You Can Do It!

By Kirby Adams

It's 2006 and you may be feeling the familiar start-of-the-year itch to create a new you. Here's an idea that can guide you through the process. It doesn't involve giving up anything, depriving yourself or adding more miles or weight to your daily workout. Instead you will find new interests, develop skills and, hopefully, expand your world.

Show of hands – How many of you were Girl or Boy Scouts? “You Can Do It!” is basically a merit badge handbook for grown-up girls. But I imagine grown-up boys can find something that relates to them as well.

Before you move forward, let me take you back to the origins of this idea. Two women are making a dream come true for their sister who died on United Flight 93 on September 11, 2001. Her dream was to publish a book. Vaughn Lohec and Dara Near finished the book their sister, Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas, had started before her untimely death. The book, called, “ You Can Do It! ” is published by Chronicle Books.

Lauren worked in advertising for Good Housekeeping magazine and was based in San Francisco . She noticed that her female friends, busy with work and family, often put off doing what they dreamed of doing. To encourage and inspire them and other women, she began to write a book to teach them, step-by-step, how to follow their dreams and seek out experiences. Borrowing from the Girl Scouts, she even suggested that women award themselves “merit badges” when they had mastered a new skill.

Lauren was pregnant with her first child at the time she boarded United Flight 93. After her death, her sisters decided to finish the book with the help of Caroline Herter, Laurens's partner on the project, and writer Yvette Bozzini. Lauren had written the table of contents, and completed the first chapter before she died. “We felt it was the right way to honor Lauren,” says her sister Dara.

The book is now comprised of 60 chapters or “badges.” The badges span everything from learning how to be a rock star, public speaker, author, filmmaker, photographer and art connoisseur to skydiving, surfing, yoga and horseback riding. There are also badges on cooking, home decorating, money management, personal style, travel and relationships.

Each badge walks women through the learning process from start to finish and includes personal stories and excerpts from real-life “mentors” — experts in their fields who contributed a lot of their personal time to the book.

To help you get started, Lynn 's Paradise Café has planned some free workshops.

You can mix and mingle with the speakers from 6:30 to 7 p.m., and you are welcome to eat and drink during the workshop. You can register in person at Lynn 's or call 583-3447 (EGGS) and ask for the retail store, World of Swirl. You can also purchase the book for $24.95 in the store.

A portion of the proceeds from “You Can Do It!” will go the Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas Foundation , which was established by her family and friends to support charitable causes.

“Working on the book taught us that yes, you can do it,” says Lauren's sister, Dara. “I think Lauren would be very pleased.”

Kirby Adams is the consumer reporter for Kentuckiana's News Channel WHAS-11, team captain for Team Crusade and a sports and fitness buff. You can e-mail Kirby at kirby.adams@whas11.com. Kirby is also a member of Kentuckiana HealthFitness' Editorial Advisory Board.  

If you know of a little “GEM” or a story you would like to share with our readers, drop a note about it to:

Kirby Adams
WHAS-TV
520 West Chestnut Street
Louisville , KY 40202