Spotlight on Farrah Gray

We interrupt these unrelenting posts about the problems of the world to turn your attention to one the solutions: Farrah Gray. Almost overnight my little blog has been flooded with what is for me an explosion of Google search hits from inquiries about this guy. My post from a year ago last June is getting more play than almost anything I ever published, an indication that a lot of people are looking for information about this remarkable young man. (If you misspell his name as farah grey the search puts my link at the top. I don't want to think about whether that little quirk has any meaning...)

I do hope someone reading that post will take a look at my rant about education, linked as an afterthought.

Regarding Gray, though, I can't be very helpful. Like Will Rogers, all I know is what I read in the papers, but a quick search of Google News turns up a couple of interesting hits. This ABC news release is typical. My guess is that it was written by Farrah Gray himself (or a subordinate) and provided to ABC verbatim, ready to go.

July 28, 2006 — Farrah Gray began contributing to his family's financial support at the age of 6, and he made his first million by the time he was 14. His success made a lot of people change their thinking about where life in the projects of Chicago's South Side could lead.

His head is shaved, and he now dresses impeccably in expensive, tailored suits when he goes to work in one of his offices in Las Vegas or New York; but he looks only slightly older than his age, which is 21. Part of what motivated him to begin earning money at such a young age was watching his mother work so hard.

"When I went to sleep, she was up; when I woke up, she was up," he said. "So I never really was sure that she did go to sleep. And I really felt that out of that feeling of struggle, my mom had a heart attack, and I said there must be something I can do to help her."

Setting out with an executive-size ambition to make life easier if he could, Gray made use of the most basic resources available to him — such as the rocks he found in the street.

"I started painting these oversize rocks. And I would knock on people'sdoors. Knock hard. And shake people's hand and say, 'Hello my name is Farrah Gray.' I said, 'Would you like to buy this rock? It can be used as paper weights, bookends and door stoppers.' And people would look at me and say, 'Isn't that the rock that was in front of my door?' And I'd say, 'Yes, but it's different now.'"

This is the stuff that dreams are made of. Lots more at the link. And if this kid is even half as terrific as he looks, he's about to make a big national splash that is long overdue. My guess is that he has all his ducks in a row and will know exactly how to take this next big moment to the bank and write even bigger checks against it than before.

You may count me as one of his oldest fans. Thanks to Google searches I have been seeing his name among my referrals weekly, sometimes daily, ever since I put a post with his name in my blog. (Looking at the Nykola link, I see she has quit blogging and gone on to greater things. I'm glad she hasn't killed the archives as well. She has a lot of really good stuff by her name and it would be a shame to lose track of it. If her plans from March are still on track, she is to be married in a few weeks. If that comes to pass, then best wishes to her. I hope one day to see her name up in lights as well...)