Weaving Dreams: The Joy of Work, The Love of Life

FOREWORD

For years I ran and scrambled as a quarterback for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League, throwing touchdowns and huddling up with men who shared an intense drive to be successful on the field—to not only win, but to be the best. To us this drive felt like a gnawing, unfed hunger rumbling in our bellies—a constant companion never allowing us to rest on our laurels. Instead, it picked away at us, pushing us to excel.

When I first met Tami, I saw that same drive alive in her. I recognized the fire in her eyes and the passion in her heart, and knew that she was not someone who would find satisfaction in anything less than her best. It drew me to her; that determination and laser focus.

At the same time, I quickly came to know her as a woman of great compassion and true humility. If ever she had a moment to stop and encourage someone or delay her own plans so that she could stop and sign a basket, she would do it. And nearly to a fault, if ever a spotlight was shining, she would steer it away from herself, finding another to share in the glory and applause. She embodies "team player" in all the right and most honorable ways.

Tami seems to effortlessly walk the delicate tightrope of business and woman. In one instant she makes decisions with the potential to impact the lives of hundreds or possibly thousands of people dependent upon this company called Longaberger. And in the next—she is at home, arranging flowers, spending time with her children, and sending handwritten ...