I forget if I ever told you about this, but back in 2000, Grammy and I created a four year scholarship to help students from Somersworth High School (where we went as well as your Dad & Aunt Nicole) attend the University of New Hampshire.

It’s called the “Beaupre Entrepreneurial Scholarship.”

It’s different from traditional scholarships which are usually focused on a student’s academic performance, class rank, etc.  The Beaupre scholarship rewards students who have consistently demonstrated the attributes and characteristics of entrepreneurship such as personal motivation, drive, making things happen, etc.

As you know, Grammy and I started our own company – in 1983 – and built it into a success story.  We employed many people and built a supportive, honest, fulfilling work culture.  We also built an incredible reputation for delivering results for our clients.

Our scholarship is guided by a favorite quote of mine which was displayed on my office wall for decades:

“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can’t find them, make them.”

― George Bernard Shaw 

This week I went to UNH to meet the latest winner of the Beaupre Entrepreneurial Scholarship – Kaitlyn Grant.  She’s a sweet, kind and creative young woman majoring in Studio Art.  It feels good helping others.

AWESOME DAY!!

We hung out together (literally) on a recent Sunday, visiting an indoor skydive attraction called SkyVenture in Nashua, NH.

We weren’t sure what to expect, and might have been a little nervous, but once we were airborne, it was SO COOL!!!

We walked into a glass enclosed chamber with massive fans below an open grate in the floor,blowing wind up so fast and strong you can experience the freedom of flight.  There’s no falling sensation – you just float above the trampoline floor with ease after a few instructions.

We entered the chamber two times each (always solo).  On the second visit, the instructor took us up higher into the vertical chamber.  We went up and down several times… what a blast!

I’ve always thought about skydiving… it’s been on my adventure bucket list.  This is a great way to see if you like it, a little bit of high adventure skydiving without having to pack a parachute, pull a ripcord, or jump out of an airplane at 10,000 feet.

The experience is amazingly realistic and many skydiving teams around the world train in SkyVenture wind tunnels.

Neither one of us wanted it to end; like Tom Petty said (in his famous song)
“coming down is indeed the hardest thing.”

LEGO Awesomeness, right here in the Granite State!

The LEGO® Millyard Project is the largest permanent LEGO® installation at minifigure scale in the world. It’s in the SEE Science Center, which also has a bunch of cool hands-on science exhibits.

The LEGO project represents Manchester’s Amoskeag Millyard as it might have looked circa 1900. This was the biggest display of LEGO’s I’ve ever seen in one place, except for the time Grammy and I took you guys to LEGOWORLD in Florida.

• Three million LEGO® bricks were used, all of them from sets available to the public. No pieces were custom made.   The Jefferson Mill, built in 1886, was built with an estimated five million real bricks.
• The LEGO project has approximately 8,000 minifigures. Amoskeag once employed as many as 17,000 people.
• This project was built in phases between October 2004 and November 2006. It took more than 10,000 ‘person’ hours to complete the project. Two years!  By comparison, the Amoskeag Company built all its mill buildings between 1838 and 1915.
• If all the LEGO® bricks used in this project were lined up end to end, they would reach from the SEE Science Center to the Museum of Science in Boston and back. At its peak, Amoskeag produced enough cloth to reach from Manchester NH to Pittsburgh Pennsylvania each day.
• After touring the LEGO project, we checked out the science exhibits.  My favorite involved testing our reflex speed vs. a professional NHL goalie. You liked a giant air drum and aimed it at me when I wasn’t looking.  I felt this unexpected burst of air on my body, and there you were, laughing your head off!

vvv