Every one of us will, at some point, be a caregiver. For most of us, that role is blessedly short-lived. Taking care of a child with a cold or flu. Helping your spouse with a broken arm. Assisting mom around the house after a fall. For others, care-giving becomes an all-consuming purpose that dominates every moment of our life. Melody Vachal has not only lived the caregiver life for more than 30 years for her son with significant disabilities, she was also a care receiver for 10 years in the middle of it all following a serious car accident. And yet she thrives. Melody is a keynote speaker, author, and creator of the Space for GRACE™ framework. Drawing from her lived experiences on both sides of caregiving and from her career as a speech-language pathologist and health and wellness coach, Melody helps people move from surviving to rising. She is the author of the Amazon bestselling book Still I Rise: A Guide to Navigating the Caregiver Journey and speaks about resilience, intentional communication, caregiving, and finding hope in life’s most challenging seasons. Learn more about Melody Vachal at https://melodyvachal.com, check out her Speaker Reel, and connect with her on Linked In, Facebook and Instagram.

Saved by the lathe. After suffering a stroke, Chip Scholz found healing and inspiration in his love of woodturning. A speaker, author, and executive coach, Chip primarily helps family businesses in transition and finds that the same skills and intuition he uses in woodworking can be used to understanding the uniqueness of each family business and guiding them through a transition process. He notes that in both cases, “you can’t force the cut.” In a world often overshadowed by negativity, Chip brings a refreshing perspective on family businesses and the importance of the human element in transitions. He shares enlightening stories drawn from his extensive experience, highlighting the unique challenges faced by family-run enterprises, and how the careful patience needed to create beautiful, useful, and artful pieces out of wood are just as important in business. Learn more about Chip at https://www.scholzandassociates.com, connect with him on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipscholz/ or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Chippturns, and look for his books, Every Dog Has Its Day, Small Decisions Big Shifts and the upcoming Handoffs (expected in October 2026).

For more than 20 years, Charles Fowler has chaired the Human Values Foundation, which promotes positive values in young people’s social and emotional development. He notes that our values, which we adopt during the formative years of our youth, become our behavioral and ethical guides in life. Research shows that a vast majority of people have positive values, including things like love, gratitude, compassion, yet that same majority claims that other people and society in general don’t seem to share the same values, and in fact, tend toward more negative values, exhibiting selfishness, hate, and discrimination. Charles has been working across global boundaries to address that disconnection. He is the driving force behind World Values Day, an annual campaign that culminates on the third Thursday in October, which encourages individuals and organizations around the world to put positive values into practice. This year, World Values Day is celebrated on October 15th, but these lessons and practices should be carried forward into daily routine. Witha never-ending supply of energy and passion for encouraging positive values, Charles also chairs the Global Alliance for Values-based Education (GAVE), a network of leading academics and educationalists, is project partner of the Collaborating Centre for Values-based Practice for Health and Social Care at Oxford University, and serves as a delegate at the Values20 Group which engages the annual G20 leaders summits. Follow and get involved in World Values Day activities at https://www.worldvaluesday.com/ and learn about the Global Alliance for Values-based Education at https://gave.global/. Charles welcomes connections on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-fowler-b74987104/

The best way to honor the lives lost on 9/11 is to remember the kind of people we became on 9/12.

More than 80 percent of small businesses and entrepreneurs fail; most within just their first couple of years of business. Only a tiny percentage become recognized authorities in their industries. Robert W. Jones is an Authority Growth Strategist and Global Entrepreneur Community Leader who creates opportunities for entrepreneurs, experts, and organizations to transform their knowledge, stories, and experience into published authority, positioning them as go-to experts in their industries. Robert is the founder of iNET Publishing House and iNET Media and Events, and the creator of the #1 International best-selling Art of Connection book series. Through publishing, speaking and a wide variety of other communication opportunities, Robert has enabled hundreds of small businesses to thrive. Many of this will come together as the theme behind Authoritypreneur Summit in Scotsdale, Arizona, September 25-26, 2026. https://www.authoritypreneursummit.com/

Learn more about Robert and the opportunities at https://inetpublishinghouse.com/ and https://inetmediaandevents.com/. Connect with Robert on LinkedIn at

https://www.linkedin.com/in/inetrepreneurnetwork/

Imagine spending your days hanging out with teen idols like The Monkees, the Beach Boys, the Dave Clark Five, Bobby Sherman, David Cassidy, Elvis Presley and Donny Osmond. Or jumping on a plane at the last minute with Jefferson Airplane to fly to San Francisco, because they said, “Hey, come with us. You don’t need luggage, we’ll pick up whatever you need.” This was the groovy, adventurous life of Ann Moses, former editor of Tiger Beat magazine. Back in the 60s and early 70s, every teen and pre-teen girl in America wanted to be Ann Moses, so she found ways to share those amazing experiences with others. During her tenure with Tiger Beat, she created opportunities for fans to meet their idols, win special items (including David Cassidy’s puppies), and even appear—and have a speaking role—in a television show. Ann shares her story of her young beginnings as a journalist and how flourished into helping make dreams come true in this fun episode of Share Your Fire. After listening to this episode, you’ll want to grab a copy of her 2017 memoir, “Meow! My Groovy Life with Tiger Beat’s Teen idols,” where she shares the highs, lows and shocking surprises of being a part of the Swingin’ 60s. You can order autographed copies and learn more about Ann at https://annmoses.com/, follow her continuing adventures on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/annmoses and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/annmosestigerbeat/ Her book is also available on Amazon https://bit.ly/3Sz3QVf

“The easiest thing in life to do is to quit. It takes no talent to be a quitter.” Former professional baseball player Lou Vickery reminds us that no matter what life throws at you, you just keep going. After a shoulder injury ended his professional baseball aspirations, Lou didn’t stop, and went on through several distinctively different careers as stockbroker, sales trainer, motivational speaker, radio and television talk show host, and international best-selling author. Recently celebrating his 85th birthday, Lou says he’s “chronologically gifted” and although your body may age, your spirit, your soul, and your heart don’t have to.” Author of 27 books, his latest provided opportunities for people to preserve precious memories they want to share with the world. Stories That Outlive Us (a project that yours truly is proud to be a part of) launches on September 1st on Amazon.com. And keep your eyes on in early 2027 for a republishing of his first novel, A Touch of Gray following the lives of two best friends in the segregated South. Learn more about Lou Vickery at https://awiseword.com/, and visit his YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/@awiseword.

Get your copy of Stories That Outlive Us on Amazon https://bit.ly/3SCASDY.

“Life will fight you every day. You just need to fight back.” Craig Eagleson has learned how to keep on pushing no matter what life throws at you. His career as an Army Ranger was cut dramatically short because of an injury. He lost several close family members in a short period of time, and then his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. Together, they faced it all with “a smile and love.” Craig is an executive coach who equips leaders to move from autopilot to ownership, one intentional choice at a time. He encourages us to challenge our beliefs about ourselves with a focus on awareness of who we really are. The president and CEO of Prestige Transformational and you can learn more at: www.prestigetransformational.com. His new book, “The Power of Choice” is due out in September 2026. Connect with Craig on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigceagleson, Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61590631047314 or visit his YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@craigeagleson-prestige