Douglas Bowman - Florencia: An Accidental Story

Copyright 2017 by Douglas Bowman & John D. Mullen

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without prior written consent of the authors, except as provided by the United States of America copyright law.

Published by Dignity Publishing Printed in the United States of America.

ISBN: 978-1-946978-14-1

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I watched this story unfold firsthand. Two ordinary men, my friends, John Mullen and Douglas Bowman, had a simple ideabut it was to do something extraordinary. Their story is not only worth tellingits a cause worth joining!! I hope it inspires you to support them in their quest to help 10,000 walk.

~ Billy Baldwin, Actor and Producer

Florencia, An Accidental Story , is an inspirational guide book for all of us to learn from and to live by. The story chronicles how human compassion, combined with commitment to purpose, can result in miraculous outcomes. I take personal pride in the role Cal Poly played in this journey, and for the courage of our students who ventured to the Jaipur Foot Clinic in India to simply Learn by Doing. The result was a lesson of a lifetime.

~ Jeffrey D. Armstrong,
President California Polytechnic
State University, San Luis Obispo

I know what its like to hear a voice saying you cant do this. Most of the time, thats just a lie. The truth is, you can. I have done so many things that others thought were impossible. This story is in that category. Two guys who followed their dream. Let it inspire you and motivate you to change the world around you. It just might change you in the process!

~ Nick Vujicic, Your Life Without Limits , Unstoppable ,
New York Times Bestselling Author,
Motivational Speaker

What started out as an adventure to help an 18 year old named Florencia turned into a perfect storm of creative ingenuity and waves of emotion. It started with Internships for our Multi-Media Arts and Design (MAD) Academy students. They were able to leverage media skills learned in the classroom to a phenomenal effect. Florencia, An Accidental Story , is a must read twenty-first century recipe for lifetime success and empowerment!

~ Melanie Cava, Board of Directors
MAD Academy

This is a remarkable book of compassion, recounting the true story of Florencia, a landmine victim from the bush of Mozambique, regaining her mobility and dignity, with help, transcending races and continents. Florencias narrative stands out more than any other. Families help a relative. Friends help another friend. Who helps a stranger? And, more importantly, a stranger thousands of miles away? And yet it occurred.

John Mullen, an American businessman, and Douglas Bowman an English pastor, were living in California and read Florencias story in a National Geographic article. Thousands read the same words and might have felt a degree of empathy. These two men, however, chose to do something. They gathered a team of high school and university students to pursue a dream to give Florencia a leg. She was brought to Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS), Jaipur, India, the worlds largest organization for rehabilitating the disabled. In the next few days, she walked out like a normal person shedding her despair and miseries. Tears of joy rolled down not only from her cheeks but also of those who made this possible or watched her. It was my privilege to be one of them.

As I write, I am looking at the passport of Florencia. In just a few weeks she is arriving in Jaipur to get trained as a prosthetic technician. She will return to Mozambique to help others walk. Now, that is a miracle.

~ DR Mehta, Chief Patron,
BMVSS Jaipur Foot

Florencia, An Accidental Story , is a compelling book. It deserves to be read widely and to be enjoyed across the generations. The story captures the power that the human spirit, driven by compassion and determination, can have in the face of extreme adversity. Santa Barbara High Schools very own Multi-Media Arts and Design Academy students got to experience this first hand by being a part of the inspirational story that is still happening in Mozambique and Jaipur, India. May the book and this vital effort contribute to thousands walking and a multitude of young humanitarians.

~ John Becchio, Principal,
Santa Barbara High School

The call came on the eve of my 32 nd birthday. It was like a shockwave out of nowhere.

Happy Birthday, son! Youre now 32. Its your time.

My time? What could he mean by this? Does he want me to come work for him?

Dad, its time for what?

Youre 32 years old and its time for you to start your own business. My own business?

A shiver went down my spine. Nothing could have prepared me for this moment of emancipation.

Johnny, you know how its done. Youve watched me. Youve seen it done.

It is my time.

Thats all I needed. A serial entrepreneur had spoken, and I had his genes.

Two weeks later, JM Consulting Group was born. The delivery suite was a humble desk in the corner of a tiny apartment. The name was definitely a portend to the future, rather than a description of the present. The group was me, myself, and I. This would be a classic example of fortune favors the brave.

Unknown to me, the wireless cellular boom and the advent of the personal cellular phone was just around the corner. For me, the future arrived when it was announced that there would be an open competition for the airwaves of America. The winners of the wireless auctions needed consultants to locate the cell towers. I seized my chance. When I wasnt surfing at the local beaches with my kids, I rode this telecom wave and became one of the largest wireless consulting firms in the nation. Almost overnight my group grew from one employee to over two hundred and fifty staff working in 40 states, and a foreign corporation, JM Consulteria, in Mexico.

A caterpillar had broken out of its cocoon and was now exploring this new-found entrepreneurial freedom.

Like my dad, I didnt stop with one company. With the winnings from my telecom business, I formed JM Development and created a homebuilding business that became one of the largest boutique builders in the central coast of California. Until that point, I had reaped all the benefits of risk. I was now about to find out the darker side of risk. The housing bubble of the early years of the new millennium combined with a clandestine mortgage affair on Wall Street and houses foreclosed faster than a kids soap bubbles blown into the air. They started with such optimism and fun. Suddenly every bubble was popped. Houses. Pop. Bank Loans. Pop. Banks. Pop. Companies. Pop. The only areas growing like weeds in a garden were layoffs and foreclosures.

It was economic carnage, and real estate, so often the poster child for the American Dream, was exhibit number one to illustrate the 2008 nightmare. With the same swiftness that I built my organizations in the 1990s, I found myself deconstructing these enterprises, letting go of staff, and trying to land the plane.