I lied about my age when I was 12 years old in order to get a job at Riverside Golf Course as a caddy. I had paper routes and did odd jobs to earn money up until that time, but to me being a caddy would be my first real job. I’m lucky I was tall for my age and the Caddy Master took me for being older when I told him I was 15. I didn’t mind carrying doubles and he liked that.
For some reason, I never wanted to take the easy route in life when facing a task or doing anything. I’m not saying that I ignored the more efficient way to do something if it presented itself, but if given the option to take the stairs or the elevator, I always took the stairs. I just liked the extra work, effort or challenge and feeling of personal accomplishment.
That perspective stayed with me through high school and college when I told my parents to save their money because I was going to put myself through school. I wanted the challenge, and I enjoyed working while going to school.
I did my first two years as a journalism major at the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn. The next two years took me to Northern Illinois University where I worked for the student newspaper as the advertising manager and actually took a pay cut when the Chicago Tribune recruited me from NIU.
After doing well at the Tribune, they offered me a promotion to an easy, closer-to-home advertising territory in Hinsdale. I asked if there were other options, and they said that they were launching an experimental section which eventually became known as the Friday section of the Tribune. I loved the challenge and hard work it took to make that section a success.
After over a decade in the newspaper business between school and the Chicago Tribune, I wanted another challenge and moved within the company to WGN radio. I was both lucky and hardworking and caught a window when the Chicago Bears made WGN-Radio the voice of the Bears. Those were amazingly successful years that again led me to a challenge to help start up CLTV news, also a new Tribune experimental opportunity.
Everything I learned in the media business led me to leaving the business to start up Diveheart 23 years ago.
I guess taking the stairs paid off.
One more thing… Jim Elliott narrates the documentary, “The Legend of the Statue.”
The epic journey celebrates Gabe Spataro, a Korean War veteran whose adventurous spirit left an indelible mark on Key Largo, Florida. In 1965, Gabe played a crucial role in installing the iconic “Christ of the Abyss” statue underwater. Fifty years later, despite losing his sight, Gabe returned to dive once more—this time with Diveheart, experiencing the magic and freedom of the underwater world.
Discover this inspiring story of perseverance, passion, and the power of adaptive diving.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=VagP-d-VYbU