"Listen to Debra Berg's Interview About Social Heroes Who Are Helping Solve Problems In Their Own Communities" by Ralph Zuranski
Click Play to hear Debra Berg's
In Search Of Heroes Interview
Debra Schweiger Berg is an author, researcher, and public speaker. She holds both a B.A. in political science/economics and an M.P.A., (public administration) degree from the University of Illinois.
As an undergrad, she staffed the Watergate hearings in Washington, D.C. Post-college; Debra was one of the first women to serve on the staffs of the Illinois, Kentucky, and Minnesota state legislatures.
In all three states, she served as a finance analyst for billions of state agency dollars and led studies on special education, welfare, and education. Following that, Minnesota’s largest HMO recruited her as a senior financial analyst.
Then, in the mid-eighties and early nineties, she founded a successful international marketing and training company, TeamNet, Intl., in which she trained and mentored entrepreneurs. That success led to her eventual recruitment by Amdocs, Inc. and Gcom, Inc., both software industry leaders.
In 1995, Debra launched a 10-year personal quest during which she interviewed 130 of America’s new civic heroes, civic entrepreneurs. Her interviews exposed a hidden trend in America, which she chronicles in her book, The Power of ONE: The Unsung Everyday Heroes Rescuing America’s Cities.
Debra speaks to a wide range of audiences and captivates them with tales surrounding her 10,000-mile quest and the heroes who’ve invented eye-opening, working solutions to America’s toughest social problems.
She’s received acclaim by the Pew Foundation and cited by the Chicago Sun-Times for her groundbreaking findings.
Debra is presently the President of Power of One Publishing and of PowerQuest, a leadership training company that empowers leaders of all ages to realize a life quest.
She is married to Paul Berg, the assistant city manager of Champaign, IL. and is the stepmother to two college-age daughters, Julie and Jane. She and Paul are empty nesters and have a Schnauzer named Binkie and a cat named Callie.
They reside in Debra’s hometown of Champaign, IL and are big fans of University of Illinois Fighting Illini athletics.
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Ralph's Perspective On Social Heroes
Wow! Who would have imagined there were so many altruistic
individuals all over the world. They are sick and tired of
governments and charitable organizations trying to fix
problems that can be solved only by individuals in each
community working together.
These social heroes are taking the bull by the horns and
creating workable solutions to the problems facing their own
communities and countries. They realize that no amount of
personal wealth or material possessions will survive or can
be enjoyed if civilization crumbles.
What good is massive wealth if everyone else is poverty
stricken, deprived of the most basic needs of life and
desperate for community heroes that teach self-confidence,
self-worth, social and business skills and financial
independence rather than a lifetime of dependence.
People want to learn how to fish...not be given a fish every
day. They want to feel proud of earning their own way. Few
want to be dependent on the charity of others.
Historically governments and charitable organizations
dehumanize individuals by creating a lifelong dependence on
a weekly or monthly handout. Even with the best of
intentions, governments and organizations are incompetent
because of basic human nature. People seek to serve self,
protect their own turf and have their one way. It is
virtually impossible to understand or fix a social problem
from Washington, DC.
It is time we recognize, support and encourage everyone with
a dream to make a positive difference in their own world who
take action. There are so many social heroes who are ignored
by the conventional press mentality "If it bleeds or creates
fear and dependence on the government, it leads."
Author and researcher Debra Berg, in the book "The Power Of
One" publicizes the everyday unsung heroes who are rescuing
America's cities with little or no financial assistance from
the government. They are ignored by the media who promote
socialism and communism as the answer to all of life's
social problems.
GOVERNMENTS ARE NOT THE ANSWER AND IN FACT THEY EITHER
CREATE THE PROBLEM OR ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE PROBLEM!
Politicians are happy to tax the citizens into oblivion with
the false promise of solutions to all of life's problems.
It is only when we as individuals step up to the plate and
take responsibility for our lives and those in our families,
our civilization as we know it will continue to
disintegrate.
I recently interviewed Debra Berg. It is amazing and very
informative. You can hear her interview on the In Search Of
Heroes website and blog. Her website is www.powerone.org.
Debra kindly agreed to interview her social heroes by asking
them the In Search Of Heroes questions. This will
demonstrate the type of people they have become. It will
provide an entire new insight into these altruistic
individuals who personally sacrifice their time, money and
effort to help others.
They experience great joy because they are making the world
a better place, one person at a time. They are doing
something constructive and positive because they are
frustrated with government programs that don't work and only
create more problems.
If anyone knows individuals who are social heroes, that are
working in their community, that deserve recognition, please
inspire us all by writing a little story about them. Include
how we can help support them in their personal quest to make
the world a better place.
Ralph