A protege is defined as the student of a mentor. Luckily for me I was blessed and fortunate enough to be the protege of two incredible mentors, my grandpa and my dad both of which are no longer around. I lost my grandpa in 2001 and my dad in 2006. Both true examples of what it means to be a man, respectful, grateful, humble, provide for their family, and give unselfishly. My grandpa was an entrepreneur at heart owning his own bakery business in Brazil for 10 years. My dad had all the makings of being a successful entrepreneur but never received the support he would need to make a run at it. From an early age, they both preached to me the importance of family values, strong morals, faith in God, and the ability to do whatever it is I chose to do so long as my heart was in it. No book, no schooling, no certification has ever or will ever provide me with the life lessons both of these incredible men were able to provide me with. They always believed in me and would have given up everything for themselves if it meant a chance for me to be successful. I owe my drive, my passion, my will to succeed to both of them. They continue to inspire me everyday and although I know they would have been proud of their protege if they were still around, I would still give anything to hear it straight from them, the same way I did as a kid.
"Any man can be a father but it takes someone special to be a dad." ~ Anne Geddes
"My grandfather once told me that there are two kinds of people: those who work hard and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group; there was less competition there." ~ Indira Gandhi
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