Ageless Passions by Karen Putz

Tag: Karen Putz

  • Unwrap Your Passion, And Happiness Will Follow

    (Originally posted as a guest blog on Happiness Inside, which is now closed)

    Earlier this year, I pursued a passion that was long buried inside of me. I didn’t even realize how long it was buried until I began to unwrap it on my 44th birthday last year.

    I was sitting on the pontoon at my parent’s lake, thinking back to some of the best memories of my life. I was rather down at that moment, so I wanted to conjure up some memories that included some happy times. I thought back to my teen years. I learned to water ski on my bare feet shortly after my sixteenth birthday. What a thrill that was! I spent the next three years barefooting with the guys on Christie Lake. Every single time that I went out on the water, I was happy.

    One day, when I was nineteen, I decided to go out and practice some wake crossings. I caught a toe and slammed into the water in a not-so-graceful cartwheel. In an instant, I went from hard of hearing to deaf. When I climbed into the boat and started talking to my friends, I couldn’t hear myself talk. I just figured that I had water in my ears and that the hearing I had left would return.

    It didn’t.

    At first, adjusting to being deaf was a horrible struggle. There were many days and nights that I cried. One day, I came to the realization that I could either do battle every day, or I could embrace this new identity as a deaf person and get on with life. From that moment, another passion was unwrapped. I learned American Sign Language and a rich world opened up filled with deaf and hard of hearing friends. Happiness arrived with that new-found passion. Most of my career since graduating from college has centered around helping others who are deaf and hard of hearing. I started and ran a non-profit organization, Illinois Hands and Voices and began providing mentoring services through the state’s Early Intervention program. Along the way, I uncovered a passion for birth and I attended several home and hospital births as a doula. Every birth filled me with incredible happiness inside.

    Fast forward to October of last year: my husband sent me a link to the Today Show segment featuring Judy Myers, a 66-year-old woman who learned to barefoot water ski at the age of 53. I connected with her and she invited me to come to the World Barefoot Center to learn to barefoot again. The very moment that I put my feet on the water, I was filled with incredible joy. The sport that had brought both happiness and sadness in my life was now filling me with happiness again.

    img_4812

    At the World Barefoot Center, I met Keith St. Onge, the owner and a two-time World Barefoot Champion. Keith learned to barefoot at the age of ten and by time he was thirteen, he knew he wanted to follow his passion for the sport. He has competed since he was eleven, turned pro at eighteen and runs the ski school and a wetsuit company. The sport has brought him all over the world and he has been featured on ESPN, CNN and in several magazines.

    “Barefoot water skiing is my passion—it’s what I wanted to do since I was thirteen,” Keith shared. “I wanted to be the greatest. I wanted to be a pro the same way that young kids want to be a fireman. And I get to fuel my passion every day. When I’m on the water on my bare feet—it’s a feeling of complete freedom. When you fuel your passion–passion brings happiness—they feed off each other.”

    I recently had the opportunity to talk with Keith’s mom, Jackie St. Onge and I asked her to share her thoughts on passion.

    “Passion is your joy,” Jackie explained. “It is the essence of who you are. You have to unwrap it and find it. Some people find it easier than others. The body and the mind and the soul become one when you find your passion. Passion comes naturally to a person. It is like running water: turn on the tap and it flows.”

    Passion and happiness are intertwined. When you discover your passion and incorporate it into your life, happiness follows. If you’re not sure how to answer the question, “What is your passion?” you can find the answer by reflecting on the happy and joyful times in your life. What fires you up? What feeds your soul? What puts a smile on your face in the morning and a deep sense of satisfaction and joy when your head hits the pillow at night?

    Passion is inside each and every one of us. Unwrap yours.


    Copyright Karen Putz, November 2010

    Are you new here? Subscribe to receive the next post and other goodies: Yes, I want more PASSION in my life!

  • Karen Putz in Ability Magazine

    Check out the current issue of Ability magazine, featuring “Standing on Her Own Two Feet,” which chronicles my return to barefoot water skiing.  The story also features Keith St. Onge, but unfortunately, they left out Judy Myers!   It was the hubby who found the link to the Today show segment that lead me to Judy Myers, who lead me to Keith and the World Barefoot Center.  Life did a 180!  Thank you, Keith, Judy and Joe– for turning it all around.

    To receive a free digi-issue of Ability magazine, click the “Like” button on Facebook:  Free Issue of Ability Magazine

  • Karen Putz Barefooting on Growing Bolder TV

    Bill Shafer and cameraman, Jason Morrow from Growing Bolder TV did a great job capturing the story of how I met Judy Myers and Keith St. Onge at the World Barefoot Center.  You can see my very first, sort-of-official backward barefoot start (with no shoes!)– but don’t blink, or you’ll miss me keeling right over two seconds later.

    Find more inspiring video, audio, and images at Growing Bolder.

    Filming at the World Barefoot Center

    Karen Putz on Growing Bolder

  • A Scramble of Updates

    First of all, today’s the first official day of… unemployment.  That’s right, I’m no longer a Sales Manager for ZVRS, a job that I’ve held the last two and half years.  I’ll dearly miss the Z Team, but with my Z-20, I can stay in touch with everyone.  And speaking of the Z-20, I just gotta say that the VCO really rocks on it!  It comes with a phone as well as the headset option.  I just got off the phone with a gal from a major corporation and she had to ask me, “Karen, I know you’re deaf– how is it possible for you to be talking to me right now?”  Technology and top-notch interpreters– gotta love it!

    I just got back from Gallaudet University, where I gave a presentation on “Unwrapping Your Passion” at the Global Deaf Women retreat.  I had the honor of giving away a copy of my ultimate favorite book, “Aspire: Discovering Your Purpose Through the Power of Words,” by Kevin Hall.   Kevin kindly sent me a signed copy of his book and I thought long and hard about who I wanted to share it with– I knew that the Global Deaf Women retreat was just the place for it.  Cindi Molloy was the proud recipient of the book and I can’t wait to see what she learns from it.

    Before I left for D.C., I met Stephen Hopson for lunch and then we took off for the Drake Hotel for the Social Media Chicago event.  Stephen is the author of Obstacle Illusions, another book that I highly recommend to everyone.  Stay tuned for a post on Stephen and some insight into his book!  Stephen and I met online several years back and we connected at an SOBCon Conference in 2008.  He has become one of my dearest friends and my fake husband (yes, the real life hubby knows!).   Stephen was in town to speak at Debra Poneman’s Yes to Success workshop where he received a standing ovation.  Before we took off for our respective speaking gigs, we enjoyed a night of connecting with the SOBCon gang, including Liz Strauss, Chris Brogan, Wendy Piersall, Becky McCray, Sheila Scarborough, Chris Garrett, and Lorelle VanFossen.

    Coming up on PBS and Create TV is a show called Growing Bolder, featuring a segment on my return to barefoot water skiing.  You can see the teaser paragraph on this month’s issue of the Growing Bolder Insider.  Scroll down to the bottom and you’ll see a picture of me barefooting (sort of… I’m on shoes!) backward.  I’m proud to say that since it was filmed, I actually did learn to barefoot backwards on my feet.

    Karen-Putz4x3.jpg

    In the next Insider: What do you do when the one thing you love most is the one thing everyone tells you not to do? As a teen, Karen Putz lost her hearing while barefoot waterskiing. More than 25 years passed, but her desire to get back on her feet kept burning within her, until she finally decided to try to barefoot again.

    No Skis, No Sound, No Problem!

    When I arrived home, I thumbed through The Waterskier magazine and sat down to read “Legends Collide,” an article that I wrote featuring two-time World Barefoot Champion Keith St. Onge and Glen Plake, who was inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame.  It never gets old to read stuff in print!

    Everyone has been asking, “What’s next?’  I’m focusing on finishing the books I’ve started and booking more speaking engagements.  Joe and I have also teamed up with Send Out Cards, a company that I also use as a marketing tool: Appreciation Marketing Goes A Long Way.  For every card you send, a percentage goes toward barefoot training and competitions. You are welcomed to try it– send a card for free.  If you’re interested in joining my team at Send Out Cards, shoot me an email at karen (at) karenputz ( dot) com.

    To wrap up, I wanted to share a quote by William Hutchinson Murray that can be found at the beginning of Chapter Two in Aspire:

    The moment one definitely commits oneself then Providence moves too.  All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred… unforeseen incidents, meetings, and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would have come his way.

  • Karen Putz in Suburban Woman Magazine

    You know those thick magazines that you find in the doctor’s offices around town?  Well, you’ll find me in Suburban Woman:

    Deaf Mom Barefoots Her Way to Weight Loss

    And in other news, you’ll find me talking about drive-thru access using the Order Assist at Culver’s restaurants:

    Culver’s Program Helps Deaf Place Orders

    A bit ironic, since the drive-thru is a rare thing for me now.  At least Culver’s has some good salads!

  • Karen Putz Interview –The Pearls

    On June 4th, I will be heading to LA to join 19 other deaf woman for the The Pearls event.   It is a wonderful honor to be included with such an amazing group of deaf women and I look forward to meeting them all.   The event is modeled after Oprah’s The Legends Weekend, where Oprah honored a group of African-American women who made history by paving the way for other women.   

    Here’s the video interview that I did for The Pearls (captions, ASL and transcript included) :

    Karen Putz Video Interview

  • Karen and Judy’s Story: Growing Bolder on PBS

    Last Thursday, I had the pleasure of meeting Bill Shafer from the TV show, Growing Bolder, which is broadcast on PBS stations nationwide.  Bill, and cameraman, Jason Morrow, were on hand at the World Barefoot Center to capture the story of how I met Judy “The Old Lady” Myers and went back to barefoot water skiing after becoming deaf from a barefooting fall as a teen.   Bill is the Executive Vice President of Growing Bolder Media and was a news anchor for WESH Channel 2 for 25 years.  From the moment I met Bill, I was instantly comfortable with him and it was easy to see why he is considered one of America’s best storytellers– within minutes, he was entertaining us with stories of people he interviewed over the years!

    I first discovered the Growing Bolder website while doing some research on Banana George for a book that I’m working on.  From the first moment I set eyes on the site, I was intrigued by the stories of people living bold, exciting lives.  Growing Bolder is about folks who break the boundaries of ageism, and it’s reflected in their motto:  “It’s not about age, it’s about attitude.”  Growing Bolder reminds us that we don’t have to settle for ho-hum lives as we get older– we can break the stereotypes and reinvent ourselves along the way.

    After interviewing me and Judy– Bill and Jason joined us in the boat with Keith St. Onge.  “Watch me fall in front of the camera,” I dryly remarked to Judy as we walked toward the dock.  Sure enough, I went tumbling in the water on the first deep water start.   There’s a lesson right there– don’t go entertaining negative thoughts or you’ll put them right into action.

    “Watch what she does on water,” I told Bill, as Judy got ready to do some barefooting.  “You won’t believe she’s 68!”   It was amusing to watch Bill’s mouth fall open as Judy did one foots, toe holds, tumble turns and backwards.   When it was my turn, I shakily lifted my foot for a short one-foot ride and then did some backwards barefooting on shoes.  I ditched the shoes to try a backwards start on my feet and made it up for a very brief ride before falling over.  Judy claims it is an official “you got up and rode it” start, but I’ll have to wait to see the evidence on the Growing Bolder show.

    Growing Bolder is broadcast on over 250 PBS stations.  To check if it will be shown in your area:  Growing Bolder TV by Zip Code.  If you don’t see your local station listed, you can contact your station and ask them to add the show to their line up.

    “I feel like I’ve known you for fifteen years,” Bill said as he hugged me goodbye.  “Except you’re not that old!” he grinned.

    Karen, Bill and Keith

  • Women’s Barefoot Week Featured in Waterski Magazine

    Back in November, 2010, I spent a week barefooting with gals from all over the U.S.  We gathered at the World Barefoot Center for a week of fun skimming on the water.  Waterski magazine joined us for a morning and took a snapshot of all of us barefooting off two booms, two boats (see below).   The article and short clip about my return to barefooting are in the March issue of Waterski magazine.

    Waterskier magazine included a blurb about Women’s week in their newsletter (reprinted below).  The World Barefoot Center will host another Women’s Barefoot Week in November and it promises to fill up fast, so reserve your spot!  This is your only chance to see Keith St. Onge, David Small and Swampy in a dress!

    WOMEN’S BAREFOOT WEEK

    Judy “Old Lady” Meyers, 67, is on a mission to prove that barefooting is not just a sport for the physically young, but is a sport that everyone, especially women of all ages, can safely enjoy.

    Judy organized the recent “Women’s Week” barefoot clinic at the World Barefoot Center, Nov. 1-6, in Winter Haven, Fla. Fifteen women’s barefooters – 12 over the age of 40, with four of those being over age 60 – enjoyed a week of barefooting and camaraderie.

    World Barefoot Center

    ‘Footers pictured above are (back row, left-to-right): Keith St. Onge and Lauren Lindeman, World Barefoot Center; Karen Putz, Chicago, Ill.; Claudia Landon, Post Falls, Idaho; Judy Myer, Alpine, Calif.; Coach Gary “Swampy” Bouchard, World Barefoot Center; Valerie Shinn, Redmond, Wash.; David Small, World Barefoot Center; Lorraine Piskura, New Fairfield, Conn; (Kneeling, left-to-right): Charlene Portman, Clearwater, Fla.; Joann O’Connor, Oshkosh, Wis.; Kay Wiser, Winter Haven, Fla.; and Lisa Browning, Winter Haven, Fla.

    For information about women’s barefooting and future events, contact Judy at oldbarefooter@mac.com.

  • A Size Six? You Gotta Be Kidding

    Over on AOL That’s Fit, I shared my story of losing weight and taking up barefoot water skiing again.   Here’s the link:

    Karen Rediscovered Her Passion

    The story was posted earlier in the week and was featured on the front of the AOL website several times.   Emails, tweets and Facebook messages have been coming in, mostly with people expressing shock at the before picture.  At a recent ZVRS presentation, a senior citizen came up to me and said, “Wow, you lost weight!  That’s much better!  You were so fat before!”  Gotta love those seniors, they tell it like it is, in colorful sign language.

    My oldest son even did a double-take at the photo of me.  “Mom, I didn’t realize you were that… big,” he said.  He glanced at me and then came over and gave me a hug. 

    Debra Poneman, the gal behind the “Yes to Success” seminars, said, “I nearly fell off my chair when I saw the photo of you at 220 on the That’s Fit article.”  

    Well, Debra, you and me, both.  I guess that’s why I avoided the scale and the mirror for a long, long time.

    I still have a ways to go to get rid of the rest of the pounds.  It’s a work in progress.  During the last couple of weeks, I have been going to Bikram Yoga.  Most days, I actually enjoy the challenge of getting through 90 minutes of poses in a hot, hot, hot room.   Then there are other days when I want to run screaming out of the room into a tub of ice.

    The most amusing part of the whole losing weight saga has been the comments left on the That’s Fit story.  Here’s one:

    I am really happy for her and her weight loss. But somehow I find myself wondering when I read this article and many magazine articles where people are said to “finally buy a size 6 jean” at 168 lbs??? I bobble between 158-162 and I am in a 12 comfortably and can still squeeze in my 10’s on a good day. I might get one leg in a 6. Exactly what kind of jeans are these people buying??

    I have two pairs of size six jeans, one from St. John’s Bay and the other from Target.  At 168 pounds, people are scratching their heads trying to figure out how that could possibly be true.  I wonder the same thing myself at times, because I weigh exactly the same as I did back in November when the barefooting photo was taken, yet have gone down two sizes since then.  But then again, jeans vary in sizes like crazy.  I can’t get into a size six in jeans from Eddie Bauer. 

    So to give you an idea of my jeans one year ago and my jeans today, take a look:

  • Chicago Tribune TribLocal and Chicago Now Posts

    I’ve been writing for the Chicago Tribune TribLocal and the Chicago Now blog since fall of 2010. It has been fun seeing my stuff in print and online.

    Yesterday, I had the opportunity to interview Kristi McNaron and Laura Ball from The Dave Ramsey Show about their weight loss success. This is a wonderful, inspiring story of friendship:

    Co-Workers Lose 150 Pounds Together

    To read the rest of my Chicago Now posts:

    Barefoot in the Burbs by Karen Putz

    From the TribLocal:

    The Importance of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Role Models

    To read the rest of my TribLocal Articles:

    TribLocal by Karen Putz