Podcast Transcription

Melina: Welcome to “Flippin’ Off,” a purpose driven podcast about flipping houses and making a difference.

Dave: All right. Well, hello, everyone. Dave and Melina Boswell here in the studio, again. And today we have…well, we’re gonna start off different. If you’ve never been to our club before, we have this wall inside of our training room, if you will. And this wall, we’re not sure what we call it exactly, but something to the effect of “The Inspiration Wall,” or something to that effect where students can literally post, like, postcards, and write messages, and maybe things, little tidbits they got from a class or something that they just wanna share. And we kind of rotate through it and so forth. And it was Melina’s idea as we rebranded and redid a bunch of the construction in there, and there was a post up there recently that, like, I just, I loved it. I mean, I read it, and read it, and read it and I was like, “This is freakin’ awesome.”

Melina: Yep.

Dave: So, we brought a copy into the studio today, and Melina’s here and she’s going to open us up by reading this. So if you wouldn’t mind, honey?

Melina: Yeah, you know, it’s funny. I haven’t read it for a while, so I was reading it right now and I was like, “Oh,” just as you were speaking, I wasn’t even listening to you because I started reading it. And I was like, “Oh my gosh, I have to read this out loud, oh.” So anyway, it’s…all right, I’ll go ahead. So don’t judge me.

Okay. So it says, “Melina and Dave, you bring new meaning to REO. Well, while that you teach real estate, you serve onions with awesome sauce. You delicately peel our onion skins layer by layer. You like to let some onions simmer and soften up while others, you slice and dice. You know when to bake some and roast others. You teach us to see without our onion goggles, to speak without the offensive onion breath, and to expose our inner most onion flower. You are master chefs in the way you handle our onion hearts and you deserve three Michelin stars for your excellent cuisine that is worth the journey. So, from the bottom of my onion heart, I want to thank both Dave and Melina for the fearless courage put forth so many years ago, to step up and shine a beacon of light for us to follow. Not only have you taught me the art of real estate investing, you have truly restored my appetite for life. God bless you both. Bruce.”

Dave: So, in the studio, we have…we have Bruce, Mr. Bruce Redmond. Hi.

Bruce: Morning, how are you?

Melina: Author of that beautiful piece of literature.

Dave: Yeah. And we read that, obviously, and…well, I’ll just speak for myself, it’s difficult for us to sometimes receive and, you know, the last part of that where, you know, inspiring, you know, your appetite for life was probably exactly how I see you, at least, from where you were a couple of years ago now to where you are today. That was a really big deal. And, by the way, in here, we have Mr. Tim Wilkinson as well has joined us this morning because Tim had some really powerful insights as we were talking about this podcast and just asking Bruce to come in here and so forth.

And if you guys remember, you know, a couple weeks ago, we recorded the, “Do you Remember,” and this just ties so well into, “Do you Remember,” because I’ve totally forgot so many things that’s happened with Bruce and his journey, ultimately, here. So, with that, honey, you’ve spent a great deal of time with Bruce and his wife.

Melina: Yes.

Dave: And just their whole journey and process. And so I don’t wanna speak, though, I want to allow you to…

Melina: From my perspective?

Dave: From your perspective.

Melina: On Bruce’s journey? Yeah. So, I think I was sharing earlier that, you know, for me, the reason Bruce is so important or significant and important, aside from your beautiful onion heart, is that when you came to us, you know, you were in a position in your life where you had sold a business. You were just waiting to get paid out. You were kind of on top of the world in terms of you weren’t at the grind every day. You had just newly, just had a newly discovered freedom of your time, and you kind of thought like, “Hey, I’m gonna figure out what I wanna do now.” And you were, I think you were okay, you know, you were kind of all right. This is my perspective. Now, you can definitely correct me if that’s not the case. Maybe you were just masked up.

Bruce: Well, I was hiding things very well, I think.

Melina: Oh, okay.

Bruce: When the business sold the first time, the new owner and I didn’t see eye-to-eye. And I left in a bad way, you know, I was in a very negative spot…excuse me…and, you know, I was trying to move forward in life and find out what to do. And I was looking in a different business. I knew I never wanted to work for somebody again. I didn’t trust people. I didn’t, you know, I had lost a lot of respect for people, I guess, you know, trusting people. And in my journey of finding the club, you guys were able to open that up and bring that back. And that’s why got the zest for life back is that, you know, I began to trust people again. I began to open up to people again. You know, when I first showed up, I was very, I thought I was very closed, very, you know, my lips were zipped shut.

Melina: Guarded.

Bruce: Yes, very guarded. You know, I was there for some real estate information, you know, that this club full of people I wasn’t really sure about. And so that was where I was at.

Melina: Yeah, okay. So that’s kind of true, yeah. I totally know that. But I think you were… So that’s what you’re talking about internally. That was definitely what was happening emotionally, internally, and I think that I definitely didn’t know that about you. But I think that you felt some sort of, like you know, “I know this is what’s gonna happen, I’m gonna, you know, close on my business, and then I’m gonna get this money, and then I’m gonna, you know, go figure out and do whatever I’m gonna do.” And then that ended up taking much longer than you anticipated.

Bruce: Yes.

Melina: Yeah. So, from my perspective, this is the way it looked from the outside looking in was that, you know, you had some maybe, you know, you had your own calendar.

Bruce: Expectation?

Melina: Yeah, some expectations and a timeline of the way things were gonna happen. And then it was like one bump, and then another bump, and then all of a sudden, you found yourself in a position where you were like, “Oh, shoot. This business isn’t, like the money hasn’t come yet, the acquisition hasn’t closed. So now, I find myself in a position where I probably need to make some money.”

Bruce: Yes.

Melina: And that was new because I think when you first came in, you didn’t think you’d be there right away, or you know, you had a different timeline and the timeline ended up not being yours.

Bruce: Right, I wasn’t sure if anything really was gonna come of the sale. I didn’t know if I’d ever see any money, I didn’t know if that was ever gonna pan out. I really wasn’t trusting them at that point. So, the uncertainty of the future was there and I was looking to find a way to secure that and that’s when I started looking at a business to buy or something along that route. And I had found a business and I had tried to put something together to purchase it, and the numbers just didn’t work out. And so I kind of had that on the back burner and that’s when I found the club.

Melina: Mm-hmm. Yeah, interesting.

Dave: Do you mind me asking him a que-…? How old are you Bruce?

Bruce: Fifty-seven.

Dave: So 57. So you’d be, we’d call it like headed toward retirement, although I know you have no real expectations of like never working, but, you know, be on your motorcycle and enjoy life and that kind of thing?

Bruce: Correct.

Dave: And I think a lot of people that come to the club can identify with that. I mean, there’s just a lot of people that are in that spot of like, “Okay, so what’s the next chapter of my life, what do I wanna do, where am I gonna go?” And so as you were looking at that business, I don’t remember, I can’t remember all the different conversations we had. I mean, there’s just countless hours that Melina and I just talked about like that business that you brought. Because I remember, ultimately, you ended up, you know, mentoring more with Melina and I, and just you know, reaching out and looking for help and guidance and assistance in “The Real Estate Game,” right?

But what ended up happening was Melina, specifically, you ended up doing a lot of work with Bruce on that business that he found, right?

Melina: Yeah, yeah.

Dave: So maybe, cue us in on some of that stuff. And I know, Tim, you had mentioned a few things about this, but I’m kind of in the dark, my memory is pretty vague of all the different things that took place there. And I think that’s a pretty big deal because it’s some really cool stuff that took place that we forgot about.

Melina: Yeah. So, well, you know, well, Bruce, why don’t you share because you bought the business, but then you had the idea that you wanted to buy the building, too?

Bruce: Well, in the beginning, the building was not part of the business, it was for sale. And I was having a hard time making the numbers work to make it be something I wanted to be part of. And it wasn’t until I took the classes that…the creative acquisition classes and some of the different things, that I then realized, “Well, if I add the building to the deal, then all of a sudden, it made sense.” And so I used, you know, the cap rate, the valuations to come up with a valuation on it, and you know, I’d listen to what you said, listen to what his problem was or his issue, and I was able to put all those things together and solve his issue. And in the end, I ended up with the building as part of the deal. And then it was about a year later that I realized the business isn’t really what I wanted to do, I was more involved in the real estate and I wanted to spend more time out, you know, helping homeowners and not in the depths of this building on the cold machines, you know, making parts any more.

Melina: Which was a big stretch for you. It was something completely new. Because that’s where, generally in your past, you’ve been very comfortable.

Bruce: Yes, I’ve been an engineer. I’ve always been on machines and, you know, I’ve always felt comfortable with, you know, the oil and the grease, you know, no heartbeat, no emotions. They don’t talk back.

Melina: Don’t have to feel anything.

Bruce: Right, right.

Dave: They do exactly what you want them to do.

Bruce: Right.

Melina: And if they don’t, then you have to tweak something and then it works.

Bruce: Right. You hit it with a hammer and, you know, move on.

Melina: Nothing like human beings.

Bruce: Correct, correct.

Dave: You can’t hit them with a hammer and…

Melina: No, it doesn’t even work, it turns out. We tried it, it doesn’t work, no.

Dave: So I heard you say you paid attention in class, you listened to what was being said. It’s very key and I’m sitting here looking at Tim because when you talk about, you know, creative acquisitions and, you know, that whole series of classes that, you know, Chris Alban teaches and you don’t realize how much you’re learning when you’re sitting there, right?

Bruce: Right, right. it’s…

Dave: Go ahead.

Bruce: The more you listen, which is what Melina teaches, listen, and the more you listen, the more you learn. And you know, you allow us to repeat the classes again and again. And every time you repeat, you pick up another piece of something, a different emphasis, a different something. And so, I learned to listen, and that really paid off in a big way.

Dave: That’s funny.

Melina: He’s almost embarrassed. He’s like, “It really paid off.”

Bruce: Yeah, it is such a simple concept, you know, listen.

Melina: Listen so hard that it hurts is actually what I say.

Dave: Can somebody take Bruce’s picture right now because he has…I mean, the biggest smile I’ve ever seen him have with his, from ear to ear right now. That’s pretty awesome. But you picked up, I mean, there’s a couple of really keys there, so I don’t want anybody to miss those. But you repeated. So you plugged in, you stayed the course that, you know, your level of skepticism when you came in was obviously high for various reasons: your own life experiences and the people that had, you know, mistreated you or weren’t, you know, straight up with you. and we can definitely get that, we can relate to that. And you know, coming down to some strange club to meet some strange people, and when you’re used to talking to machines and, you know, here…

Melina: Because people do suck.

Dave: Yeah. Unfortunately, a lot of times people are definitely not, you know, what they pretend to be and so forth. And I think that’s a real challenge for a lot of people and we talk to so many that come to our office that are, you know, like, “Is this really real?” You know, “Are these people really who they say they are, are they gonna do what they say they do?” And you know, while we’re not perfect, you know, we do our best to serve anybody that we ultimately take on inside the club. And so…

Melina: Well, we always show up, I mean, I don’t think anybody expects another person to be perfect. I think people expect people to be there. That’s the only thing you can really do is give your word and your commitment. Right? That’s what it really comes down to.

Dave: Yeah. So now looking at you from, when was it? Was it two years ago?

Bruce: A little over two years.

Dave: A little over two years. So two years, and you’ve been involved in some real estate transactions, right? You’ve had a few of those taking place but I, you know, for me, that’s not even the significance of any of this because I think you’re more than capable of closing real estate deal after real estate deal. You’re a sharp guy, you’re actually a lot more personable than most engineers, you know, I know.

Melina: That’s true. That is right.

Dave: I mean, looking at an engineer over here with Tim, you know, this guy couldn’t talk to the…

Bruce: Not personable at all.

Dave: To who he is today, right? A guy who’s making jokes every 30 seconds now. And…

Melina: I like how it’s so funny when we talk about Bruce’s deal, you know, Tim’s face, his whole face lights up, he goes, “That is a cool deal.” He loves that.

Tim: I really think it’s cool. Bruce didn’t, he didn’t get into the rest of it. I mean, we kind of stopped talking about the process when he finally hit that year mark and decided that he wanted to get back into real estate. I mean, we didn’t talk about what happened after that. I mean, didn’t you, at that point, you decided to…

Bruce: I decided to sell the business because it was taking too much time. So I decided to sell the business and once again, I did a creative sale and had I sold the business and I had them remove it from the building. And then the payments of that is what’s paying for the building. So I…

Melina: Boom, chakalaka.

Bruce: Right.

Dave: So you ultimately own the building?

Bruce: Correct.

Melina: That somebody else is paying for.

Bruce: Correct, correct.

Dave: We like that.

Tim: So ultimately buy the business with…

Dave: …other people’s money…

Tim: with other people’s money, run the business for a while, and decide that it’s not for you, and that’s fine. But then sell the business using other people’s money, using the first other people’s money and cash flow on it through the whole year, make money through the whole year as in running the business.

Dave: Get all the write offs.

Tim: Get all the write offs and everything, all the benefits of business ownership and property ownership, and then sell it. And now, the person who’s buying the business from you is paying for the business that you bought on other people’s money and paying for the property, and you’re gonna end up buying the property. And for me, because I love the creative stuff. So for me, I’m like, “That is one heck of a cool way to buy a piece of property.”

Melina: It’s really what he did, right?

Tim: And throug the whole process, Bruce is thinking, “Man, I really want to get into real estate.” And in the end, he was buying property the whole time.

Bruce: Right.

Melina: Isn’t that fascinating because that’s a really good point, Tim, because you know, and I think Bruce said it, he bought a business that he was comfortable with, right? Machines, you know, working with machines and grease and not belly buttons with heart beats. But then ultimately, through your journey, you realized that actually where you…what gives a life is being involved in other people’s lives.

Bruce: Yes. And that’s kind of back to the thing that you read earlier, the peeling the onions and being in all the classes and being there on a regular basis, and seeing how you interact with different people and how you help them. Maybe not intentionally or doesn’t appear as it’s intentionally to help people, but in a roundabout way, it helps everybody learn how to be a better person, you know. I talk about the onion skins and the onion breath and, you can’t show up at the door with baggage, you can’t…you have to be open and transparent and honest. And that’s kind of what happens just by being part of the club. It’s a beautiful thing, you know, what you guys have put together. It’s not just real estate, it’s all these other strategies, all these other things that are, they are way more important, you know, learning to listen. Just such a huge, huge thing.

Melina: Yeah. That’s…I appreciate that so much because that has been, you know, that was our goal from the very beginning which was sanctuary. It’s what I wanted to create, was sanctuary. And for me, what sanctuary means is safety. And I want everybody to walk in and feel safe. That’s the whole point of it. So I love that you said you can’t come in with baggage and you can’t lie which is so funny. Isn’t that cute? Tim, what were you gonna say? I already know you’re gonna say something, go ahead.

Tim: I was…I mean, we always talk about baggage and stuff like that, but something I’ve noticed about myself, because I’m “engineery.”

Melina: I definitely coined that term.

Tim: Right, I’m definitely, I’m an engineer, that’s how my brain works, that’s my personality before I came.

Melina: It’s your perfection.

Tim: Right. And I remember Bruce, when he first came very much the same way. I think it’s really cool like when I read this onion analogy, if you will, I was thrown, like, I loved it when I read it, I was like, “Holy cow, this is so good, it’s so deep,” right? Because we always talk about peeling the onion and things like that but so, for me, it was really deep. And I’ll tell you, the thing that was the most surprising to me was when I got to the end and I was like, “Bruce.” That engineering guy has like, because you don’t get that Bruce, like at the time, when Bruce first time around, you don’t get that Bruce has that in him, because he is very much “engineery.” He’s very much an engineer and for Bruce to actually put that out there, I was surprised that it was Bruce.

Dave: I think that’s what probably had such a huge impact on me reading it was who it came from, right? You know, so I looked at that and said, “Well, that’s who Bruce really is.” The other Bruce that, you know, comes in masked up and just, you know, kind of calloused and maybe guarded from…

Melina: But always pleasant.

Dave: Absolutely, always with a smile on his face, always happy and everything, but internally, really struggling to find his way and purpose and you know, zeal for life. And just seeing that come out in you the last couple years is just awesome. I mean, it’s funny, when you were talking to that homeowner and, you know, it’s not every day that I can take, you know, an hour out of my day and talk with Bruce and talk with a homeowner, that kind of stuff. But when I got off the phone with you and the homeowner, I didn’t feel zapped. I don’t know if that makes sense to anybody.

Melina: It makes perfect sense.

Dave: But definitely, you brought something to the equation and to my life to where I go, “Hey, if Bruce calls and Bruce needs something, I’m happy to help him. I’m happy to carve that time out.” And for me, that’s a really big deal because, you know, not everybody that comes in is really growth oriented the way…

Melina: Yeah, I was just gonna say the important piece of that is that what you get, the importance of that is that Bruce walks in 100% ready to grow. So he doesn’t, you never come in, Bruce, with…

Dave: Not a taker.

Melina: Definitely not a taker. It doesn’t mean that you don’t get things, it’s just that you don’t show up as a taker. And I love that what you said was that you can’t, you have to be honest. Like not being honest isn’t an option. And that says, like that’s such a…it speaks volumes because not everybody gets that, right? And the people that don’t receive that, the people that don’t…are unwilling to operate in that kind of a mindset don’t have the growth. And I think that, like if there’s one thing, you know, everybody could take away from it, like not being honest, not an option.

Dave: Right.

Melina: I think that’s so good because I think if you’re honest, it doesn’t zap everybody, it doesn’t take the life out of people. You know, what takes the life out of other people is when you’re faking it, when you’re faking who you are, when you’re faking, and you’re trying to be something that you’re not, that’s exhausting. Somebody who’s completely honest and transparent is not exhausting at all, it’s refreshing. It’s life-giving, actually. And that’s really who Bruce is. I know Bruce in a different way, obviously, you know.

Dave: Coachable and humble along those same lines is what really…because I know other people would say, “Well, I’m honest,” but you know, they could be honest all day long, but if they’re not willing to…

Melina: You have to be growth oriented.

Dave: Yeah, absolutely.

Melina: Yeah, yeah. You have to be wanting to grow. And I think that’s where the honesty shows up, you know. I know that Bruce and I had, you know, it’s funny Tim says that, you know, reading the onion story and then realized it was Bruce, was like shocked. I guess, for me, I wasn’t shocked because maybe I know you on a very different level. And because I’ve had the privilege of mentoring with you and really creating and mentoring is only…nothing more than a friendship from my perspective. And I mean, you’ve been willing to share a lot of very personal things that have happened in your life. And would you mind sharing a little bit about the most recent scenario that you’ve experienced, would you mind? Is it okay, if I…well, I’ll walk you through it.

Bruce: When I came to see you?

Melina: Yeah, the most recent thing.

Bruce: So I set up an appointment to come see you. You know, I know it’s not real mentoring, but it sort of is. You know, I mean, it’s kind of life-mentoring in a way. And I came because I was disappointed in myself, that I felt I wasn’t putting enough time and effort into growing my new business in real estate, and partly because I was so involved with helping a homeowner, a lady that, she was a friend that lost her husband. And he left her with an overwhelming burden of stuff, just car parts galore and just a huge burden on her. And I just, you know, I made a promise to him on his deathbed that I would help her and, you know, get through this and not struggle.

Melina: So, Bruce, can you…yeah, I know it’s really, it’s an incredible story that I think is so…it’s powerful, it’s incredible, but if you wouldn’t mind sharing, well, let me ask you this question. This was friends of you and your wife?

Bruce: Yes.

Melina: And he was in the hospital for how long?

Bruce: He had gotten throat cancer and went into the hospital, and been in about a year. He lost his voice right in the very beginning, they put in a trachea, so he couldn’t talk. So he was pretty much bedridden for an entire year. And it was very sudden, too. I mean, he was a healthy guy, you know, mid-60s, and just very active, just nice guy.

Dave: Just to clarify. So when you said you were working with a homeowner, this was actually friends?

Bruce: These are friends, yeah.

Dave: Okay. So it wasn’t just some homeowner that you just randomly met?

Melina: No, it was, it was somebody that he knew. He was telling me, this is how the conversation went. He comes in and he’s having a conversation with me about feeling disappointed in his, in the activity, his effort. And so I said, “Well, you know, what have you been doing?” And he starts sharing with me, “Well, you know, I’ve been spending all this time helping this woman. You know, she has this and that.” And then I was like, “Wait a second, wait. Who is this person? Like let’s back up and tell me about her and why are you doing this and what is it that’s going on?” So then he begins to share this story with me about, you know, these friends. And then at some point, Bruce, you hadn’t gone to go see him in the hospital.

Bruce: Yeah, I don’t like hospitals. I just…hospitals and me don’t get along. So I just do everything I can to avoid them. And I knew, you know, after he’d been in there for a year and I knew it was, it had to be getting close. And I knew I had to go say goodbye. I had to thank him for being my friend. I had to… And I had a conversation with the Yahnee even before I did that. You know, how do I go thank somebody and say goodbye and do that stuff?

And it was a very tough visit. And I went in and thanked him for being my friend, thanked him for, you know, everything he’s done to support my wife. I mean, he’s the one that allowed me to go travel because he was there just to stand up and help my wife when I was gone, and allowed me to feel comfortable being away weeks at a time. And you know, a lot of other things also. So I went in and thanked him, and said, “I got your back of, you know, look after your wife,” and he was gone within 15 minutes. So I mean, he was able to let go. And so it was just a very touching thing.

Melina: So I think that’s, it’s difficult to really hear and receive what happened, you know. And I think when you and I spoke, it was obviously, you know, in a more intimate setting than sitting here like this, but it was you knew that you needed to let him know that you would take care of his wife.

Bruce: Absolutely.

Melina: You knew that, you knew that conversation needed to take place.

Bruce: Absolutely.

Melina: And so you had the conversation and he passed away within 15 minutes. So it was as if he was waiting for you to show up to tell him that you would take care of his wife.

Bruce: Yes, absolutely.

Melina: So now, fast forward, you and I are sitting in my office and you’re telling me I’m not putting enough effort into my business. And I was…because you’ve…because it turns out that so much of your time was being taken up by helping this widow.

Bruce: Yes, yes.

Melina: And it gave me the opportunity to look at you and say, “Man, Bruce, do you realize what you’re doing?” Like you’ve saved…you’re saving her life, right? You allowed a man who was a friend to, you know, go home, if you will, in peace because of a promise that you made. So your word is…meant everything to him. And now, you’re actually living in your word. And that, how do you…how could you possibly think that you’re doing anything other than being incredibly successful?

Bruce: You know, I didn’t see that, you know. And sometimes it takes somebody else to point that out. What I saw was that, you know, I have an office at the shop and I’m not there. You know, I’m not putting the effort in. I’ve signed up to be part of the serving team and give back and I’m not there giving back. And I’m not showing up in class anymore and I’m not participating in it. And that’s what I saw. And I didn’t see the, you know, I mean, I committed to this person and I’m putting a lot of time and energy into that, but I felt that I wasn’t, you know, I was disappointed in myself for not following through with my other commitments.

Melina: Right. And the reality is is that you, and this is what I pointed out to you, do you realize that you are living like the exact…like you’re actually living the dream? You’re living what Dave and I have been working so, so many years to create for people, an opportunity to live a life of significance. And that’s really what you’re doing. And the significance that you’re having in one woman’s life is no small thing, like every single life matters, every single person matters. And if it weren’t for you, this widow wouldn’t be able to move on the way she is right now.

So that was why I said, like this story needs to be shared because you really are living proof of, you know, kind of like our goal to create for people. At least, I don’t feel like we’ve created it for you. I think that maybe we’ve given you a space to realize it, that’s all, you know, which for us makes, like you have no idea, it makes everything worth it. It makes all of the challenges, all of the opposition, all of the whatever, it makes it worth it because I look and I go, “If one widow can sleep well and be safe, and have her affairs taken care of because she lost her husband too soon, oh my God, are we doing the right thing.”

Bruce: And I got that from you guys. Because, you know, that’s through the club showing how to, you know, a life of service, serving people. You know, being open and honest. And that’s not something that I, that’s not a lifestyle that I’d lived before, you know, as an engineer. So I just, that was not me. And so, I’m a very different person, and I owe that to you guys. I absolutely owe that to you guys for bringing that out, you know, if it was always inside me, you brought it out, you shined that light, that beacon of light, that allowed me to follow and…

Dave: I was gonna say, you were always that person.

Melina: Absolutely.

Dave: You just put the label on yourself that, “I’m an engineer and I’m not that person.”

Melina: That’s right.

Dave: Because character always reveals itself. So that’s who you really are. You just didn’t have the platform, and the space, and the sanctuary to be able to be you. And so, I’m proud to call myself your friend, and I’m proud of who you are today, and being here. And I think it’s a really big deal and one that we shouldn’t take so lightly, maybe, sometimes.

Melina: Yeah. Me, too.

Dave: What it looks like so. I guess this is another podcast to remind us. What do you know? Tim, you all right over there?

Tim: Yeah, I’m good. I just…I’m always inspired by stories like that where people are able to be who they’re supposed to be and be who it feels right to be in the end. Because, again, I very much identify myself like Bruce as an engineer. I was much more comfortable with, you know, the computer in the corner than by dealing with you, the owner. And knowing that I wanted so much more for myself, but when I look back, when I really look back, the things that always made me feel the best was when I was being impactful. And you know, Bruce kind of came to the club in a position where, you know, he had a successful life, he had sold a successful business, right?

And I think it’s just really cool to be a part…I mean, I know, like me, personally, I’ve had very little impact on Bruce, I think. You know, we talk now and again, but just to be part of the whole that has made a space for Bruce to be able to experience what he’s experienced is just really cool for me. To just know that I’m a part of that because I want to be impactful. And maybe I wasn’t as impactful on Bruce as I probably could have been or should have been, but I just enjoy seeing that, if that makes sense.

Melina: Well, it makes perfect sense because you’re part of the building of the sanctuary. You’re part of the sanctuary. You are the reason the sanctuary exists, you know. And now, so is Bruce for the next club member. That’s incredible, yeah.

Tim: Yeah, that’s pretty cool.

Dave: Well, thanks for taking time out and sharing with us, and getting out of your comfort zone.

Melina: Yeah, Bruce, thank you so much for, really, everything that you’ve done. And there’s so much more because you’ve helped this widow, but you’ve had a huge impact on the club, too. You have inspired us. Whenever there is anything to be done, you say you’re not serving, you’re not helping, but oh my gosh, you know, I know you are. I mean, there are shelves in the warehouse right now because of you. There is a family that was moved into a home because of you. There’s so many things that you’ve done, that you’ve gone above and beyond, and so we’re very, very grateful for you for that, for sure.

Dave: Yeah, absolutely.

Bruce: And I’m very grateful in return to everybody in the club. And especially, you Dave and Melina, thank you.

Dave: It’s awesome. All right. Well.

Melina: Boswells.

Dave: Word.