Jack Pot! Your flying founder placed a bet. . .
It is always a gamble to spend time and money going to an event where you know only a hand full of
people in a sea of thousands of people who for all intents and purposes have no idea who you are
or what you’re doing there. To be honest the ASMBS event was very intimidating for me and my
butterflies before the event where not with out warrant. There were over 2500 Bariatric
surgeons, Nurses, nutritionist, psychologists and other ists.
Who am I? A software engineer with a big heart? How could I possible make
them understand how important the mission of the WLSFA is? Why should they care
enough to really listen to my requests for help, donations and support? After all they make their living
selling there services and goods to our WLS community not by giving our community things! It was with
those types of thoughts that I forged ahead and attended the ASMBS.
I was SO WRONG! SO SO SO Wrong!
I was greeted with open arms and warm hearts by compassionate individuals and GASP
dare I say it CORPORATIONS!
Wheel of Fortune Slot at the Airport! I put in $20 bucks and out came $138! Yes I Donated it to the WLSFA!
Now I am not saying that people or companies were pulling out check books and writing checks to the
WLSFA but they were listening, and engaged and wanted to learn more with promises to give me an
audience after the event to see how they could help. The most exciting meeting was with an insurance
company named Blis.
Blis Insurance Improving Access to Weight Loss Surgery
Blis sells an insurance Policy to Baiatirc Surgeons that covers their self pay and Pro Bono patients.
The Blis policy covers the patient if there is any complication.
For that reason, the WLSFA can work with doctors who have Blis because that solves
the problem that has kept foundations like the WLSFA from being successful in the past.
What to do if there is a complication? Well now we know! The WLSFA can work withBlis Insured
Doctors! The CEO of Blis Mr. Regi Schindler invited me to their private suite for a 1 hour meeting
and offered to help and support our foundation in any way possible. Blis has already set up a
foundation called
The Blis Foundation with a similar goal. They found the job to large and they needed to
focus in their primary business. They want what we want, to help the un and under insured
get weight loss surgery! The WLSFA and Blis will work closely together in the future.
We will announce more on this relationship as it develops over the next few months.
This is very exciting news!
Other companies who listened and gave me their cards to allow us to bend their ears at length are Allergan
Allergan
Also Ethicon Edno – Surgery
Ethicon Endo - Surgery
You can bet your sweet bippy I will be calling, emailing, faxing and texting them until they
Grant us our wish for much needed money!
To watch some very funny footage of the ASMBS event from the point of view of Antonia
and fellow WLS peep Gastric Bypass Barbie, watch Barbie’s very funny and wonderfully edited you tube posts !
Part 1- Humble but the sheets were clean!
Part 2 How the other half lives! The Aria!
Last but not least I want to thank Joseph Nadglowski, Jr. President/Chief Executive Officer of
the OAC and Executive Director of the ASMBS Foundation for inviting me to the ASMBS conference.
I also thank Jospeph again for joining the Advisory Board of the WLSFA.
Also I want to share that Connie Stepleton Ph.D
Dr. Connie Stapleton
Has agreed to be on the WLSFA Advisory board. If you are not familiar with Connie’s work
she is a successful Author, she wrote “Eat It Up”
A complete Mind / Body / Spirit Guide to a Full Life After Weight Loss Surgery and Dr. Stapleton
works as a licensed psychologist at her
Mind Body Health Services practice in Augusta Giorgia. The WLSFA will benefit greatly from
her advise as it relates to Mental Health Issues that our WLS community deals with on a daily basis!
Thank you Connie for Joining our cause!
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