39 Year Old Bipolar Athlete Seeks Grant To Help Youngsters Contribute To Society
by Duane Paul Warr
I have had a dramatic life and who has not. I was diagnosed as mentally ill in 1998. I feel it occurred from loss of faith, loss of focus and loss of positivity. I have it back now. I am seeking a $100,000 grant for my business organizational idea. My idea is to help young men and women but mainly men to graduate from high school, go to college and play professional sports or have a professional career. I am a well-known athlete but did not know what to do with all my talents. I am a good singer, a good student with no criminal record, a very good-looking man (laughing out loud) and very athletic still. My first hallucinations started when I was 5 years old when my father's art jumped off the painting. It was a Black Lion jumping off the picture. It was my first conscious experience of fear; however, I was really a confident kid when I went to Catholic of Pointe Coupee from kindergarten to 7th grade. I sang in masses, acted in star roles in plays and as a kid had about a 2.6 grade point average. I was asked to transfer by my parents because I told my mom that in social studies class the teacher said, "Abraham Lincoln was not for slaves or against them." I transferred to a public school, Rosenwald High, in eighth grade and graduated with a 2.8 grade point average. I also maintained my previous activities. I made MVP in the conference and made the all-state football team. I made a 16 on my ACT test. I was told only Texas A&M wanted me while going to a junior college. I declined and took Grambling State University's offer to practice with the team a season and receive a scholarship the following season. I quit unwisely because I did not travel for the first game after training in August. It was the biggest mistake in my life! I never realized if I could have kept doing well in practice. I eventually would have traveled. I knew I was one of the top athletes if not the best. I survived making a 3.7 my first semester but it went all downhill not going to class. "No focus and wrong groups will not make you successful." Nevertheless, I worked and attended other colleges but lost focus of my number one passion of "football" and I've been bitter ever since for not taking advantage of my opportunity at that time. This life lesson has encouraged me to encourage others to keep focused on all their goals and maximize their potential while young. With one to three trades they are successful in, it would be easier for them to keep the encouragement in society as an everyday activity. I have worked at least 50 jobs with 18 years of experience from security plant work, stores and restaurants and many others. It is now rumored that our counselor kept scholarships from many. I don't blame anyone but myself. I just need one more chance. Sincere thanks!
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