Barbara Wright: 1938 – 2012

Posted on May 9, 2012August 5, 2012 by theFerf

Barbara Marie (Wright) Southworth, 73, died at 2:54 p.m. Sunday, April 22, 2012 in Tennessee surrounded by her family.

She was born Dec. 4, 1938 in Monticello to John and Edith (Widner) Wright. On Aug. 29, 1953, in Royal Center, she married Joseph Edward Southworth; he preceded her in death. She and the love of her life were devoted to their two daughters. As the families grew, so did their love. Barbara treasured life and her friends. She was very close with the entire family of Jim Maxson Sr. who were considered part of her immediate family.

Barbara was a lifelong resident of Monticello. She retired from White County Memorial Hospital in 2002 where she worked for 21 years as a Dietary Aide and later Assistant Director of Foods and Nutrition. She always enjoyed both her co-workers and the patients she cared for.

Barbara believed that all people are good in their own right and treated them so. She never met a stranger. Through the years, “Coffee’s on!” and “You’re on!” were poetic as everyone was welcomed into her home, and if you lingered, the games came out. She enjoyed traveling and camping and in later years, arts and crafts.

Barbara had a strong belief in God and His plan for her life. Nearing the end, she was excited she would be joined with her husband and forever be in God’s presence.

Ferfs’ 2011 – A Year in Review

Posted on March 26, 2012May 8, 2020 by theFerf

It’s always amazing to look back on your life and see what you have done in the past 12 months. That is probably what I love most about the new year. It’s not the aspirations to make my life better, but taking the time to think about what my family and I have done, and how we can keep making our lives and those lives around us better.

2011 brought a lot of greatness to my life. Great friends, great memories and great opportunities as well. None of this is designed to be bragging, if you know me you know that is not my strong suit. And you will also know that one of my weaknesses is a terrible memory. This post is mostly for me. I want to remember all of the things I have done. So with that, let me remind my self today of 2011…

Fitness

Staying in shape, finding new friends…

Ran the Fangtastic 5k with Matt, Rachel, Matt & Nick

Cycled Over 1,000 Miles & Raced a 100 Mile Race

Battled (and Beat) the Warrior Dash with Amy and Nick

Ran the Cinco in the Gulch 5k

Friends & Family

The ones I love, and the things we did…

Sold our Country House, Bought a City House

10 Years Strong of Being Married to My Best Friend

Watched My Sister Get Married in Salt Lake City

Celebrated the Life of Eli Witt (RIP 2011)

Celebrated the Life of Tim McGovern (RIP 2007)

Visited Mexico, 1 Week, No Technology

Visited Florida with Matt, Rachel & Nick

Built Furniture for Rail Yard Studios

Entrepreneurship

Managing Director of the JSF, Launching 6 Companies

Raised the First Round of Funding for Checkd.in!

Built Amy and Nicks First Startup – EverydayBetter.com

Invested in 6 Kickstarter Startup Companies

Attended TechStars Demo Day in NYC

Learned Tons About My Grandma Southworth

Funding and Growth (Doubled in Size!) for Change Healthcare

Season Tickets to the Preds with the CH Nerds

What’s in the Future?

I can only hope I continue to be blessed with great friends, a loving family and good fortune. I know not every moment can be glorious, as I found out in the past year. We remembered Tim on the four year anniversary of his death, donated oars and planted a tree for Eli Witt after his death from battling Lymphoma, and then finding out that my grandma has pancreatic cancer just to name a few moments.

But find the good in the bad. I realize over and again how important friends are. How important family is. And how important it is to try to live every day to the fullest. I’ve learned how to listen, how to help and how to care. I have also tried to teach more and more as I met with 100’s of startup entrepreneurs and mentors in Nashville and across the country helping them work on their companies.

My number one lesson in 2011?
Live life, appreciate your friends and family
& love what you do.

Life Always Gets Harder Near the Summit…

Posted on October 31, 2011 by theFerf

Every day I sit in my office and this photo is there. The picture is of Tim McGovern, Nathaniel Saylor and myself at the top of a mountain where we always hiked and climbed in college. Inside the frame I added a fortune I got from a Chinese restaurant a few years ago that I think fits quite well. It reads “Life always gets harder near the summit”.

I have a pretty good life, but that does not mean that there are not challenges. I work hard to make myself and others around me successful, and that is why I love this photo so much. Not only does it remind me of my friend Tim who died in Iraq 4 years ago… but it is a source of inspiration to keep on striving to be the best. To not let work get in the way of friendship, love or life. That hard work means you are doing something that matters in some way. And that you never know when it all might end.

Tell someone you love them today. Do something that you love today. And remember those who gave it all so we can do these things everyday.

I Work Hard Because I Play Hard

Posted on July 7, 2011May 8, 2020 by theFerf

I had the opportunity to sit with Nashville great Mark Montgomery yesterday for a couple of hours and exchange life stories. For as interesting as he is (read: very), what was most interesting was his straight forward approach to getting the info he wanted/needed from the conversation. An interesting example of this, and the reason for this blog post, was because of a very pointed question he asked…

“As an investor, if I was looking at your company to invest in and saw all the things you were involved in outside of that company, that would scare me. How do you get away with all of it, and why?

My answer was simple: “I take my work life as serious as I take my personal life“. At first he looked at me like I was a little full of crap, but then I went on to explain.

Loving What You Do

Most of us have hobbies or things we LOVE to do: gardening, biking, playing music, mentoring, volunteering, mountain climbing… you name it. Because we love these things, and because (for the most part) we don’t get to do them as much as we would like, we can become obsessed with them. We read articles, write reviews, enroll others, buy gadgets and in some cases fundamentally change our lives for these personal life things. That’s pretty serious. I take my job that serious.

I love what I do. I love where I work. I love the people I work with. I take my job as seriously as I take my hobbies. I approach each day like its that one week a year where my friends and I get together to hike into the woods and camp, climb mountains and tell stories by the fire. I love my job. Everything in my life is part of one story. My personal life bleeds into my work life. I believe it should be that way. When you are a well rounded person, you are a better employee, a better friend, a better spouse, a better parent. Don’t believe me? Ask the people I work with. It’s a shame I have to call them “people I work with” because for the most part, these are my greatest friends and people I share most of my personal and professional time with.

Work Life Balance is for Wussies

Some people call what I have explained here “work life balance“. That is such a politically correct way of explaining peoples lives in this world. Why would you not work for a company you believed in? Why would you not love your job? Why would you not work with people you would call family? Work life balance to me says “I know you hate your job, but if you have hobbies and friends that will make it better.” I know I’m making generalizations and stretching the definition, but whatever. I have no work life balance and I love it. There is no line between where work ends and life begins.

About My Imbalance

I am a founder (or founding member) of many companies, some here in Nashville (Anrovia Design, ShirtsBymail, Podcast Alley, Mevio/PodShow, CarlSays, Checkd.In, Jumpstart Foundry, Change:Healthcare, EVBE, etc). This is my work, and my life. No balance. I love my startups, as a matter of fact I love many startups (Im a mentor for Source Your City and NextGxDx, and others too). I also love being outdoors, gardening, cycling, motorcycling, family time, creating things with my hands, and more. My work life balance is so out of whack, but that IS my balance.

I work hard because I play hard.

Work/life balance is for wussies.

I take my work life as serious as my personal life.

Do You?

In Summary…

Mark, thanks for the time we spent together. To anyone reading this, I would love to talk to you more about this topic and help you find a way to work as hard as you play. Most importantly, don’t let people tell you about you. You decide who you are, what you love, and what you do… not others. Don’t be afraid to go balls out.

365 Days of Memories & Reflection – RIP Tim McGovern (3 Years)

Posted on October 31, 2010October 31, 2010 by theFerf

You know the expression “time flys”, we all use it. But it’s only when you sit and think about the major milestones and events that you realize how much has happened in that year, what you have really accomplished, how much you have to be thankful for and how much you have really packed into life. My trigger every year is today, October 31… the day Tim died. I’m thankful to have that trigger to really reflect on the year and think about everything that has happened in the past year, the people I love most, and the things I have accomplished. It’s always emotional to do, but a blessing none the less to force myself to take some time and really document what has happened in the last 365 days.

My Short List:

Celebrated 9 years of marriage with my beautiful wife
Introduced our new puppy, Ari the Golden, to the world
Started 2 new companies (CarlSays and Carazel)
Built and Launched a giant campaign for Jason Aldean
Signed huge new companies at change:healthcare
Finished (mostly) our house remodeling (and here, and here)
Moved my brother from CA to TN
Had a Snuggie Christmas
Help start the Jumpstart Foundry Microfund
Built new relationships with amazing friends
Explored Tennessee and are proud to call it home
Survived the Great Flood of Nashville
Had multiple San Francisco people visit us in TN
Ran a 5k Race and a 1/2 Marathon (results & pics)
Visited San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Georgia, Alabama and Indiana
Went on a cruise with my wife and brother
Gave up cable. Learned to relax. Smiled a lot.
Took pride in knowing Tim McGovern, and remembering him
… and SO MUCH MORE! (I could prolly double this list easily)

I encourage you to find one day a year to sit back and just think about what all you have done, and what you have to be thankful for. I miss Tim every day, but am glad he gave me the gift of learning to reflect and be thankful. I miss you buddy.