Michael J. Coles, the cofounder of the Great American Cookie Company and the former CEO of Caribou Coffee, did not follow a conventional path into business. He does not have an Ivy League pedigree or an MBA from a top-ten business school. He grew up poor, starting work at the age of thirteen. He had many false starts and painful defeats, but Coles has a habit of defying expectations. His life and career have been about turning obstacles into opportunities, tragedies into triumphs, and poverty into philanthropy. In Time to Get Tough, Coles explains how he started a $100-million company with only $8,000, overcame a near-fatal motorcycle accident, ran for the U.S. Congress, and set three transcontinental cycling world records. His story also offers a firsthand perspective on the business, political, and philanthropic climate in the last quarter of the twentieth century and serves as an important case study for anyone interested in overcoming a seemingly insurmountable challenge. Readers will also discover practical leadership lessons and unconventional ways of approaching business. An inspirational and unconventional Georgia-grown success story.

This publication is an anthology of fictional stories, memoirs, essays, and poetry accumulated over the past six years and written by Lend A Hand Senior Writers in Tucson, Arizona. Over the years, our senior writing group has fluctuated in size from as few three to as many as eight. We don't have any rules about what we write or how we write; we write to express ourselves and to have a good time. Please enjoy our most recent contributions to modern-day literature.