Rich Brenner speaks at Tea Party Patriots meeting

Rowan CountyTea Party Patriots

A near-capacity group of the Rowan County Tea Party Patriots met recently at Blue Bay Seafood Restaurant on Statesville Boulevard. Darlene Blount introduced the guest speaker, Rich Brenner.

Brenner is the former sports anchor for Fox News in High Point, a position he held for 26 years. After graduating college with a bachelor’s degree in political science, he joined the Marine Corps in 1969, serving as a captain in the USMC Reserves. He won three Southeastern Region Emmy Awards, the National Iris Award representing quality of reporting and videography and the prestigious Silver Circle Award while a member of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

Brenner used sports metaphors and analogies in his speech to impress and inspire the crowd to go the extra yard if you want to accomplish what others can’t. “Today I work hard at things people want to achieve tomorrow, what others can’t.”

In his “soft” pep talk for election year 2012 Brenner challenged every citizen to get involved with political issues and make a difference. Understanding what the Tea Party Patriots represent provides insight to this group and how it strives to support the best candidates to lead our county and country back to sound values. Tea Party members come from all political affiliations.

He asked citizens to be courageous and excel, not just ordinary. Excelling means doing the little things that make a difference to get the best people elected. He also urged the group to separate themselves from the crowd and outsmart the opponent resulting in a winning candidate. He cited the “four Ps” the Tea Party Patriots must follow to work together as a team. Those include: Be positive and have the right attitude; be proactive and take action; be passionate and enthusiastic; be persistent, don’t give up. Stressing that action is power, he urged participants to make things happen. Even one or two votes are important. If there had been just one more conservative senator, “Obama Care” would not have passed.

Brenner told the brief story of gold-medalist skater Scott Hamilton and how he overcame severe physical handicaps. He was expected to live no more than two years after being diagnosed with a debilitating disease. But Hamilton decided attitude was the answer. He would later say, “The only disability in life is a bad attitude.” The outcome of the skater’s life truly demonstrated what obstacles he overcame.

Several steps to success gave everyone present some organizational ideas to begin their course of action while promoting their candidates in the coming May 8 primary. Be part of the solution. Put yourself in a position to win and work it. Don’t be afraid to fail, but don’t set your bar too low. Americans must be willing, and a great start is by joining the Tea Party Patriots group, he said. It’s time to convince yourself that you make things happen. Always practice and play like a pro: push forward. Build and value relationships; you must connect with people.

Brenner shared stories of several athletes that dared go the extra mile in training and attitude to be the best and excel. The Tea Party Patriots must discipline itself to also achieve its goals, he said.

He asked the group to use the November election as an opportunity to recognize that this is our 1776 in today’s events. It is our chance and responsibility for renewing our independence. We must not stand by and do nothing, and quoting Vince Lombardi. Brenner said, “Perfection may be unattainable, but if we chase perfection we just might catch excellence.”

Rick Brenner delighted the audience and inspired us to continue to meet but more important, to strive to accomplish the goals of electing Rowan County Tea Party Patriots candidates that will impact the future of our country to bring it back to the values and traditions America was founded on. The group meets the third Tuesday of each month at Blue Bay Seafood. Programs begin at 7 p.m.