Direct Strike: Introducing Lightning Fast Grant Writing | Urgent

In the nonprofit world, we often talk about the importance of speed. How quickly can we get this project done? How quickly can we reach our goal? But when it comes to grant writing, many organizations seem to take their time. Unfortunately, this can lead to missed opportunities and funding gaps. In this blog post, we will introduce you to Lightning Fast Grant Writing – a new service that can help your organization write grants quickly and efficiently. So why wait? Contact us today to learn more by calling 949-338-5921 or clicking on the following link.

APPLY NOW!

Lightning Fast Grant Writing is a new company with a bold promise: We will write 200 tailored applications per year for the same cost as a regular, full-time grant writer! This system is uniquely designed to produce high volume with excellence and RESULTS.

After all, when was the last time you had to write a grant proposal on short notice? How did it go? In today's competitive grant climate, proposals must be finely crafted and submitted with all due haste. This can be a daunting prospect, especially when your organization doesn't have a dedicated grants department. But what if there were a way to speed up the process, and make grant writing practically effortless? With Lightning Fast Grant Writing, there is. 

Check out our new website for more details by clicking on Lightning Fast Grant Writing. 

On-Line Teaching: Why I Love It, Why You Should Try It Out

I have always been a big fan of online courses. I think they are a great way to reduce the costs of education while also increasing its quality.

This is because there are things you can do with an online class that would be less efficient to do in a face-to-face class such as conducting online grant research, sharing screens, polling students, and otherwise interacting with course materials is a fresh and ingenious way.

If you want to take one of my online classes - as an introduction to grant writing - or as a helpful refresher course, then you'll want to check out this upcoming grant writing course.

I will be teaching my Grant Writing Fundamentals course on-line thanks to the support of Glendale Community College (GCC). The six-hour course will run from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on April 25, 2020.

You can register for the course right now by going to the GCC website at https://www.glendale.edu/academics/continuing-education-garfield

You can call them at (818) 240-1000, Ext. 5678 or email them at ce-glendale@glendale.edu

$65 course fee + $36 for materials
Total: $104.

Course materials includes sample grants, the project innovator form, and other documents essential to succeeding at grant writing.

Start 2020 Off with a New, Inspiring Resume

One of Dr. Drew's biggest secrets of success as a grant writer is his skill at tweaking the resumes of the charity's key talent so they are more likely to win really big, life transforming grants. In our increasingly media saturated world, a fresh -- strategically designed -- resume can be the difference between winning or losing either a job or a multi-million dollar grant. At any rate, we thought it would be fun to offer a special starting in January 2020 for everyone who is seeking to find or get a better job. Here are the details of Dr. Drew's resume writing package.

Here's What Dr. Drew Will Do to Improve Your Job and Career Prospects for 2020 

This is a special service of Drew & Associates.  Dr. Drew will ask you to email him a copy of your existing resume or curriculum vita which he will 1) read and analyze, and 2) discuss with you by phone for one (1) hour.  Then, he will 3) rewrite your resume curriculum vita, improve its format and look, so that it will tell a positive, uplifting, and attractive story about your life, your value to others, and the special skills you bring to the marketplace. 

Discounted price: $400. 

Regular price, after January 30, 2020: $500.

Payment by Check

For payment by check, mail to: Drew & Associates, 25195 Via Catalina, Suite A, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677.

Please make checks payable to “Drew & Associates.”

OR

Payment by PayPal

Read What One Professional Says About Dr. Drew's Resume Writing Services and Why a New Resume is a New Life.

I highly recommend John Drew's resume writing services for anyone in the job market. As a full time community college faculty member and department chair, I decided to expand my job goals to seeking a position in administration. John helped me immensely with updating my curriculum vitae and creating a new cover letter tailored to the specific job I am seeking.

I felt his knowledge of the community college system, strong writing skills and his connections were extremely valuable to me - helping me gain insight and add information that I would not have considered myself.

He gave me a lot of time from our first phone conversation until we came up with a final product I felt good about. His interpersonal style made me feel as if I were speaking to a motivational coach who was helping me discover my strengths and abilities to move toward my career goals. 

I strongly recommend his services - personable, well-qualified, knowledgeable and outstanding writing skills. With his help, I got a great new job. Thank you!

-- Dr. Irit Gat, Antelope Valley College

Start 2019 Off with a New, Inspiring Resume

One of Dr. Drew's biggest secrets of success as a grant writer is his skill at tweaking the resumes of the charity's key talent so they are more likely to win really big, life transforming grants. In our increasingly media saturated world, a fresh -- strategically designed -- resume can be the difference between winning or losing either a job or a multi-million dollar grant. At any rate, we thought it would be fun to offer a special in January 2019 for everyone who is seeking to find or get a better job. Here are the details of Dr. Drew's resume writing package.

Here's What Dr. Drew Will Do to Improve Your Prospects for 2019 

This is a special service of Drew & Associates.  Dr. Drew will ask you to email him a copy of your existing resume or curriculum vita which he will 1) read and analyze, and 2) discuss with you by phone for one (1) hour.  Then, he will 3) rewrite your resume curriculum vita, improve its format and look, so that it will tell a positive, uplifting, and attractive story about your life, your value to others, and the special skills you bring to the marketplace. 

Discounted price: $400. 

Regular price, after January 30, 2019: $500.

Payment by Check

For payment by check, mail to: Drew & Associates, 1231 E. Dyer Road, Suite 215, Santa Ana, CA 92705.

Please make checks payable to “Drew & Associates.”

OR

Payment by PayPal

 

Read What One Professional Says About Dr. Drew's Resume Writing Services and Why a New Resume is a New Life.

I highly recommend John Drew's resume writing services for anyone in the job market. As a full time community college faculty member and department chair, I decided to expand my job goals to seeking a position in administration. John helped me immensely with updating my curriculum vitae and creating a new cover letter tailored to the specific job I am seeking.

I felt his knowledge of the community college system, strong writing skills and his connections were extremely valuable to me - helping me gain insight and add information that I would not have considered myself.

He gave me a lot of time from our first phone conversation until we came up with a final product I felt good about. His interpersonal style made me feel as if I were speaking to a motivational coach who was helping me discover my strengths and abilities to move toward my career goals. 

I strongly recommend his services - personable, well-qualified, knowledgeable and outstanding writing skills. With his help, I got a great new job. Thank you!

-- Dr. Irit Gat, Antelope Valley College

Special Offer: Make a Big Impression with a New Resume in 2017

Patrick McGoohan in resignation
scene from The Prisoner television series. 

One of my secrets of success as a grant writing consultant is my ability to tweak the resumes of the organization's key talent so that they are more likely to win really big grants. Surprisingly, a professional looking, strategically designed resume can be the difference between winning or losing a multi-million dollar grant. At any rate, I thought it would be fun to offer a special in January 2017 for everyone who is seeking to find or get a better job in the coming year. Below, here are the details of my resume writing package.

Here's What Dr. Drew Will Do to Improve Your Prospects for 2017 

This is a special service of Drew & Associates.  Dr. Drew will ask you to email him a copy of your existing resume or curriculum vita which he will 1) read and analyze, and 2) discuss with you by phone for one (1) hour.  Then, he will 3) rewrite your resume curriculum vita, improve its format and look, so that it will tell a positive, uplifting, and attractive story about your life, your value to others, and the special skills you bring to the marketplace. 

Regular price: $400.

Payment by Check

For payment by check, mail to: Drew & Associates, 25195 Via Catalina, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677.

Please make checks payable to “Drew & Associates.”

OR

Payment by PayPal

 

Read What One Professional Says About Dr. Drew's Resume Writing Services

I highly recommend John Drew's resume writing services for anyone in the job market. As a full time community college faculty member and department chair, I decided to expand my job goals to seeking a position in administration. John helped me immensely with updating my curriculum vitae and creating a new cover letter tailored to the specific job I am seeking.

I felt his knowledge of the community college system, strong writing skills and his connections were extremely valuable to me - helping me gain insight and add information that I would not have considered myself.

He gave me a lot of time from our first phone conversation until we came up with a final product I felt good about. His interpersonal style made me feel as if I were speaking to a motivational coach who was helping me discover my strengths and abilities to move toward my career goals. 

I strongly recommend his services - personable, well-qualified, knowledgeable and outstanding writing skills. Thank you!

-- Dr. Irit Gat, Antelope Valley College

Increase the Speed of Your Grant Writing by Organizing the Key Documents

The management of enthusiasm can be one of the most important secrets to your success as a grant writing consultant. In my experience, people get more excited about a project if they get into action on it immediately. The problem in grant writing, however, is that you usually do not know enough about the grant application requirements initially to establish any realistic assignments for everyone participating in the grant writing process. Accordingly, I have a standard approach I use the get people moving which will also make it easier to write the grant.

For an interesting, first person visual (FPV) flight over nearby Aliso Canyon in Laguna Niguel, CA check out this video from a F450 RC quad-copter at 10,000 feet. Trish and I walk in this park.

I like to leverage the initial excitement of having me visit at a charity by getting them started on some overlooked elements of a complete grant package including:

• Updated resumes on the key leaders and program managers of the charity.
• Updated project budget that includes a lot of specific line items and details.
• Latest version of charity's mission statement and/or vision statement.
• Updated list of board members with phone numbers, addresses, board roles, and occupational data.
• Secure electronic copies of annual budget, IRS 990, and most recent audited financial statement.

My approach is to remind key leaders that these elements of a complete proposal are more important than anything I can add as a grant writer. In some cases, the budget document and the staff resumes will be key deciding factors in whether or not the client wins the grant. The sooner the charity starts perfecting these documents, the better it will be for their overall chances of winning.

It does not matter if you have always worked at the same charity all your life, or if you are dropping in at the last minute by quad-copter, you need to use scarce time efficiently.

Thanks to the preparation of the staff, Irvine Valley College earned $1.5 million to establish a new center to support Asian American and Pacific Islander students in 2015. They were among a small number of institutions to win this sort of funding during a time when legislators are seeking to trim the federal budget. Nevertheless, the staff at Irvine Valley College was able to take action because they were organized ahead of time and knew where to find the key documents needed to provide evidence of their program's features and prior success. Moreover, they had the documentation ready to demonstrate that they met the key eligibility requirements for the grant too.

Dr. Drew's Restaurant Review: Filomena's Cafe and Wine Bar in Laguna Niguel, CA

Dr. Drew celebrating with friends at Filomena's
 Cafe and Wine Bar in Laguna Niguel, CA

Filomena's Cafe and Wine Bar has rapidly become one of my favorite things about living in Laguna Niguel, CA. Even though my wife and I do not drink, we are nevertheless comfortable enjoying extraordinary Italian foods in the restaurant's upscale, sophisticated environment.

Tucked away inside the Laguna Design Center, I used to think that this restaurant was only available to the designers and retailers who had privileged access. This facility is now open to the public and everyday folks can now sample a restaurant that needs to meet the demanding standards of some of South Orange county's most sophisticated, high end retailers, merchants, designers and their discerning customers.

As you may know, the original Filomena’s Italian Kitchen in Costa Mesa has been rated one of the top 10 best Italian restaurants in Orange County by the Orange County Register. My sense is that this traditionally great food is now being served in a stellar location including outdoor courtyard dining near the Laguna Design Center's central plaza water fountains.

We have been there four times now, twice for birthdays, once for our anniversary, and once with our Bible study group. My tastes are simple. I enjoy the lasagna and the spaghetti with meatballs. I do not think I have eaten better Italian meatballs any where else in my life. The wait staff is very attentive and constantly refilling our bottle of water. I think they are starting to recognize us as infrequent regulars.

After dinner and a salad, we usually splurge on Italian coffee and share a desert after our meal. The owner, Linda Johnsen, is the granddaughter of the lady who inspired Filomena's fresh, light, flavorful spin on classic Italian dishes including salmon on lentils, shrimp scampi, and crisp Caesar salads. Last time, we ate in the courtyard at twilight at a large table surrounded by white roses in full bloom. We could not have been happier with our experience and we recommend Filomena's Cafe and Wine Bar to everyone. It is a little tough to find, but once you find it you will feel like you have discovered a hidden treasure. Be sure to make a reservation by calling (949) 349-9332

Filomena's Cafe and Wine Bar is located off of the blue entrance to the Laguna Design Center at 23811 Aliso Creek Road, Suite 122, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677.

A Fresh Look at the Wonder of Lightning Fast Grant Writing

When you have a long string of successes, I think it is easy to start thinking that everything you do – whether rational or not – is worth sharing with an audience.  I guess I'm sensitive to this issue, in part, because I just returned from a visit to the mixed results on display at the San Francisco Musuem of Modern Art. (See the YouTube video below.) Accordingly, I’m scaling back to the things I believe, objectively, will make the most difference for you.

This is because you can gain enormous advantages by learning how to write grants quickly and understanding that you need to properly use a team of people to create a winning grant application. In the next few posts, I want to leave you with 6 to 7 simple, easy-to-remember techniques that you can apply right now or when you go back to work, techniques that will allow you and your team to begin benefiting from this increased grant productivity immediately.

As you may know, I had an early talent in high speed writing. I have a PhD in political science, and one of my claims to fame is that I wrote my doctoral dissertation in about half the time spent by most graduate students. I was also surprisingly effective in working with my doctoral committee as I gradually won them over to my ideas. I think the evidence shows I did a good job too. My dissertation won the William Anderson Award from the American Political Science Association. I have been a professor at Williams College - the number one liberal arts school in the nation according to U.S. News and World Report. I know I was not the brightest graduate student in the nation. Nevertheless, I was the one applying these same lightning fast grant writing and team management techniques I’ll be sharing with you in these posts. I have applied this model to help produce $2.1 million in successful grants for the Coast Community College District (CCCD) and to compile an outstanding record that includes a 90% success rate.

Accordingly, I'm going to cover the most important techniques that have made the biggest difference for me including defining the proper role and timing needed for getting the most from the grant writer, the optimists, the pessimists, the budget preparer, and the proofreader.

Dr. Drew Visits the Anchorage Museum in Alaska

When I was a young adult, I remember the Max Headroom video series.  See, The Max Headroom Show.  This video sort of reminds me of him - along with the stresses we face in contemporary America including terrorism, invasive searches at the airport, Spiderman and the pervasive sense that everything we do is now recorded by a camera. 

This image is the result of a special heat sensitive camera installed as part of a science exhibit at the Anchorage Museum in Anchorage, Alaska.  For a quick look at the fun I had with this unusual image, please check out the YouTube video below.

Dr. Drew on Website Development: It's Not As Hard As It Looks

As you may know, Tricia and I sat out the initial stages of the website development era.  My impression, at the time, is that a lot of money went into these websites and they always seemed to disappoint the people who created them -- the people who had high expectations for cashing in on Internet and website wealth. 

Overtime, however, it became increasingly clear to us that customers did pay attention to our website and that we often got speaking engagements from people we would not have normally expected to request our assistance - simply because of the information they gained from our website.  For example, here's the link to our own, free website at http://johndrew25.intuitwebsites.com/index.html.

As you can see from my personal experience, it was extremely easy for me to check off that nagging duty in my Outlook task list - create website.  Luckily, there are many options out there for people looking for website building basics. 

The main thing I recommend is to take action and get something up and running.  Once you do so, you will be able to put the website address on your business cards and promote it through your Twitter and Facebook accounts.  Intellectually, I think it is also helpful to create your own website, in part, because it forces you to rethink your business.  Sometimes, in my experience, the effort I put into creating a website has more impact on the creator than the viewer.

Check out Dr. Drew's high school graduation speech from 1975

My mom was dusting off some old boxes and stumbled over my own high school graduation speech.  I gave this on the 50 yard line of the football field at Hart High school in Newhall, Calfornia. 

There are a lot of similarities between this piece and my speaking style today including my use of memorized phrases, massive changes in style and voice, and a mixture of practicality and sweet sentimental elements.  I was, for better or worse, self-taught, inspired perhaps by my role model Patrick McGowan.

Dr. Drew's Expertise: A Partial List of My Grants Applications

Federal Applications

U.S. Department of Agriculture (1) U.S. Department of Education (2)
U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services (2)
U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Dev. (3)
U.S. Department of Justice (2)
National Endowment for the Arts (1)

State of California Applications

California Arts Council (2)
California Council for the Humanities (1)
California Dept. Health and Human Services (1)
CA Comm. College Chancellor’s Office (3)

Local Applications

City of Long Beach Community Development
City of LA Cultural Affairs Department
CDBG – City of Mission Viejo
CDBG – City of Newport Beach
Los Angeles County Arts Council Grant (6)
LA Co. Dept. of Children’s Services
LA County Department of Senior Services
Orange County Probation Department (2)
OC Department of Children’s Services
Orange County’s United Way (2)
OC Workforce Investment Act/ARRA
Public Corporation for the Arts – LB

Representative Foundation Applications

Allergan (2)
Angel’s Care
Bank of America
Baker
Boeing
California Endowment
California Wellness
CA Consumer Protection Fund
DeMoss
Edison International
Fluor Corporation
GTE
In-N-Out
Isuzu
Joseph Drown
Mark S. Taper
Merrill Lynch
Mighty Duck’s Care
Norris
PacifiCare
Pacific Life
Pfaffinger
Parsons
Samueli Family
Southern California Gas Company
Steele
Stillwell
Taper
Target (6)
Tides
Toyota
VSAarts/MetLife
Warner Bros.
Walt Disney Co. Foundation (2)
Weingart Foundation (6)
Wells Fargo Foundation
Wynn

As of March 30, 2011

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Dr. Drew's Consulting Practice

1. How much does it cost?
Drew & Associates charges $6,500 for a standard grant package. In that time, Dr. Drew will deliver one model grant proposal, one model letter of inquiry, research on your most likely funding sources through the Foundation Center website, and then assist you in completing at least 10 applications and/or letters of inquiry to your top 10 funders. Normally, Dr. Drew requests half of this fee up front and the other half at the conclusion of his work depending on your complete satisfaction.

2. What are the most important techniques that you use to make your work special?
Dr. Drew is able to be three times more productive than a normal grant writing consultant because of his expertise in using voice recognition software. In addition, Dr. Drew has a Ph.D. in political science from Cornell University which means he is trained in applying the survey research, program evaluation, and measurement tools needed to complete a high quality grant proposal. Dr. Drew has over 30 years of experience in writing grants and scholarship applications. He has raised more than $8.5 million for various charities and educational institutions over his lifetime. The first eight (8) federal grants he wrote all received funding. In 2009, for example, Dr. Drew helped Coastline Community College District (CCCD) win $1.6 million in new government grants including federal funds associated with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Dr. Drew emphasizes product positioning techniques as part of a larger effort to help new charities break into winning grant money and to revitalize existing charities seeking to get back into the game of creating winning grant proposals. Dr. Drew understands the techniques needed to create clear and compelling arguments in English at a reading comprehension level that appeals to readers working for corporate, foundation and government funders.

3. How do I get started working with Drew & Associates?
To begin working with Drew & Associates, please call us to schedule a one hour appointment with you - either face-to-face or over the telephone. During this initial interview, Dr. Drew will ask your three basic questions:
• What's going well for you and your charity?
• What's not going so well?
• What have you tried to do so far to fix the problem?
Sometimes, there is not much Dr. Drew can do as a grant writer or as a consultant to be of assistance to you. Nevertheless, if looks like his skills might be useful to you and your charity, Dr. Drew will ask for your permission to create a letter of understanding which would guide his grant writing on your behalf. In this letter, Dr. Drew will outline the services he will perform, the hours associated with each segment of the proposal project and the total fee to be charged to you. He will be requesting a check from you for one-half of the total fee which he will need to receive prior to implementing the work indicated in the proposal letter. Dr. Drew will normally follow-up by phone in a few days after this letter is sent to answer any of your questions and see how we should proceed. Typically, all the work should be completed within 45 to 60 days depending on how difficult it is to pull together the necessary supplementary documents and forms to meet the requirements of the grant funders.

4. What sort of documents are needed by a non-profit organization to win funding?
Ideally, the non-profit should have available a copy of its 501 ( c ) ( 3 ) determination letter from the IRS, a copy of its latest IRS 990 tax return, a list of its Board Members and their affiliations, resumes for the Executive Director, Program Manager and Program Coordinator, the most recent audited financial statement, and a list of previous donors and the amount of their gifts to the non-profit organization. Additional information will need to be collected, as needed, to fit the particular requirements of the funders who are the closest match to your charity.

5. What are my chances of actually winning money?
A new charity that follows Dr. Drew’s procedures exactly should win at least one out of every five grant applications that it sends in to funders. Your chances of success increase as you gain more experience in producing grant proposals. Established charities who know who their prominent funders, for example, can easily obtain a 100% success rate over the course of a year simply by going back to the funders who have given them money in the past -- provided the charity has done a good job with the previous grant, properly acknowledged the funders, and spent the money in a way that made a measurable difference for the charity’s clients.

6. How much money might come in from a typical grant for a the charitable organization?
Initial grants given to a new charity tend to be in the $5,000 to $10,000 range. Some of these grants, however, may require a cash or in-kind match so it is important strengthen your other fundraising operations enough to secure the match.

7. What are my other options for winning a grant?
You have many of options and you are not dependent on Dr. Drew or, for that matter, any other grant writing consultant. For example, you can easily learn about grant writing through the courses offered through the Foundation Center in New York or you can take one of Dr. Drew’s grant writing classes. Dr. Drew teaches one day grant writing workshops at various community colleges in Southern and Northern California and has recently added a new two-day grant writing retreat program which will give you the opportunity to create a full grant proposal with his assistance in a small class limited to 12 students. At this retreat, Dr. Drew will guide you through grant-writing, step-by-step, so that you will emerge from the two-day retreat with a document ready to submit to a major funder in your area. If you do not have time for a class, Dr. Drew also sells booklets on-line which give you - in a highly condensed manner - the secrets of success he has used to become a successful grant writer at John Drew's Blogspot.

8. Can I win a grant if I'm not part of a non-profit organization?
Yes! Even though 95% of all grants go to 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, the other 5% do go to individuals. Typically, grants are available to individuals in the form of scholarships for education, arts or research projects. Moreover, you can also work with an existing 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and ask them to serve as the fiscal agent for your grant for a small percentage of the grant. Information on all of these topics is freely available through the Foundation Center website. Dr. Drew is honored to help individuals draft their scholarship, art project, or research grant applications and charges the same rates as his normal work, dependent on the number of hours required to create the relevant individual grant documents. A lot of the techniques Dr. Drew uses in working with individuals are similar to the techniques he uses to assist non-profit or education organizations in obtaining grants.

9. How many clients does Dr. Drew work with every month and does he do the work himself?
Dr. Drew tries to work with at least one or two new clients every month while maintaining his commitment to assist his existing clients. He does the grant writing work himself using voice recognition software. Dr. Drew has a virtual assistant who assists him with grant research and his wife, Patricia Drew, helps with the proofreading responsibilities associated with grant writing.

10. What do I need to do to get started?
Simply give Drew & Associates a call right now at 949-643-8058 or send us an e-mail at johndrew25@msn.com. We will work with you to promptly schedule a one hour appointment to see if Drew & Associates can be useful to you and your charitable project.

11. What other resources are available for staying in touch with Dr. Drew’s consulting, workshops, retreats or literature?
Dr. Drew provides access to his ideas for producing winning grant proposals through a wide variety of communication channels including the following resources:
To buy one of Dr. Drew’s booklets, order through http://johndrew25.blogspot.com/
To sign-up for his e-newsletter, Dr. Drew on Grants, and see where Dr. Drew is teaching next, go to http://grantwriters.ning.com/profile/JohnCDrewPhD

A Tribute to My Late Father: Richard C. Drew, Sr. (1926 - 2010)

My father passed away this week and I thought it would be appropriate to share some comments that would be comforting for my father’s siblings, his wife, his children and his grandchildren and – perhaps - his great-grandchildren. He is pictured here on the right holding the hand of his younger brother Albert Drew. He died peacefully on July 20, 2010.

1. For His Siblings: He was born in Michigan in 1926. This is the same year that welcomed Queen Elizabeth, Andy Griffith and Marilyn Monroe. While my father was in elementary school, he endured the economic disaster of the Great Depression and after high school served in World War II in the U.S. Navy. As I said during his eulogy:

He had two siblings: a sister, Marilyn and a brother, Albert. His family moved to California in 1933 and his siblings always struck me as contemporary Californians while Richard was much more of an import product of the Mid-West. I know he valued their time together as a family…and spoke tenderly about a trip he made to Redmond, WA in 1985 when they were last all together.

If you want insight into my father’s childhood, I recommend you check out the 1983 movie A Christmas Story. My father identified with the main character, Ralphie, a nine-year old Hammond, Indiana boy whose fervent Christmas wish was to receive "…an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot Range Model air rifle with a compass in the stock, and this thing which tells time." (The thing which tells time is a sundial.) Ralphie, of course, continually hears the refrain: “No, you’ll shoot your eye out.”

2. For His Wife: Richard met my mother, May, and they got married in the 1950's. From the photos of their early married life, you can see that they were an ideal 1950's couple. My mother is extraordinarily beautiful and you can tell that being married to her was the best thing that ever happened to him.

3. For His Children: My earliest memories of him include kissing him as he came home from work. I still remember the smell of his after shave…and the love and affection he had for me. I remember him, at the height of Cold War, stockpiling materials for a nuclear bomb shelter in the garage including wood frames, army water tanks, military food rations and burlap bags. Because of time constraints, I could not fit this into his eulogy, but I meant to say:

It goes without saying that he loved his job as a CAL-OSHA safety engineer and later as a top manager. When I saw him at work I was introduced to a whole new world of power and authority, a world in which opportunities for devoted public service were supplemented by lunches with his colleagues at Italian restaurants with fresh sawdust on the floor or by visits to cafeterias that looked like movie sets complete with colorful lights, waterfalls and California-themed dioramas.

Politically, he was an ardent anti-communist, a Goldwater fan, and early Reagan supporter. My father took to Scouting – especially its religious values and code of character - and was remembered for it for many years. He raised money and took us to National Jamboree where we saw Bob Hope perform. He was active at the district level and had the number one Boy Scout Camporee Troop in 1976.

4. For His Grandchildren: Later in life, he was a devoted grandfather who loved hosting the grandchildren (seven in all) at his house in Big Bear for the holidays. Remembering how much fun I had as a child playing around the Newhall house, I’m sure it warmed Richard’s heart to see his grandchildren happily running around the same hunting grounds.

5. For His Great Grandchildren: My father’s great grandchildren will undoubtedly learn about him from YouTube videos, blog sites, and genealogy charts - all freely available on the Internet. They will find he represented a proud tradition of American values and patriotism, a tradition extending all the way back to the Civil War and the American Revolution.

Nothing was more moving to me, at my father's funeral, than the final moments when a naval officer handed a folded U.S. flag to my mother and said: "This flag is presented on behalf of a grateful nation as an expression of appreciation for your loved one's honorable and faithful service."

I expect his great grandchildren will see a profound link to our nation’s heritage in my father's life and in his love for God, country and family.

There is a special on-line obituary for him at http://bit.ly/9GiO7Z which includes a beautiful photo essay illustrating his life, career, and rich family connections.

Weeks Ahead of Your Deadline: Understand Why Small Breaks Cost You Big Money

As a management consultant, I've come to believe that most people underestimate how costly it is to indulge even a small break in mental concentration.

I learned this valuable lesson while I was writing my award-winning doctoral dissertation. In contrast to most of the other graduate students, I made it a habit to work every day on my thesis - and not just focus on it on the weekends.

The problem with the weekend warrior approach to writing is that it takes a couple of hours each weekend just to remember where you were at mentally and theoretically prior to breaking off from your work. By writing every day, I saved valuable time because I did not need to invest additional time in warming myself up mentally to do my writing.

My normal procedure then, and still now, is to start by editing what I've written the day before. Then, I launch into writing fresh materials following the rule of NEVER rewriting anything the same day that I write it.

In addition, I understand that the same principle applies even to short breaks of just five or ten minutes.

Once my concentration is broken, it takes a bit of a time wasting struggle to get back to writing. This is true if only because I need to get back into the emotional spirit and energy of writing on behalf of a client.

Although I cannot shield my work from all interruptions, I have benefited by doing what I can to bring them to a minimum. For example, when I'm working on a grant application, I do not answer the phone; I do not check my e-mail. I shut the door and hang a sign on it that my wife created to remind me to say hello during my breaks. It says:

"MAN WORKING - Tricia: Please do not disturb me. I'll come chat with you when I take my break. Love, John."

I have also found that it works for me to write late at night when there are not as many people sending me e-mails or trying to connect with me by telephone. All in all, I think it's wise to select the office for the grant writer very carefully with an eye for... peacefulness, quiet, isolation, and tranquility.

At its highest level, grant writing is not a standard business procedure. To do it right, I think we will need to be much more sensitive to adapting the grant writer's physical environment so that it is a much better match with the functions essential to implementing this sort of high speed writing.

Accordingly, I think a fresh look at the physical environment of the grant writer will result in happier grant writers, happier clients, and happier results for everyone.

The Best Advice I Ever Received: Spend Time Like Money

What's the best advice I ever received? While I was teaching at Williams College in MA, James MacGregor Burns - the Pulitzer Prize winning historian - told me to "spend time like money."

Implementing his practical advice, I've revised my public speaking to reflect the simple, chronological perspective that informs how I apply lightning fast grant writing to benefit our non-profit clients.