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In Building Bridges, the author invites readers into a journey across continents, moral boundaries, and cultural divides. This is more than a memoir-it's a deeply personal exploration of empathy, connection, and the courage to face our own biases
Through raw and honest stories, the author shares his experiences from the underworld of human trafficking in Southeast Asia to the rigid hierarchies of military life, and from the intimacy of cross-cultural friendships to his own battles with shame and redemption. Along the way, he confronts the expectations, traumas, and prejudices that shaped him and asks whether we can truly learn to love and relate in a world that feels increasingly divided.
Building Bridges is a call to action for anyone seeking to break down the walls that separate us. It challenges readers to question their assumptions, confront uncomfortable truths, and see others-no matter how different-as worthy of understanding. With humility and a hard-won perspective, the author encourages us to move beyond simplistic labels and stereotypes, asking: What does it really take to connect across cultures, faiths, and life experiences?
For readers of memoir, social commentary, and anyone interested in a more connected, compassionate world, Building Bridges offers an inspiring look at the power of vulnerability, humility, and relentless curiosity.
A propos de l'auteur
Buy my book. Haha.I'm not kidding, but I suppose I should say a bit more. My first published work is a memoir that describes the journey I've been on and will give any reader an inkling into whether or not they can trust me with words.My accolades, as shared in Building Bridges: Can We Love & Relate in a Polarized World?, include rehab, jail, anger management therapy, and bankruptcy. Top that!I also have a few degrees and failed out of seminary, but ... ladies and gentlemen, no one can tell a better story than I can (possibly my wife, but only in her native language). I can talk or write about ANYTHING. Try me. Call me up and ask for a rundown on the coup d'état in Nigeria, Türkiye, or Thailand-I've got you covered. Want to know about smart contracts with blockchain technology? No problem. Paris Hilton's jail time? No sweat.I was born in a small town in eastern Pennsylvania to a German Lutheran mother with family roots in the KKK (chasing down the Irish) and an Irish Catholic father who turned to Evangelicalism in college.They became missionaries and took my sister and me halfway around the world to Thailand when I was seven, where I spent my formative years.After failing out of college the first time, I joined the Navy and spent 12 years supporting U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. After leaving the Navy in 2011, I joined my wife and our four kids in the Philippines. My wife was a widow with three children when we met (no spoilers-buy my book!!!), and together we faced financial hell. I pulled us out by working in Korea, learning from the best and brightest at the fifth-largest auto manufacturer in the world. We ran an English boot camp for them, and they taught me a few things in return.Want to know more? Read my book. Discover the life-changing events that happened in Türkiye after Korea, and the transformation forged in the fire that now gives me the authority to teach others about building bridges and loving & relating to people around the world.
