Providing a time and a space for people in the marketplace to gather, grow, and be heard in western Pennsylvania.
The Pittsburgh Experiment (PX) serves the people and corporations of Western Pennsylvania by starting small groups that provide a time and space where people can enjoy a bit of respite during their busy work week, find a listening ear, and develop positive relationships with others in the work force. We currently have groups meeting across the region with bankers, lawyers, techies, business owners, and others involved. We also engage young professionals who want to be mentored and retired people looking to give back.
Yesterday was Father's Day.
For some that is a great day to celebrate their dads. For some it stirs wonderful memories. For others it is a cause of pain because they had an abusive or absent father. I am fortunate that my dad was a great one! He was brought up the son of Italian immigrants in NYC. He enlisted in the USAF and served in the Korean War. He came back and joined the NYPD where he served for 26 years. After a couple years of retirement, he became Chief Deputy Sheriff of Pike County in northeast Pennsylvania. He wasn't a saint, nor was he perfect. But he was one heck of a man. As I look back over his life, I'm reminded of the things he taught me. He wasn’t big on talks or lectures, but I remember vividly watching how he lived. And there were many things I learned from watching.
1) I learned what my wedding vow to love my wife for better or worse by watching him love my mother through her long battle with cancer, when I was a kid. As she suffered, he cared for her, nursed her, and stood by her, in sickness and in health, for better or worse, until death did they part. It’s one thing to say those words. It’s quite another to live them out.
2) I learned how to go the extra mile for my family by watching him care for, live with, and love his mom, dad and aunt who lived with us for most of my childhood. I learned what hustle and perseverance was from him.
3) I learned how to be faithful and diligent at work watching him burn the candle at both ends to provide for us all, no matter what it took. I remember hearing the term, “moonlighting” when he would leave at night to hustle up some more income to support our family.
4) I learned how to love my sons by watching him work his tail off bringing his 4 sons up EVEN while caring for my dying mother and aging grandparents. I remember him sitting on hard gym bleachers for weekends on end reading a book and watching me at wrestling tournaments. From the time I was young through college!
5) I learned how to love my community and country by watching his example of service and by the pride that exuded from him over my three brothers and their military service.
6) I learned how to be a grandpa by watching him loving my sons. The last time he was with my sons in Pittsburgh before his death, he lined the 4 of them up and with a big smile as he went down the line, grabbed each of them by the face, kissed them, and said, "I love you. I'm proud of you. Listen to your parents or I'll kick you in the butt."
In a world with many words, where talk has become extremely cheap, how are you living? Whether it's the workplace, home, school or neighborhood, people are watching. What are they learning from watching you?
THE BLOG
When Things Get Better, Will I Go Back To DOING More And Praying Less?
October 6th, 1993 Michael Jordan retired from basketball in the prime of his career. I remember this because it was the first thing I saw on TV when I woke up from a 7-hour back surgery. I thought I was hallucinating. I was a 30 year old former athlete who was just hoping to walk again. I spent the next two weeks mostly on my back. For a very active, Type-A person it was excruciating. I couldn’t DO anything.…Read More
The peale foundation
You may notice in many of our posts that we reference Dr. Norman Vincent Peale and his writings. PX has a rich history with Dr. Peale. Paul Everett ('69-'95), PX longest serving Executive Director, was married to Dr. Peale's daughter Maggie. Maggie is still a dear friend to us, and the Peale Foundation has been a generous and long-time supporter, for which we are very grateful. You can hear many of Dr. Peale's sermons on their recently updated app here and learn more about his books and writings by clicking on their website at here.
