A Letter from Co-Founder Rob Foster:

For 10 years, my life and all my actions were inspired by drugs and alcohol. They called out to me every weekend, every day, every minute. Drugs and alcohol inspired my life decisions, who my friends were, where I hung out and lived, how much money I needed to make, and how I presented myself to others. This was false inspiration, for the way these substances called me to live were harmful to me and others. It was only after I lost my friends, my dignity, and my self-worth that this became evident. Unable to ask for help and powerless over my addiction and alcoholism, I wrote a goodbye letter and swallowed a bottle of pills. I ended up in the hospital for a week while waiting to see if my liver would recover. It recovered, but I didn't. Someone had a bigger plan for me though I wasn't quite ready to see it.

Two more years of abusing alcohol and cocaine landed me in Father Martin's Ashley, a 28 day treatment center. At Ashley, I learned that recovery is a lifelong process which I will never totally finish. I learned that I had to change everything about myself. Again, this will never completely happen, but day by day I can (and do!) take small steps to live right.

While in treatment I read a book called Esteemable Acts, by Francine Ward. After treatment, I began building my own self-esteem by following her 52 Weeks of Esteemable Acts. I also started receiving a text message - every morning like clockwork - from KC, a buddy of mine from treatment. This daily recovery message almost always called me to action.

In other words, I began to LIVE INSPIRED...

So who else is living inspired today? The former addict making a difference by helping another addict get clean; the cancer patient continuing on with daily life after his diagnosis; the mother of a new infant, caring for her daughter while her husband serves our country overseas; my fellow twentysomethings learning to live on their own. The list doesn't stop here. Every person in every community can live inspired.

Help us create a nationwide community of people not afraid to state "I LIVE INSPIRED!"

Robert H Foster, III