About the book:

E. Cabell Brand

Tom Lovejoy, President of The Heinz Center:

This is a well-written and wonderfully inspiring book about a life of courage and vision and the joy of

learning and making a difference in a changing world a book for everyone.

Charles S. Robb, former Governor of Virginia and former U.S. Senator:

There are those who “talk the talk”, but don’t “walk the walk”; and there are those who spend their

lives helping others, yet are reluctant to proselytize.  But to make a lasting difference in our

communities, our country and our world, we need leaders who can do both.  Cabell Brand has been

leading by example for almost 70 years, and he’s clearly not ready to slow down or rest on his

laurels.

In his remarkable life story we learn how many different ways all of us could respond to the call to

help meet the most basic challenges facing the human condition and spirit.  By dedicating 20

percent of every week of his adult life to helping others (and occasionally scolding the rest of us

for not doing more ourselves) he has made a real difference in the lives of countless thousands. 

Would that all who read his well documented story of a life well lived could say the same.

Isabel Sawhill, Brookings Institution Senior Fellow:

What the world needs is more Cabell Brands who are not only dedicated to making the world a

better place for the next generation but who are willing to commit the time and resources to making their ideals a reality.  Imagine if everyone committed to spending 20 percent of their time giving back to the larger community?  Imagine if everyone reached out to those less fortunate with concrete forms of help from early education to insuring children’s health to        assisting felons to successfully reenter the mainstream? Many people throw up their hands at the enormity of such tasks but I think, by thinking globally and acting locally, Cabell Brand has shown what can be accomplished by just one person. One thing leads to another so that working in partnership with others, one is able to greatly leverage one’s own efforts. The “self-reinforcing cycle” then takes hold but only if someone primes the pump to get the whole process started, a process which Cabell Brand understands so well.

Gerald McCarthy, Executive Director, Virginia Environmental Endowment:

Cabell Brand has written a hopeful and practical book for all those people who wish to do live well, do well, and contribute to our shared human experience.  With passion and practical wisdom, he has issued a clarion call to return to practicing the principles that since our republic’s founding have made the United States a beacon of hope for the world and a land of opportunity for all. Commerce, conservation, and compassion combine in an extraordinary life and example for us all. 

Mike Rosenzweig, Ph.D. Co-Founder, Seek Education, Explore, DiScover (SEEDS), Director, Virginia Tech Science Outreach Program:

Many books are being written about the subjects of Mr. Brand’s book, but he has a life –time of personal experiences to share that adds a pragmatic and sensible, and practical detention to some otherwise challenging subjects to deal with together.  His thoughts are a ‘Must read” for students studying environmental science, economics, political science, business, and any major/minor in sustainable development.  Anyone brave enough to be part of the changing world that is upon us now should read this book.

John B. Williamson, Chairman and CEO RGC Resources, Inc.:

Cabell Brand is living testament to the effectiveness of teaching and leading by example. His brief book provides convincing and inspirational evidence that a long term and disciplined personal commitment to thinking globally while acting locally can produce tangible and lasting results on issues that matter to society. His life story and personal success should inspire the young and old alike to understand they too can help make the world a more equitable and humane place through persistent involvement in local issues of importance and that access to opportunity is contingent on personal engagement.

Davis Masten, Chair, President’s Circle of the National Academies and Distinguished Visiting Scholar, Media X at Stanford University:

Cabell Brand is someone few have heard of, but to those who have, he is often called an American hero. As impossible as it may seem for one person to do, Cabell has made a real difference locally on issues of Poverty, Economic Opportunity, Education, Healthcare, Environment, Racial Justice and Peace.  Each of these started with small local steps and often continued at the state, regional, national and international levels. Cabell tells these local stories in the simple language of young man from a small town in Virginia. But also he inspires the reader with glimpses of conversations like those with Nobel Prize winners Al Gore as they worked on the environment and Muhammad Yunus on poverty from the 1970’s and 80’s. He starts the book sharing a dinner party conversation with the US Shepherd Program for the Interdisciplinary Study of Poverty and Human Capability.

Presidents, Senators, Congressmen, Governors have spent and continue to spend the night at his home. But Cabell always ties it back to small local steps that if not taken, would have kept him from collaborations with such distinguished citizens of the world.

Cabell and his wife Shirley have lived extraordinary lives. Their work has helped tens of thousands of people live better lives.

This book inspired me. I am sure it will inspire many others.

Neil Rolde, Author and Former Legislator, York, Maine:

Cabell Brand has a lot to tell young Americans. This octogenarian Virginia gentleman has made a great financial success of his life, parleying a small shoe-selling company into a    major business that he later sold. But the point of his book is that his real success is not in what he took from the economy, but in what he gave back to the community – and, in this case, not simply the Western Virginia area where he lives, but the entire U.S. and, for that matter, our planet as a whole. Indeed, he begins his story at a private dinner with President Bill Clinton where he informed him about Community Service Block grants about to be cut and managed to have these potentially devastating blows to the poverty safety net rescinded. Cabell Brand, businessman and patriot par excellence, never forgot and still never forgets America’s duty to its society as a whole. His book is a perfect lesson plan for new generations.

David Paylor, Director, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality:

Cabell Brand has laid out a clear example of servant leadership on behalf of current and future generations. As we continue to increase our numbers, we demand more and more of our limited resources and place our future in jeopardy. Cabell draws attention to a number of critical concerns and demonstrates how each of us, on behalf of our communities and the world, can and must become involved if we are to maintain productive lifestyles and a healthy planet. I encourage others to be encouraged by and follow his example.

Gerald Paul, Businessman and Instructor at Purdue University:

The title to Cabell Brand’s book is arousing interest but most of all presents a compelling story of a man who has achieved a diverse variety of accomplishments. The book has one overriding quality – namely to make this world be a better place to live and grow up in. Here is a story of a man and his multiplicity of achievements that make me feel introspective. I hope that people who read this story will be energized to become the “Who” and do more to improve the lives of people around us – improve the quality of life in our country but starting with their local contacts and conditions.

Hunter D. Smith, Recent University of Virginia MBA Graduate:

While I have never been to a war zone and I hope I never will, I can only imagine the impact of seeing war-torn Germany and then witnessing the benefits of the Marshall Plan. I hope that others who read the book come away with the perspective of our universal connectivity and the global positive impact of a hand-up. The environment, the economy, and society’s well-being are all related. Like Cabell and Jonathan Daniels, people need to define themselves as part of the whole and then make a conscious effort to think universally rather than selfishly.