I want to begin by offering my heartfelt congratulations to the Bexley Class of 2014. What you’ve accomplished is nothing short of amazing. We tend to take accomplishments like yours for granted, but earning a high school diploma from Bexley High School is a tremendous achievement in and of itself.

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I hope that each one of you, after all of the celebrations are finished, over the course of the next few days and weeks, has the opportunity to pause for a just a moment to reflect on this incredible journey that you’ve been on.

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To all the grandparents, parents, brothers, sisters, cousins and friends out there — these graduates would not be here without you, your support, your encouragement and your love.

! But you’ve all been raised not just by your families, but by your neighbors. ! It’s important to recognize that we’re gathered here today, in large part, because of the genuine goodness that exists in this community.

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Bexley is also home to an incredible spirit and compassion, which I know you will carry with you the rest of your lives.

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Now you might be wondering why a Columbus Academy alum is up here today speaking to a Bexley graduating class.

! I think it’s a very valid question. !

Though I am a 2001 Columbus Academy graduate, I grew up in Berwick and my closest and dearest friends have always been Bexley guys. We get along so well that at least 10 of my coworkers are from Bexley.

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My favorite restaurant on earth is Rubino’s, and I’ve awkwardly danced the night away at many a bar mitzvah party at Jeffrey Mansion.

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And perhaps most convincingly…in my formative years, I may--and I repeat may--have been involved in the tee-peeing of a residence or two in the City of Bexley.

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You know, I was thinking about it this morning...and is there a rule that says that adults can’t still go tee-peeing?

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So, if anyone’s interested, we’re going to meet at midnight tonight outside the high school. I hear Principal Williams is usually in bed by 9:00 PM, so we should have plenty of time to....you know....

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Just kidding. We’ll tee-pee the Columbus Academy Headmaster’s house instead.

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So anyway, the point is that even though I went to Academy, I’m a Bexley guy at heart.

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And having grown up in this community, I can tell you that it’s truly an honor to share such a special moment with you today.

! They say that inspiration comes in many forms. !

For me, it was at the Ohio Thrift Store off of Livingston Ave. on Alum Creek Drive where I first realized that few things compare to the perfect t-shirt.

! Why? !

Because whether it’s Bart Simpson appearing on a t-shirt saying, “Eat my shorts, man” or the iconic silhouette of Michael Jordan gliding smoothly through the air to dunk a basketball, T-Shirts have the power to make us laugh, inspire us, and remind us of the greatness that is all around.

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Everyone has their one favorite t-shirt, right? The soft one that’s been washed a million times…the one that belonged to your dad when he was younger. Or the shirt that is a reminder of the 5k road race that you trained and trained and trained for.

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I was living at home after college and there were piles of t-shirts everywhere -- in the living room, in the dining room, in the basement, and, sometimes, in the kitchen! I had purchased these t-shirts from thrift stores and was selling them on eBay.

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My eBay seller name was the vintage-villain, which is kind of weird because I was actually a good t-shirt salesman.

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Little by little, I realized that my love of t-shirts was actually a love of stories, because the T-shirts we wear are a not only a reflection of who we are, but what we believe in.

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As a means of capturing this duality, I started a company called HOMAGE seven years ago from my parents’ basement because I wanted to re-create the experience of finding and wearing that perfect t-shirt.

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As the business has grown, I’ve realized a few things about myself that I think are worth sharing with you.

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First, starting a business is a lot of work. My Spanish degree didn’t teach me about things like limited liability companies, accounts payable, conversion rate, or digital strategy.

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And life didn’t prepare me for some of the people who would tell me that starting a t-shirt company was a bad idea, or that opening a brick and mortar store in an age of online shopping would never work.

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Starting your own business is not just an insane amount of work, it’s also an exercise in learning to trust your judgment. Everyone is going to tell you what they think you should do. But, you are the only one who truly knows.

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Simply put, there are times that you’ve got to put your head down and ignore some of the “noise” out there.

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Another thing that I’ve discovered that has to do with “noise” is the sheer volume of information out there. It’s really overwhelming. I’ve realized that I’m only human, and that I cannot possibly process all the articles, tweets, Instagram posts, and crazy YouTube videos out there.

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In trying to keep up with everything, I wonder what important things get glossed over because there simply isn’t enough time.

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As I sat down to write this speech, for example, I kept receiving text messages, emails and tweets…. I eventually just had to turn off my phone, and drown out the noise for a few moments.

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As important as it is to be connected, I think it’s just as important to unplug, take a deep breath, and listen to our own thoughts.

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Mark Twain once wrote, “You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.”

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I’m not sure if anyone else feels like this, but because of the amount of things out there, I’ve found that my imagination is often out of focus.

! For a while, I struggled with finding the right solution to this problem. !

Some encouraged me to meditate, or to take up a new hobby. Others told me to travel more.

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After a while, though, I realized that for me, one of the ways to reconnect to things is to think about stories. Most importantly, a story of who we are.

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Today, I want to share three stories that help me to refocus my imagination, time and time again.

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The first story I want to tell you is about the greatest sport on earth -bowling.

! My apologies to all of the racquetball players out there. !

But, to be honest, my bowling tale isn’t really about bowling; it’s more about the unexpected connections that I’ve made along the way...

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Last fall, I signed up for a 33 week long B’Nai B’Brith bowling league that took place every Sunday morning at Holiday Lanes on Broad St.

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Before bowling, my buddies and I would meet at Block’s Bagels and then head to the lanes.

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Oh yeah, so I promised my friend Steve Block that I would plug Block’s Bagels at least once in this speech. There ya go, Steve!

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But what I didn’t tell Steve is that I’m going to spill the beans on a new, top secret creamed cheese that is being developed somewhere inside the Block’s test kitchen. Stay tuned to the Bexley News for more details.

! Anyway, back to my bowling story... !

So the second week of the season, a 69 year-old guy by the name of Jeffrey “The Dude” Rycus bowled a perfect 300 game. 12 strikes in a row.

! Pretty amazing, right?! ! Well, not when it happens against your team. !

I share this bowling tale with you all today not because “The Dude” bowled the 300 against my team; nor for the fact that it happens to be the only 300 game ever bowled in league history.

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I’ll never forget the moment when Jeff made the final strike. As the pins went down, the entire league, who had stopped to watch, erupted in unison.

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That Sunday morning, something amazing happened: we were all on the same team, our competitiveness had faded....

! Guys from all different walks of life were just celebrating together. !

Jeff was gracious and humble enough to share this moment with us, and it was almost as if we all had bowled a 300.

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When I asked Howard Byer, a spry 83 year old from the league, about Jeff’s perfect game, he replied: “What really matters out on the lanes is how great of a teammate you are and how you handle both victory and defeat.”

! As the great philosophers say, as it is in bowling, it is in life. ! !

The second story that I want to tell is the story of Archie Griffin, a guy from Eastmoor High, a school right around the corner from here. Yes, Archie is the only two-time Heisman Trophy winner.

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But a guy like Archie also represents the magic of sports. The first time Archie touched the ball as a freshman, he ran for 239 yards against North Carolina, and broke a team record that had stood for 27 seasons.

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A young person who worked hard was given the chance to shine. And he was ready.

! That’s what it’s all about, right? !

Ever since I was in college, after seeing a picture of Archie with big sideburns and polyester pants, I knew there was something awesome about old school sports.

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Legendary Ohio State football coach Woody Hayes once said of Archie: “He’s a better man than he is football player, and he’s the best football player I’ve ever seen.”

! In 2007, I experienced this for myself. !

Back in ‘07, when I was getting my start, I made an appointment to see Archie. I wanted to make a t-shirt about him because he always seemed like the coolest guy.

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When I got to Archie’s office, my heart was racing. I proceeded to tell Archie that I thought he was a great guy and a great player, and that it would be awesome to make a shirt about him.

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Archie asked, “Do you think people will like it?” To which I replied, “Yeah, I think so.”

! And that was that. ! Archie shook my hand and it was a go. ! But you know what else it was? !

It was my first big break. With a guy like Archie in support of my idea, I approached Ohio State and was able to get a license to produce OSU gear.

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But, you know, it was more than a break, and it was more than just a t-shirt.

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It was Archie telling me something deeper -- a lesson that he had learned from Coach Hayes.

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The story is simple: one way to make a positive difference in this world is to do nice things for others. To pay forward.

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Archie paid forward by agreeing to let a goofy and nervous guy make a TShirt about him.

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And, in many ways, Archie paying forward has allowed me to be here today.

! It’s a story that I’ll never forget. ! Many know the name “Amelia Earheart.” !

Fewer know of Jerrie Mock.!

At 9:31 on the morning of March 19, 1964, Jerrie Mock—a Bexley resident and a mother of three-- took off from Port Columbus in a 1953 Cessna 180 airplane aptly named “The Spirit of Columbus.” The plane was equipped with a 225 horsepower engine and the passenger seats were removed to accommodate 3 additional fuel tanks.!

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When Jerrie departed from Columbus that morning, she heard the tower controller’s voice say on the radio, “Well, I guess that’s the last we’ll hear from her.”

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On her way to Cairo, Jerrie accidentally landed at a secret military base instead of the main airport. When she landed, trucks of soldiers with guns surrounded the airplane. When the 38-year-old Jerrie Mock emerged from the airplane, the Egyptian soldiers were stunned to see a woman dressed in a skirt and a blouse.

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Flying over Vietnam, where a war was being fought below, Jerrie noted that the sky looked peaceful.

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Taking off into the unknown, Jerrie Mock, who lived at 2490 Bexford Place, became the first woman to fly solo around the world when she landed back in Columbus -- 29 days and almost 23,000 miles later. !

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Upon her return to Columbus, Jerrie said, “I hope that somewhere, here and there, my just doing something that hadn’t been done, will encourage someone else who wants to do something very much and hasn’t quite had the heart to do it.”

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As you receive your diploma, I have a special surprise for you. Each of you will receive a copy of Jerrie’s biography, signed by Jerrie herself.

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I hope that Jerrie’s words and Jerrie’s story remind you that courage, determination and spirit can take you from Bexley, Ohio, to all the way around the world.

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When I spoke with Jerrie over the phone just a few days ago, I asked her if she had any words for the Bexley graduating class. Jerrie replied simply, “If you have a dream, don’t let anyone ever talk you out of it.”

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To the Bexley graduating class of 2014… if there’s just one thing that I hope that you take from this speech is to know and trust that your essence, your story is inside of you.

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And you’ve got to trust that it will reveal itself…maybe not when you’re 18, maybe not when you’re 25…. but it’s there. And you should never stop seeking it.

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If you take the time to slow down, reflect, and turn off some of the “noise”, you are capable of crafting an extraordinary story -- whether it’s inside an airplane, at the bowling alley, or by paying forward for someone else.

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On the surface, Jerrie Mock, Archie Griffin and Jeff Rycus don’t seem to have much in common.

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But, deep down, they’re examples of stories rooted in authenticity and meaning.

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And it’s precisely these kinds of stories that should be celebrated because, at the end of the day, stories make us feel more compassionate, more noble, more alive, and more human.

! Thank you, and congratulations to the Bexley class of 2014! ! ! ! !