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Life Though I’ve successfully run my promotional products printing business, Lynnpro, for over a decade now, my first foray into screen printing was serendipitous. After a chance waterskiing encounter, I bought $1,000 of screen printing equipment from the parents of a kid I’d met on the water and talked them into including delivery and instructions on how it worked. My wife, Cheri, and I owned Angelo’s pizzeria at the time, and I thought that printing logos on T-shirts would be a fun way to make some extra money. I was half right. When the first job came in, I made $400 in 30 minutes, but I didn’t enjoy myself. Instead, I looked down at my blackened hands — a stain that didn’t come off nearly as easily as pizza sauce — and decided that screen printing just wasn’t for me. The universe disagreed. Not long after, a fire that started in a neighboring beauty salon spread to Angelo’s. We were underinsured, and with our income up in smoke and two kids to support, Cheri and I were willing to look at any alternative to stay afloat. Casting around for options, I remembered the printing equipment. While I hadn’t enjoyed printing, I knew it would be lucrative, so I dusted it off and hit the road to find customers. Those early days were hard. I told myself I had to make a minimum of 20 stops each day, and until I got those stops done and scored a job, I never turned the car around. Every morning, I packed my ride with a gallon of water and a sandwich, and I set off. Sometimes I would be out until 11 p.m. or even midnight, meeting a bar owner in a shady part of town to convince them to buy T-shirts or hats.
looked up, and, when they did, I had an entirely new outlook on printing. Cheri and I reopened the pizzeria, only to close it when we realized that the long hours there were keeping us from truly enjoying our lives. While giving up the six- figure income from Angelo’s may have seemed crazy, we knew it would be worth it. When Cheri joined me at Lynnpro full-time — we’d kept it running on the side — we almost immediately made up the money. Before she came on board, I’d have people there working until 8 or 9 p.m., but, with Cheri at the helm, we got just as much work done by 4 p.m. She’s Superwoman when it comes to organization; she survived breast cancer, and she even works as a CrossFit trainer. The moniker “ Lynnpro ” comes from her middle name because I figured that if my company had my wife’s name in it, then I couldn’t mess it up. A lot of guys can talk about getting stuff done, and a lot of them can get stuff done, but I’ve never met a guy who can get as much done as a determined woman.
That brings me to Lynnpro’s most valuable asset: my 15 employees, most of whom are women. Our company has grown a lot over the years. These days, we offer custom T-shirts, backpacks, mugs, lanyards, mousepads, and dozens of other items, but the most important improvement has been in our culture. In the beginning, I tried to make working at Lynnpro feel like a party, but I’ve since learned that isn’t what people want. They want steady income, to know their responsibilities, to take pride in what they do, and to gauge the results of their hard work. Making those things priorities sent our customer service through the roof, scoring us a 4.9-star rating on Facebook and 4.8 stars on Google. Cheri’s and my philosophy is simple: Live life; don’t just exist in it. We strive to keep our work hours reasonable; get outdoors; and spend time with our kids, Justin and Miranda, and our two wonderful grandsons. Every hat, sweatshirt, and thermos we sell is embedded with those values. –Jeff Saxby
The maxim “Do what you have to do” got me through that rough patch, but things eventually
“Cheri’s and my philosophy is simple: Live life; don’t just exist in it.”
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BEATINGTHEODDS
3 of the Best Comebacks in Sports History
It was a classic underdog setup on May 4 when the San Francisco Giants faced off against the Cincinnati Reds. The Giants hadn’t won at the Great American Ball Park in three years. They’d been trailing the Reds all game, resulting in a 3-10 score at the top of the sixth inning. Statistics showed the Reds had a 99% chance of winning. But then, the tide turned: The Giants held the Reds and started making runs. At the bottom of the ninth inning, the Giants were only one run behind their opponent with two outs and a pinch hitter, Stephen Vogt, up to bat. Raisel Iglesias pitched to Vogt, who took a confident swing, and …
“It ... is ... outta here!”
Vogt’s home run tied the game, and Evan Longoria followed with another run in the 11th inning to end the game in the Giants’ favor at 12-11. Those watching saw sports history being made. Here are a few more tales of beating the odds.
HOUSTON ROCKETS VS. SAN ANTONIO SPURS: THE 2004 MIRACLE
There’s no “I” in “team.” But that didn’t stop Rockets’ player Tracy McGrady from scoring a heroic 13 points in the final 33 seconds of this 2004 basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs. Those final points resulted in a victory for the Rockets, boosting their rankings and confidence.
US WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM VS. BRAZIL: 2011 WORLD CUP HOPE
Having scored within two minutes of kickoff, things were looking up for the U.S. women’s team at the 2011 World Cup. But two goals against U.S. keeper Hope Solo soon brought the score to 2-1, in favor of Brazil. It wasn’t until minute 122 of overtime that soccer legend Abby Wambach saved the day with a goal to tie up the game. Solo’s elegant deflection of several penalty kicks secured a U.S. win and took the team into the semifinals.
CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT: THE RIDE JANIE RIDE FOUNDATION
MEET ONE OF OUR FAVORITE CLIENTS
We love all of our clients, but there’s a special place in our hearts for the fine folks at the Ride Janie
Ride Foundation. Since 2007, Ride Janie Ride has brought more than 1,000 bikers together for a motorcycle ride through Downers Grove, Illinois, to raise funds for those battling cancer. Not only are they making something amazing happen, but they also look great doing it in their Lynnpro -printed T-shirts. This year, those shirts were bright pink. “People have made it their mission to come to Ride Janie Ride for years because they want that shirt,” says Luke Pennings, the foundation’s executive director. “The ride is always the first Sunday in May, but people register in January to make sure they get that shirt.” Ride Janie Ride has helped more than 60 people with cancer pay their medical bills, starting with the event’s namesake, Janie Bawel. Thirteen years ago, Janie was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and needed a stem cell transplant. She found someone who was willing to donate, but, because the donation was going to be anonymous, her insurance company refused to cover the cost. Her friends put on a benefit to help her and raised enough money to reduce her stress. The next year, Janie asked if they would hold another ride, so she could pay it forward to someone else struggling with cancer. Now, sometimes as many as seven people benefit from the ride each year.
The shirts are an important part of the event, Luke shares, because their backs list all of the ride’s corporate sponsors. That’s just one way the foundation says thank you to the folks who give hundreds or thousands of dollars to the cause. Luke originally chose Lynnpro because our prices “blew everyone else out of the water,” but he has stuck with us over the years because of our patience and flexibility. We work with him one-on-one to create an exciting design, update it as new sponsors come in, and get the shirts printed at the last minute.
“The customer support and relationship has just been fantastic,” Luke says.
We look forward to many more rides to come!
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EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: MEET JENN CHARLSON!
Here at Lynnpro , we strive to put our employees first, and we love giving you the opportunity to “meet” them each month through our newsletter. For this inaugural issue, we’re happy to introduce Jenn Charlson, one of the wonderful women who keeps our operation running like clockwork. Jenn is our go-to employee in the production area, where she has the vital task of making the screens, which hold the images for every shirt we make. She works in both pre- and post- production and handles scraping, washing, and burning the screens as well as making sure that specialty embroidery and sublimation projects stay on track. She’s always there to help Cheri, the production manager, with anything she needs, and Jenn also works one-on-one with our artist, Sofia, to make sure every design fits the client’s vision.
We’ve relied on Jenn for three years now. Before she came to Lynnpro , she spent 12 years as a stay-at-home mom to her two boys, now 19 and 21. Jenn says that as soon as her boys were ready to leave the nest, she wanted to be out of the house, too. Even though she didn’t have any experience with printing — she worked in a factory before taking time off to raise her kids — she was a fast learner and quickly moved up from manual work on the Lynnpro production floor to checking designs in the digital room. “I like to keep going, work, and be busy,” Jenn says. “I hate to just sit on anything. One perk of my job is that my day is different every day.” When she isn’t at the office, you can probably find Jenn at the dog park, where she and her husband take their two pit bulls — a brother- sister pair named Ellie and Sven — to play ball.
They also have two tiny chihuahuas named Chunky and Storm who are always thrilled to welcome them home. Next time you open a perfect order of T-shirts from Lynnpro , take a moment to think of Jenn and all of her hard work; we couldn’t have done it without her.
roasted corn salsa
word search
Inspired by Bon Appétit Magazine
Corn is plentiful during the summer months, and this easy-to-make salsa is sure to be a hit at your next get-together.
INGREDIENTS
AUGUST BACK CHILDREN CHILLY COOL END FALL
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2 medium ears of corn, shucked
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1 large tomato, cored, seeded, and finely chopped 1/4 bunch cilantro leaves, sliced
1 jalapeño or Fresno chile, seeded and thinly sliced
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1/2 red onion, diced
Juice of 1 lime
Kosher salt, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
LEAVES SCHOOL
1. Heat a cast-iron skillet to high. Char corn, turning occasionally, for 10–14 minutes until kernels begin to blacken in spots. 2. Using a sharp knife, remove corn kernels from cobs and transfer to a large mixing bowl. 3. With a wooden spoon or potato masher, gently crush corn to release starch and juices. 4. Add jalapeño, onion, tomato, and cilantro. Mix to combine.
SUMMER SUPPLIES TEACHERS
5. Top with lime juice and season with salt. 6. Serve alongside your favorite tortilla chips.
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inside this issue
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When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lynnpro 3 of the Best Comebacks in Sports History
Customer Spotlight: The Ride Janie Ride Foundation
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Employee Spotlight: Meet Jenn Charlson! Roasted Corn Salsa Stay Safe While Camping
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KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY. Weather can change at a moment’s notice, and sometimes, it doesn’t give notice at all. Keep a close eye on the sky and monitor the weather on a radio. If a storm appears, seek shelter immediately, and stay out of low-lying areas. When you’re in mountainous or hilly terrain, a little rain is all it takes for flash floods to occur. If you’re in a ravine when it starts raining, get out immediately. ALWAYS STICK TOGETHER. It’s a good idea to hike with a buddy and keep a whistle around your neck or in your pack. You never know what you might encounter or when you’ll need help. Hiking with kids is also a great time to teach them to recognize landmarks and be aware of their surroundings. If you have a digital camera or smartphone, show kids how to create a trail of digital breadcrumbs or pictures to help them find their way back to camp.
While summer is winding down, families are looking to go on a few end-of-season adventures, camping trips included. Before you head out into the wilderness with your family, it’s important to be prepared. In fact, “be prepared” is the best piece of advice when it comes to braving the great outdoors. But what does being prepared entail? Here are four key tips. HAVE A FIRST-AID KIT NEARBY. A good rule of thumb is to keep one in your car at all times. You never know when you’ll need it. Kids may get a few bumps and scrapes while out hiking, or you might encounter poisonous plants, such as poison ivy or poison oak. Having quick access to cold water, soap, antiseptics (hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol), and calamine lotion or hydrocortisone cream can keep infections at bay. TEACH FIRE SAFETY. When you build a fire, especially with kids, teach them about fire safety. This includes building the fire itself. Pick a spot away from brush and overhanging branches, and create a pit surrounded by rocks. Before lighting a fire, have a bucket of water and a shovel nearby, so you can quickly extinguish it when ready. Finally, remember to only build a fire as big as you need. A larger fire can be difficult to manage and keep under control.
4 THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND ON YOUR NEXT FAMILY CAMPING TRIP GONE CAMPING
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