I would like to have just five more minutes with a man who made me what I became in adulthood.

As a teenager in Amarillo, Texas, I was a poor student in junior high school–totally insecure and without confidence.

With little guidance from my parents, other than allowing me absolute freedom, I met a track coach at Amarillo High School who changed my life.

He convinced me that I could become a great athlete and that would change everything else in my life. He was right.

I became a nationally ranked athlete and received 32 full athletic scholarships.

In college, (started at 17), I grew up quickly, possessing the confidence to use the synergy of success in my sports to become a good student.

I graduated with honors, and eventually become a partner in major architectural firms that made my life rewarding and profitable for the rest of my perfect life–perfect, that is, except that in my vain and incredibly busy life, I never thanked Coach Dan Salkeld for what he did for me.

Without his influence I would be nothing. Just to be with him for Five More Minutes…so little but important time…my greatest failure.