Too Many Curves and Change-ups

If any sport reflects life, it is Baseball! Each pitch is a one-on-one battle between pitcher and batter, and the outcome is always the same: one winner, one loser. But a rematch is just a few innings away. In life we also have our moments in the spotlight, we win some and lose others, but it's how we handle the outcome that forms our character— because in a couple innings you'll be in the spotlight again. We are human; we are expected to make mistakes, and we are judged by the lessons we learn from them. In "Too Many Curves and Change-ups" Walter Brant chronicles his journey to adulthood along the potholed path to life. He wins some, and he loses some.

Wally Brant grew up during the Cold War era to a middle-class family struggling with issues of race, faith, prejudice, and the pursuit of the Great American Dream. After the protection from the Selective Service military draft, thanks to a four-year college deferment, he served as a navigator/bombardier on a B-52 combat crew during the last three and a half years of the Vietnam War. His last tour of duty was served at Andersen Air Force Base on the American island of Guam in the Pacific Ocean. From here, he trekked alone westward across Southeast Asia, the Himalaya Mountains of Nepal, the Middle East during the fall of the Shah of Iran, and Northern Africa in pursuit of his purpose on earth. After making more than a normal share of mistakes and extruding himself from one mishap to another, Wally Brant became a successful businessman. He was the winner of the 2005 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for the state of Indiana, and in 2010 he was named a Distinguished Alumnus by Purdue University. At the age of 68, he earned his Executive MBA from the University of Notre Dame. He serves, or has served, on numerous corporate, school, and community Boards. He has no plans to retire.