008: Overcoming Adversity and Finding the Path to Peace with Jack Gutman and Azim Khamisa

by | Jun 6, 2017 | Uncategorized

Today we discuss overcoming adversity and finding the path to peace.

Our first guest, Jack Gutman, shares his painful journey with post-traumatic stress disorder. As one of the last surviving veterans of D-Day, he describes the horror of the invasion of Normandy Beach. Our second guest, Azim Khamisa, is the Founder of the Tariq Khamisa Foundation. This foundation was created after the murder of his son and is dedicated to ending violence among our youth. Listen as they share their individual stories of tragedy that transition into peace.

 

We discuss:

  • Stories and solutions to some of the challenges that come from war and violence
  • Jack Gutman’s experience with PTSD – His journey of healing the wounds of war
  • The story of Tariq Khamisa – How his father Azim handled this tragedy
  • Tragedy in our lives – How we can handle and overcome it
  • Why violence is so prevalent – What are the solutions?
  • The issue of youth violence in our world today
  • A segment with Steve Sexton on smart money

“If you saw Saving Private Ryan, take that picture and double it. That’s how bad it was because of all the bodies we saw.”  –  Jack Gutman

 

About Jack:

Jack Gutman, as a 17-year-old Medical Corpsman, joined the Navy to serve his country. What he experienced in the war stayed with him for many years to come.

Jack’s book, One Veteran’s Journey to Heal the Wounds of War, explains his hardships along the way. He secretly kept his post-traumatic stress disorder to himself for 66 years. This trauma sabotaged his marriage and various jobs throughout his life.

Jack came to the conclusion that alcohol and poor decisions were not the answer. So, he finally went to the veterans for help. He resisted in the beginning but continued with the treatment for over three years.

Today Jack shares his amazing story about how much his life has changed. His reason for writing this book is to get our brave men back to a happy and productive life. Jacks secret is that you are responsible for your life. Find that happiness!

 

About Azim:

Azim Khamisa is an author, peace activist, and international inspirational speaker. He was born in Kenya, Africa and trained in mathematics, economics, and international finance in the UK.

Azim is a man that’s always on the go, taking action for societal transformation. He is the Founder and Chairperson of the Tariq Khamisa Foundation.

Azim became a social activist after his 20-year-old son, Tariq, was murdered by Tony Hicks, a 14-year-old gang member. He was inspired to transform his loss through the miraculous power of forgiveness. Azim believed there were “victims at both ends of the gun,” and forgave Tony. He then founded the Tariq Khamisa Foundation.

Azim created the foundation to break the cycle of youth violence by saving lives, empowering positive choices, and teaching the principles of non-violence and peacemaking.

After establishing the foundation, Azim invited Tony’s grandfather to join him. Together, since November 1995, the two have brought their story and message through TKF’s Peacemaker Assemblies. The duo has reached over a million elementary and middle school children live. They have also reached several million via video programs, guiding the youth to choose a peacemaker’s life of non-violence, and forgiveness.

 

“I think a lot in our society is contributing to violence. By the time our kids get to grade one they’ve seen over 100,000 images of violence.”  –  Azim Khamisa

 

 

Resources Mentioned:

Learn More About Hosts Paula Shaw and Ken D. Foster

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