Articles

Wellness Warriors

frank“It’s a spiritual thirst and a spiritual hunger that was I trying to fulfill with empty calories.  And I was killing myself.” Frank Ferrante

September 29th a group of us are heading to Des Moines to see Frank Ferrante in his movie May I Be Frank. May I Be Frank documents the transformation of Frank Ferrante’s life.

Excerpt from the website:

Frank Ferrante is a 54 year old Sicilian from Brooklyn living in San Francisco. A lover of life, great food, beautiful women and a good laugh, Frank is also a drug addict, morbidly obese, pre-diabetic, and fighting Hepatitis C. He’s estranged from his daughter, single, and struggling with depression. Frank knows that life can be better than this, and is looking for a way out.

That grabbed my attention and I decided I needed to see the movie.

Instead of marking off the calendar, making sure I had gas in the car and money for a ticket I decided to get a group of my friends involved.

I really wanted to have someone else drive.  I wanted to go with people I liked.  I wanted to have it be an experience that a group of like minded people would enjoy.

We needed a bus and a driver.  One person said to get 40 people together, and they each pay 20 bucks and we could rent a big bus.  Ahhh!  A bus ….. and I thought of ABCM.  ABCM is a Hampton based company that owns and operates numerous rehabilitation communities throughout the state of Iowa.  My dad lives in one of those places.  ABCM provided a bus for our Historical Tour of Homes last year.

So I asked them if they’d be a part of this experience.  They said yes!  So now we had a driver and a bus.

There are 20 seats on our bus.  In a matter of days, we filled the bus.  All women.  I have dubbed us Wellness Warriors.

Stay tuned for a review of the movie and pictures at the end of the month.


6 Comments

  1. Gregg Marks - May I Be Frank on September 16, 2010 at 5:22 am

    On behalf of Be Love Productions and the May i Be Frank team, i just want to say how moved and humbled we are after reading this! Thank you for acting on your inspirations, it is such a testament to what is possible!

    Much Gratitude,
    Gregg Marks



  2. Deb Brown on September 16, 2010 at 11:22 am

    Thank you Gregg. We are all excited to be a part of this story. We also believe in getting things done up in our neck of the woods – and this was just a no brainer.
    Deb



  3. david hartley on September 16, 2010 at 9:41 pm

    Wow, so great to see Deb and Wellness Warriors called into action by and with “May I Be Frank” … as a man who has quite a LOT in common with Frank’s journey, my heart sings when I hear of all the support for the movie; for the view of personal transformation portrayed .. and for the sheer accessibility of radically changing life for the better ..
    The movie has a powerful heartbeat.. echoing tones of the sadness & desperation where Frank started, the love which all the boys and Frank shared .. and the difference that sort of transformational journey can make in ANYONE’s life.
    Thanks Deb, Gregg, Frank, and everyone else who is part of the extended family who produced &/or otherwise loves “May I Be Frank”



  4. Deb Brown on September 17, 2010 at 11:14 am

    David –
    I’d love to hear more of your story as well. It is, after all, our stories that spur others into action. We can quote facts and figures all day long – but add the human touch, a real story, and suddenly we are listening.
    Thanks for stopping by!



  5. Amy Main on September 17, 2010 at 1:50 pm

    I will be talking about May I Be Frank on the Be Refreshed webcast on http://www.webcastonelive.com today (9-19-2010)at noon (CST). I am thinking that your Wellness Warriors will be mentioned, too!! Safe travels to you all, and enjoy the movie!!



  6. Deb on September 17, 2010 at 3:13 pm

    Wow! thanks, I’ll let everyone know and I’ll be listening in.
    Deb