A fluke. It can bring your biggest blessings when you least expect it, or take everything away from you in the blink of an eye. Just when he felt his life was perfect, DJ Santiago was faced with the biggest challenges of his life. Though it was hard, grit and positivity led him through his darkest moments and helped himself and others to brighter days ahead.

You’ve hit rock bottom when you decide to stop digging. However, Mark Busch wasn’t ready to give up or give in to his addiction. He needed a solution. After many attempts to get clean, he checked himself into a rehabilitation facility where he found the strength and determination to recover. Now, Mark leads an abundantly fulfilling life, with his wife, children and friends all thanks to his own grit.

Hope is easy to lose. Especially when you are calling someone for a scholarship everyday but have to hear them tell you no for six weeks straight, or when you and your spouse battle infertility for months. When you have goals to accomplish and dreams to pursue, you can’t let roadblocks stand in your way. Jason Sanders is the perfect example of how grit and perseverance leads you to where you want to be. All you have to do is keep pushing forward.

At the start of a recession with no other job in sight, Ken Guest made the decision to leave his family business to pursue his own dreams and visions. While it can often be scary when we don’t have an exact plan, grit and determination keep us grounded on the path to success.

No matter how badly you want to, there are things in life you just can’t do alone. It takes others pitching in to gain that traction under your tires to get moving. Army veteran, Greg Brown, experienced first-hand the power of community when he struggled to find a job after military retirement. Today, as Superintendent of Medina County Home, he makes a meaningful difference and lends a hand to others who need that extra grit to keep going.

In order to achieve success, you have to start with good leadership. Fortunately for Medina County, Colleen Rice provides just that. Her willingness to take a plunge into new experiences and challenges with an optimistic outlook is just what the area needs to grow and succeed.

We can all do what we are asked to do. We just have to believe in ourselves. But, before that, someone has to believe in us. Todd Whitman was fortunate enough to find those who believed in him, like John Liebler, in order to recover from addiction through grit and perseverance and succeed as Executive Chef at Sérénité Restaurant.

After an almost fatal car accident caused by an oncoming drunk driver, 18-year police veteran, Ron Stollar, was told he wouldn’t make it through the night. With grit and determination he forced himself to stay awake long enough to see the sun rise. Years later, this tragedy led him to become the Superintendent for Medina County Juvenile Detention Center, where he is now changing lives and bettering the future of troubled youth.

Just like running a marathon, running a business takes grit and perseverance. Jeff Smith shared how he has set goals and overcome challenges to excel in the insurance field and inspire those around him.

After facing failure after failure trying to accelerate his career, Nate Eppink was ready to throw in the towel in the Parks and Recreation field. Listen to how he overcame these challenges and found the place he feels he is meant to be.