The Resilience of Dave and Ramona Blanchard
The crisp, 45-degree mid-September air surrounded Dave and Ramona Blanchard as they enjoyed their morning bike ride to Snowbasin, a moment of reflection and gratitude for their health. At 72, Dave said to Ramona, "We just rode fifteen miles. The leaves are turning, wild turkeys are running across the trail, and there are two moose. We are not winded or exhausted. This is glorious. I am so grateful for good health."
Their early years were focused on family and business. Ramona gave birth to seven children during their first eleven years of marriage. While she taught an aerobic class to stay fit, some unwanted pounds lingered. Meanwhile, Dave was a serial entrepreneur, successfully building a financial services firm, a medical practice management company, and a real estate development company. As with many others, raising a large family and building businesses took precedence over personal health and fitness.
The Comeback
The economic landscape shifted dramatically. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 significantly enhanced the tax benefits of owning apartment buildings. However, by 1989, the California real estate market had collapsed. Dave recalled the devastating loss: "Millions of dollars flowed through our fingers like water. I tried to save it, but in the end, everything was gone, and we were $1,000,000 in debt."
The Blanchards chose to repay the debt rather than file for bankruptcy. Dave leveraged his avocation of writing, producing, and directing cause-oriented film projects, deciding to become a full-time writer/director to pay back the debt. Two of his favorite early projects were exploring explosive topics surrounding adolescence, such as Reach Out and Come in From the Storm. These films featured actors like Tiffany Brissette, Emmanuel Lewis, Gordon Jump, and Bumper Robinson. The military purchased them for every Family Services Unit and DOD school system worldwide. The films were also distributed in 30,000 schools across the US, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, including 600 schools in Utah.
The Blanchards relocated to Utah, a right-to-work state, where Dave had edited his previous film projects. When they needed to buy a house and everything seemed out of reach, Ramona offered a profound sacrifice. She took off her wedding ring, a design Dave had commissioned for their tenth anniversary, and told him, "I don't need anything this elaborate anymore. Sell it and use the money to buy our house." Dave reflected, calling her "the priceless rock."
Over the ten years it took to pay off the debt, Dave worked tirelessly, writing and directing over 200 film projects, including national TV commercials and television specials. During this period, seven children attended college, and four of the daughters were married. He also penned five feature film scripts, one of which was based on Og Mandino's book, The Law of Success.
A New Life and Lasting Legacy
In January 2000, while Dave was directing commercials in New York City, Bette, Og Mandino's widow, called him. She informed him that Michael Landan would not be renewing the rights to Mandino's best seller, The Greatest Salesman in the World, due to a cancer diagnosis, and she wanted to offer the rights to Dave first. Dave shared that the book had "saved my life during some very tough times, while paying back the debt."
Dave then left the film business, founded and served as CEO of The Og Mandino Leadership Institute for twenty-five years. As a result, he has given 500 speeches worldwide, from Pittsburgh to Prague. He is also the author of three bestselling books: Today I Begin a New Life, The Observer's Chair, and Equinimity: Conquering Mt. Entrepreneur. Dave also invested millions to perfect a Nobel Prize-nominated formal mathematical science developed at the University of Tennessee, which measures a person's habits of thinking with laser accuracy.
Health, Fitness, and the Future
Most recently, after Ramona and Dave collectively lost 130 lbs and reversed their metabolic dysfunction, they purchased the health coaching network that had served them.
What's next for the Blanchards? In addition to managing over 17,000 coaches worldwide, their single favorite activity is dedicating time to helping individuals achieve metabolic health. At 72, they both lift weights, ride mountain bikes, and wake surf with their children and grandchildren.
Dave is also an avid collector of Corvettes and classic cars, with his 1962 Fuelie, one of only five known to exist with a power roof, winning the Mayor's Trophy at the Fourth of July Auto Show in Huntsville.
Reflecting on his life, Dave emphasizes the critical role Ramona played. "Ramona and I were born in the same hospital, same year, and same month in Logan, Utah," he smiled, continuing, "I then spent the next 22 years looking for her until our paths eventually crossed in Poway, California. More than fifty years later, seven kids, and twenty-seven grandchildren, she still lights up my soul."
Dave Blanchard is the founder and former CEO of The Og Mandino Leadership Institute. After losing millions in a real estate crash, he repaid $1,000,000 in debt by becoming a full-time writer/director of over 200 film projects. Blanchard has authored three best-selling books. He now focuses on metabolic health coaching with his wife, Ramona.
"More than fifty years later, seven kids, and twenty-seven grandchildren, Ramona still lights up my soul."
-Dave Blanchard-