school. After all the glory days of college football were no more, the curse left him an empty shell of a man who was convinced there remained no real purpose for his life.

Our Commitment

     In my humble opinion, I have written a book that will be of interest to a vast audience, as noted by our many endorsers. I guarantee that it will touch your deepest emotions. I am convinced that we can change the life style of thousands of our young people but I need your support and the support of every member of your Booster Organization to be successful in your community.

     Personally, I have no choice but to spread this message to every corner of America. It is my intent to make Ronnie’s story and our program a national movement in scope, but again, I truly need the help of all interested parties for this to become a reality.

     Let me put it to you this way: If through this book and/or our live presentation, we can play a significant role in the life of just one young person and be the incentive and inspiration that prevents him or her from falling into the same wretched quagmire as did RONNIE, then it will be something that every involved person in your community will never, ever forget.

     It is most important that everyone understands my desire to be exceptionally effective with each presentation. When someone has lived with a story as I have this one, for more than twenty-five years, it’s difficult for me to even consider the remotest possibility of not presenting our case effectively. Yet, I am acutely aware that I must convey my insight, feelings and opinions to our young people, their parents, grandparents and friends in a manner whereby they will grasp the full impact of “A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE”.

They’ll know we’ve been there

     When our joint effort brings A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE to your community, everyone will know that we’ve been there. I will spend as much time as my schedule permits to talk about underage drinking and alcohol abuse.

     I will meet with all local media that wants to learn about our goal and purpose and will be available to visit with talk radio personnel, newspapers and television news and/or sports shows that offer an invitation.

     Before we leave your community I hope to address a couple of civic clubs, maybe a church or two including men and women groups within the church.

     I can assure you, after our visit everyone will be well aware of the plight that ultimately took Ronnie’s life!

My Message Is …

     A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE is quite clear. It’s about a person who had everything, but did not prepare himself for real life after the days of flash bulbs and media attention were no more. My presentation stresses the importance of the word PREPARE, simply because a large percent of our youth seem to live only for today.

     RONNIE is the story of an athlete who first succumbed to doubts of his self-worth, then to the pangs and suffering of ALCOHOL ABUSE. He was a very kind, gracious and decent human being that eventually lost his life because of the horrible choices he made. I want every young person who aspires to excel in life to know the pit falls that in the end caused the death of this once proud athlete.

     MY MESSAGE IS: Motivational, Instructional, Inspiring and of strong Human Interest. I take the audience into the failures and horrible decisions and choices that RONNIE made that eventually led to his demise. I speak of his early days in high school and college then into his young adulthood. I use his troubled choices to impress on today’s youth that there is a much better opportunity to be successful in their personal and business life, provided they are not chained to ALCOHOL, as was RONNIE.

     MY MESSAGE IS: To make preparations for life while you’re traveling through it, not wait until it’s over. Perhaps Dr. Norman Vincent Peale may have said it best, “The tragedy of life is not that it ends too soon, it’s that we wait too long to begin it”.

     MY MESSAGE IS: Get your education – finish school, earn your degree and prepare for real, every day life and life in the hereafter.

     MY MESSAGE IS: Live your own life – be your own person. RONNIE, perhaps without even knowing it, came to idolize Elvis Presley and Hank Williams but did so within the confines of his own mind, behind closed doors, never opening up to anyone. Today, everywhere we look, in every venue, our young people are idolizing entertainers and more often than not, to the extreme. They lose all perception of life because they so much depend on the character of others to make them happy and to fill the void within their own life with what they deem to be “an impossible dream”.

     MY MESSAGE IS: Don’t quit. Don’t stop believing in yourself. Never, ever give up. Some wise person once noted, “Many a failure turns about, when he might have won, had he stuck it out”.

And from my very
Personal point of view
MY MESSAGE IS…

     You may have heard it said, “When a senior citizen passes, you lose an entire library”. This I sincerely believe. I have four grown children who have blessed me with nine wonderful grandkids. Currently, there are three in college, three in high school and three in kindergarten. From this broad age range it’s certainly not hard to imagine that I have just about covered the waterfront. There is not much that could go on in life that I haven’t, in some way, been involved personally or from the sidelines.

     I have an unshakable desire to pass on my personal experiences to my children and grandchildren and to every young person who shares with me their desire to excel in life. If RONNIE could speak from the grave he would whisper in their ear, “Don’t do as I did. I made way to many horrendous and grievous mistakes”. My job is to tell his story to all who will listen!

     During my presentation I am strong on motivating our young people to find the best path for their personal and professional life. This is ultra important. They need to understand that Life is tough and many of them will fail several times during their journey here on earth. But they should always remember that failure is never fatal and success is never final. To fail is a necessary step in order to be able to get up again. The most unspeakable disaster of the highest magnitude is to fail and not pick your self up.

     Yes, times will be tough, our world is no place for timid souls. The lesson I learned from the book of JOB teaches, “You won’t understand but you must endure until you prevail”. Every high school and college student has the ability to become more successful than what they have already planned for themselves. There is a grand opportunity ahead for each one who understands that there is no power on God’s green earth that can keep a first class person down or pick a fourth class person up.

     Surely, there will be obstacles along the way. There is a snake behind every rock, but success is measured by how high you bounce when you hit bottom and, for the most part, success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.

     This world we live in needs leaders, real leaders, and our young people must stand up to the challenge. The greatest success stories are born from those who defied the tendency to just run with the crowd and you can be assured these young men and women have their eyes trained on a goal that no one can take away from them. On the other hand, some of our college students feel they are lost and have no idea of what they want from life. I got news for them. You can’t be lost if you don’t know where your going!

     Today, our society seeks strong men and women who want to lead, not follow. There are so many students who are accustomed to doing nothing more than “sloughing-off”, therefore, those who are serious about their studies and who truly want to make something of their life, will find Infinite opportunities because many classmates simply will not measure up.

     The future couldn’t be brighter for students who truly seek to capitalize on their God given talents, young men and women who never, ever give up on life. This game of life is tough and everyone, independent of everyone else, has to choose his or her own future and be the master of their own house.

     I’m a firm believer that our world is a stage and everyone is destined to play a significant part no matter their life style or station in life. Our time on earth is not a practice session, it’s for real and we need to make the best of it while we’re here.

     Each person was placed here for a very specific reason and purpose and we should not give up the search until we find and are assured of that purpose. Still, there are countless numbers of young people who are in search of something without having the foggiest idea of what they are looking for. Recently, a young man remarked, “Some days it’s just not worth chewing through the straight jacket”. I’m afraid this tormented attitude may be the same miserable circumstances that surrounds and captures the state of mind, essence and soul of others his age.

     It’s all about choices & decisions, results & consequences. It should never be about clinging to events of the past. That bell has been rung and there is absolutely nothing that can be done to change what has happened. The past is prologue so there is no use looking back. You can’t do anything again. When it’s done, it’s done. It’s over. You can, however, do something similar and by so doing you must improve on your mistakes of the past.

     It would be well for us to realize that perhaps some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers because our personal experiences has taught us that our life is shaped by opportunities we missed as much as by those we seize. Life is a game and every one of us are assigned a purpose and are destined to play a part, so when someone bails out of life it leaves the balance of civilization in a real pickle.

     If our younger generation would only understand that happiness is an inside job and convince others of the same, it would go a long way in strengthening their personal outlook on life. In the past, I, perhaps like some others, have often believed that some special person could make me happy. This, indeed, was a hard lesson to learn, but thank God I did. I was hallucinating through an absolute vacuum, a completely false premise that would never come about, never happen. Happiness is your job and your job alone. No one can make you happy.

     Some of our young people often feel their life is out of order but they never stop long enough to understand that it can’t be out of order because it is they who created the order in the first place.

     Much of life is all about having a satisfied mind, kinda like your cruse control, when set; it keeps you out of trouble with the law without much effort on your part.

     You have to learn to bend so you want break. Take life with a grain of salt and realize that everything is not always going to be perfect. There will always be peaks and valleys. During his speech when President Nixon resigned he noted, “You cannot visualize the wonder and beauty of the highest peak unless you’ve been at the bottom of the deepest of valley”.

     It appears to me that a lot of our youth, especially some of the ladies, often feel intimidated or inferior. And age-old adage reminds us that no one can make you feel inferior without your consent. This could not be truer than in the time frame in which we now live. Life indeed may be short, but it’s wide and we should take advantage of every moment and do so completely free of any substance that would incapacitate or debilitate our mentality.

     It has been noted in song, “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose”, but don’t you dare forget that freedom is what made and is making our country great. We, our kids and grandkids, are growing up in a world where we enjoy the fruits of labor of countless numbers of our ancestors who dug, hoed and clawed this country out of the wilderness. Strong men and women who asked nothing for nothing. No handouts. No payments for not working. Just brawny, tough men and women who dreamed and prayed for a better life, a better existence for their children.

     They were brave people who dared to be un-equal. People like the framers of our constitution and other Americans such as Abe Lincoln, George Washington Carver, Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, people who worked their way to the top without government subsidies or handouts. They chose to rise above the common place and if not for the greatness of these and thousands of other special men and women, those of strong character, there would be no land of the free.

     You may have heard someone say, “He is from privilege”. This, of course, means his family had money and the wherewithal to afford anything they want. But don’t feel left out because every American is from privilege and for this we must be thankful every day of our life.

     This was rather long, so thanks for letting me express my personal feelings. I sincerely want every young person to understand there are tremendous opportunities ahead, that is, provided they don’t screw it up by throwing their life away on the anguish and suffering of alcohol and drugs.

     I’ll close by noting, without God there is nothing when you reach the top. You are never alone, when you need a friend to talk to, HE is only inches away, the length between your knees and the carpet.

Fabulous Endorsements
and
Kind words of encouragement

     Please visit our web page at www.fatherson.com AND click on the jacket cover of RONNIE. From there, scroll down the menu and read OUR FABULOUS ENDORSEMENTS that have been posted. The support we’ve received from U. S. Presidents and other highly influential individuals who understand the problem associated with the atrocious dilemma of ALCOHOL ABUSE will astonish you .

     There is not another book in print that carries the quality endorsements that we’ve earned from U. S. Presidents, Governors, Senators, Congressmen, Ministers, Educators, School Associations, College Coaches and many others. At the end of each chapter you will find one of these extraordinary comments.

     But the most impressive endorsement I’ve received is from a student after an assembly at a school in Marianna, Florida. The gym was packed. The principal scheduled me to speak on Friday, the day before Spring Break for obvious reasons. A young student came up after the assembly and said, “Mr. Williams, I was going drinking this weekend with my friends to celebrate Spring Break but I’m not going to go now”. I congratulated her on her decision then asked how old she was. She said, “14”. This was a middle school student, an 8th grader. We truly have a lot of work to do!

     For me personally, from the moment that young girl spoke those words, I was assured that I had written a book, developed a speech and reached out and successfully touched one of the students that I was destined to make a difference in their life. I knew for certain this was to be the first of many young people that our program was going to reach. At that moment, in the middle of the gym floor, I was assured there would be no turning back! So, as we continue to play a positive role and have a sober, encouraging influence in the life of young people we will expand our outreach in search of countless thousands of other youth.

     While the young eighth grader was the first, now I need your assistance so we together can move forward and spread this ultra important message to thousands upon thousands of other young men and women across your community, your state and around this magnificent country.

Endorsements and/or special comments

     When you are talking with a potential sponsor be sure to point out our endorsements at the end of each chapter, on the back jacket cover and those found at the front of the book, all are extraordinary! The following list identifies the endorsements for the current edition of RONNIE.

INSIDE FRONT

Governor Jeb Bush, Florida
Congressman Tom Osborne, Former Coach, Nebraska
Foreword by Bobby Bowden – Coach, Florida State

END OF CHAPTERS

Chapter 1 No space available for an endorsement

Chapter 2 Coach Bill Snyder, Kansas State

Chapter 3 Coach Tyrone Willingham, University of Notre Dame

Chapter 4 Coach Tommy Bowden, Clemson University

Chapter 5 No space available for an endorsement

Chapter 6 Tom Gallagher – Florida Chief Financial Officer

Chapter 7 No Chapter 7 No space available for an endorsement

Chapter 8 Charlie Crist, Florida Attorney General

Chapter 9 Coach Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech

Chapter 10 Lee Corso, ESPN Sports

Chapter 11 Senator Trent Lott, U.S. Senator

Chapter 12 Coach Tommy Tuberville, Auburn University

Chapter 13 David Stewart, WV State Superintendent of Schools

Chapter 14 Butch Davis, Former Coach Miami Hurricanes

Chapter 15 Eighth grade student, Marianna, FL

Chapter 16 Governor Mike Foster, Louisiana

Chapter 17 No space available for an endorsement

Chapter 18 Dr. Janice Petersen, Governors Office, NC

Chapter 19 Coach Phillip Fulmer, U of Tennessee

Chapter 20 LaVell Edwards, Former Coach, BYU.

Chapter 21 President Bill Clinton

Chapter 22 Football student/athlete – Tate HS, Cantonment, FL

Chapter 23 J. Dennis Hastert, Speaker U.S.House of Representatives

Chapter 24 Governor Bob Riley, Alabama

Chapter 25 Coach Mark Richt, University of Georgia

Chapter 26 Governor Roy Barnes, Georgia

BACK JACKET COVER

President Gerald R. Ford
Coach Lou Holtz, Former Coach, U of South Carolina
Coach Randy Walker, Northwestern University

Bringing YOUR
Fundraiser Together

     You already have an organization so you’re ready to go to work. In the past you have worked with other fund raising projects, however, this one is very different and extremely special. Ours is a program that will make a tremendous difference in the life of your young people. It’s a program that every business and professional person in your community will support if you WILL EXPLAIN TO THEM OUR GOALS AND PURPOSE.

     How much time will be required? It’s almost staggers the imagination. I developed this program where any Booster Organization can be successful in bringing on board sponsors for one hundred cases of RONNIE if each member will dedicate three or four hours a day for only a couple of days, either in the morning or afternoon. There is no doubt in my mind if these hours are enthusiastically spent on the purpose, your financial goal will be met and you will have sowed the seeds of success, which, obviously, is our intent and purpose.

Absolute success

     With your Boosters set to go, they pick up the phone and call someone they do business with, explain our program in detail, get their commitment as a sponsor, and then ask them to make contact with another person and ask them to also sponsor a case. This is the exact type of networking that every politician uses. It’s simple and very effective and it works!

     And for sure, these sponsors are your local neighbors that have for years depended on you and your family for the financial success of their business or profession. I promise you they will understand what we are doing and will gladly get involved. Remember, they have children and grandchildren also. They are fully aware of the dilemma that our students face every day. They have seen and read about the horrors of binge drinking and other wretched situations that control the daily life of many of our young people.

Don’t Overlook These

     Unless you reside in an extremely small community, I can assure you there are more than one hundred businesses and professional men and women who will support our program if you detail to them our goal and purpose.

When calling on potential sponsors here are a few categories that you must not overlook:

Attorneys

Bankers

Doctors

Dentists

Realtors

Homebuilders

General Contractors

All Elected Officials including, but not limited to…

County Commissioners

City Councilmen and women

Superintendent of Education

Mayor

City Managers

Sheriff

Utility Companies

Electrical Power

Water

Gas

Churches

Restaurants

Insurance companies

Grocers

Hospitals

Health care facilities

Walk-in Clinics

Auto dealers

Boat dealers

Auto maintenance companies

Hundreds of Professional Men & Women

Parent Teacher Associations

School Principals

Coaches

Educators

Parents

Grandparents

AA

MADD

SADD

Our Sponsors are our Ambassadors

     Our sponsors are in every sense, our Ambassadors. For instance, when your school has sponsors for one hundred cases of RONNIE there will be 2,400 copies given to 2,400 families with young people. Some of the books will go to students of your school and others to students at other schools not only in your community but scattered across the country. We estimate each book will be read by three or four families each year and with a twenty years shelf life or longer, each book will touch hundreds of our youth. And from comments we’ve received we know for sure that we enjoy a tremendous and appreciative adult audience.

     Because of the purpose and intent of our program, you will not find anyone who disagrees with what we advocate, therefore, a commanding percent of those you ask will quickly take you up on your offer to become a sponsor.

     Make certain that you explain our intent and purpose to every potential sponsor and that you are not asking for a donation. You are, however, working to spread a message and you are asking them to purchase books at the same price they would pay at your local bookstore.

     The books, in every respect, belong to the sponsor to do with as he/she wishes. We suggest and emphasize that sponsors give their books to family members, friends, clients and/or customers who have children in middle school, high school or college. And please suggest they may want to send some books to friends and family members who live outside your community or in another state. We want to reach young people no matter whey live.

     And don’t forget, RONNIE makes a perfect gift for any occasion.

     I have spoken with thousands of people concerning the issue of underage drinking and ALCOHOL ABUSE and without exception; everyone has expressed their absolutely support and personal belief in the message that we advocate through RONNIE and A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE. Not long ago in my home area I met with the president of a credit union and asked him to sponsor a case of books for a local high school. He inquired as to how many books were in a case. I told him 24 and he countered with “I’ll take six cases”. He donated them to each member of the football, basketball and baseball teams and one to each coach. In the Greater Pensacola area I have personally found sponsors for more than 150 cases. Believe me, ours is a program that everyone can and will graciously support.

Every sponsor helps many

     Every sponsor immediately becomes a major participant that is financially helping your athletic department and at the same time, they are making a dramatic, positive difference in the life of many young people across their community.

“RONNIE” is the perfect
Public Relations Tool
For Every Sponsor

     To show our appreciation and continuing thanks, we have provided at the front of each book a dedicated page for the sponsor to place a notation identifying him/her as the sponsor. This can be a stick-on label, rubber stamp or a hand written personal note. Books are used most effectively when doctors give them to their patients, businesses to their customers, attorneys to their clients, etc. The books will float around your community for years and years and with each reading the sponsor will receive many thanks.

Sponsorship Costs Per Case

     Our marketing goal is for each sponsor to purchase a full case of books, however, if anyone chooses less than a case, this, obviously, is very much appreciated.

The cost per case (24 books) is $575
(No shipping and handling cost)

All orders of less than a full case
Incurs S&H charges as follows

A half-case (12 books) is $295
A quarter-case (6 books) is $149.
Single copies are $26.90.

Sponsors Checks

      Sponsors checks are made payable to your Booster Organization and you remit one check payable to BADM BOOKS for the net amount after you deduct your royalty commission. Your books will be shipped upon receipt of your order and check.

Please remit your check to
BADM BOOKS
P. O. Box 9728
Pensacola, FL 32513

A Financial Windfall for Your Athletic Department

      Your royalty commission is $144 per each sponsored case up to and including the first 49 cases. Upon gaining the level of at least fifty cases your commission is raised to $168 per each case beginning with the very first case. For instance, if you have a total of 86 cases sponsored then your commission is $168 per each of the 86 cases.

      You will most certainly want to take advantage of this very lucrative incentive by making sure you obtain sponsors for a total of at least fifty cases. Our experience has led us to believe that most Booster Organizations has the manpower and community support to exceed one hundred cases while others, due to the size of their community, may not reach this number. But don’t be surprised if several supporters choose to sponsor two or three cases!

      Please understand that one hundred cases is not a cap so feel free to bring on board as many sponsors as possible.

      I want to emphatically stress, even though the royalty earnings from our fundraisers are fantastic, they are secondary to our cause. So I urge you not to lose sight of our primary purpose, which is to make a difference in the lives of our young people.

      Although there is ample opportunity for me to sell an unlimited supply of RONNIE through GIANT BOOK STORES, I had rather, a million times over, promote the book personally and pass on to your Boosters the profits that would normally go to stockholders of bookstores. After all, our entire program is for the benefit and well being of our young people, not investors.

No Money Required For Inventory

      Booster Organizations ARE NOT REQUIRED to purchase inventory. You simply promote the book to potential sponsors, pick up their checks, deposit into your bank and send to us one check for the net amount after deducting your royalty fees in accordance to the schedule provided.

      Although you do not have to purchase inventory, you will have to purchase ONE case of RONNIE so your boosters will have a copy to show and detail to potential sponsors. This sample copy is your perfect Sales-technique, a great marketing tool. Your discounted price for this sample case is $431 and I assume the cost of shipping. Later you can sell these books and re-coup your cost and make a profit. When you call to enlist your school for your fundraising event I will get your mailing address to send the first case of books and give my mailing instructions for you to return payment.

      The day you receive your sample case of RONNIE is a perfect day to begin calling on sponsors. As noted previously, there is no minimum or maximum number of cases or sponsors required. There is no beginning date and the date you declare the fundraiser finished is a date of your choosing as long as it does not exceed the 90-day commitment.

      Believe me, there are good things going to happen in your community. Every booster will receive many thanks and accolades from those who have read RONNIE. In addition to raising funds for your athletic department you will be making our purpose well known throughout your county.

      Echoing the words of the endorsers of RONNIE, they so eloquently state, “every young person needs to read this book”, I can personally assure each of you that if we make a difference in the life style of only one young person it will be an incredible victory that you will never, ever forget.

Book Delivery

     With all sponsors on board, we then place your order with our publisher. More likely than not, your order will be immediately available for shipment, however, if orders are backlogged it shouldn’t take more than four weeks.

     Your full order will be shipped direct to one address as designated by your Boosters. For those who elected to sponsor less than a full case, their books will be combined into full case lots for shipping purposes. You then distribute all books in accordance with the number due each sponsor. This, by the way, is a golden opportunity for your student-athletes to assist by making deliveries to the sponsors.

Just a few Hours

     Your successful program will bring a tremendous service to the youth of your community. While making this positive impression on hundreds of young people your Boosters will benefit financially with funds for your special athletic requirements. Best of all, this can be completed successfully in a day or two. NOW, LET’S GET STARTED!!

It's On-Going - Year after Year

     AMFRO has been fine tuned, well designed and a very positive approach towards making a difference and we will be extremely successful with our purpose.

     We have much to do and our initial progress may be slow but we must begin this journey and take our message to as many young people as we can reach. Our Live Presentation is a perfect opportunity to say thanks to your sponsors by inviting them and community leaders to attend. After the assembly I will autograph copies of RONNIE and chat with anyone who has questions.

     Also, please ask your committee members to call their friends, locally and in other cities around our country, to make known our program. Through their assistance we will more quickly be able to touch the youth across America and draw the attention of millions.

     Ours is a very do-able concept. We have the product, we have the program and we have a message that few will rebuke and for those who do, it?s their loss. I can assure you that you will be proud of your association with AMFRO.

     The necessity of our message is never-ending and, accordingly, will be an on-going, annual event because RONNIE and A MESSAGE FROM RONNIE is perpetual. Our goal, the youth of our nation, is a segment of our population that annually increases, therefore, the need for our program, sadly to say, will forever remain indispensable.

     I sincerely hope your Boosters will be instrumental in bring this program to your community. With the success of your event your citizens will continue talking about the good we are doing for years into the future and this is exactly what we want! Be assured that all will be most appreciative of your efforts.

GETTING STARTED

Everything Begins With You and Your School

To accept our challenge and begin your fundraiser

all that is necessary is to take these

TWO SIMPLE STEPS

• Have your Head Football Coach or Booster President call or email me to commit that your school will hold a fundraising event within 90 days.

(You pay the discount price of $431 per case)

Checks are made payable to
BADM BOOKS

And mailed to P. O. Box 9728
Pensacola, Florida 32513

With these steps completed you are on your way to a

FABULOUS FUNDRAISER

     Meeting the ninety day time frame listed above is important because we, in most areas, offer our program primarily to only one high school in each community and we honor that commitment each year as long as the school continues with aggressive, successful, annual events without skipping a year.

     This "exclusiveness" is a tremendous advantage and financial boost for schools so we urge you to take advantage and commit early then get your event underway as soon as possible.

     The exception to the "only one school rule" comes into play in geographical areas where it is obvious that the size of the community could support our program at more than one high school without it being a detriment or disadvantage to either school.