Brad Withers, Guide

I’m a “city kid.” I took my newspaper delivery profits and used the train to go downtown. There was Snyder’s Magic Shop, Goldfish Army Navy, and Newman Adler Sporting Goods to find treasures. Even today, I’m happiest with a map of a city.

I seek out the fabric of what gives a city its story. My travels have taken me to most American cities and a number overseas. I’ll find the art museums, bookstores, cooking and glass artisan shops. I’m a collector of impressions and objects. My bucket list vacation is a walking tour of each New York borough.

I enjoy the history of Cleveland because it gives me a point of reference when I travel. Facts and stories make up our legacy. The stores I mentioned above are all gone. Some of the buildings remain as developers have rethought how we use our town. The streets remain. The people have changed. How we live and work has evolved, and so has our town. Our common area downtown has been re-envisioned into a modern communal space. People are at play rather than farm animals.

As a part of that fabric, I’ve been a Scoutmaster, in several “Friends” groups before I started traveling for my other work. I’m active in my church. The local professional training associations are where I spend my spare time along with an accelerated learning group and a systems thinking group. Currently, I’m writing a book on vertical leadership which teaches about why only 15% of people think like leaders and how to get more people to advance to that thought level.