The DreamSTRONG Foundation is a platform for women, women-owned businesses and communities working toward prosperity through inspiration, education and social justice for women and girls. Our mission is to strengthen women’s voices, enrich the lives of those in need by cultivating leadership, education, philanthropy, and respect for all. Through special programming created specifically for the needs of women, DreamSTRONG™ is building a strong foundation for the future of women and families in all walks of life, all over the world.

Dream It. Dare It. Do It!

What is the DreamSTRONG™ Foundation?

INTRODUCTION:
The DreamSTRONG™ movement was created by Brent & Connie Gorrell in loving memory of their four sons, now deceased: Connie’s sons Rob and Aaron; Brent’s sons Mike and Nick.

The CREATION of DreamSTRONG™:

By Connie Gorrell

My husband, Brent, and I have been married almost 24 years. We each brought two sons to our marriage. We thought our lives had just begun and we would be a blended family, as so many are today. It was not to be. Shockingly, within a period of nine years, each son died in unrelated and tragically unexpected circumstances. The most haunting of thoughts, in my case, were never the usual and expected questions: “Why? Why us? Why them? Why all of them?!”  Instead, I wondered if I would ever dream again. Would I ever deserve to?

It didn’t suit me well to wear a victim mentality or ask why.  There would never be an answer that would satisfy my pain.  Instead, my private struggle was that I couldn’t bear to go through these life-shattering trials for nothing—or that nothing good would come out of the fact that our sons had ever lived at all. I have long agonized over those thoughts and secretly searched for answers in the quiet of the night.

When We Dream…

On January 1, 2014, I clearly heard my oldest son’s voice in a dream. In my dream, I recalled a poignant conversation with Rob shortly before he died at age 24. We were discussing our future hopes and dreams.  He asked what I wanted to be when I ‘grew up.’   My thoughts trailed back to when my sons were small. Oh, how I wished I had done things differently when I had the chance. How much better our lives would have been had I not lacked the courage to stand in my truth and admit that I was in desperate need of help.  My marriage to their father had not been a happy union.

As the conversation continued Rob asked the ultimate question: “What it is that you really dream of doing, Mom?” I shared with him my dream of being published and owning a successful business of my own someday. I wanted to find a way to help women in need…those stuck in similar circumstances I had experienced those years before.  There was a pause, and then he spoke—

I will never forget Robbie’s solemn words to me that day: “Whatever it is you’re dreaming of doing, Mom, you have to be strong—and go for it.”

And so it is—DreamSTRONG.

Who Are We? 

DreamSTRONG™ is a movement.

The DreamSTRONG™ Foundation is a dedicated community of women (and men!) advocating for our sisters in need. This includes mothers, daughters, busy women, unemployed, self or corporate employed—those who strive for lifestyle and circumstantial improvement. DreamSTRONG™ caters to all women, from those struggling to improve their lives by managing or creating home-based businesses and entrepreneurial endeavors to managerial and corporate professionals as well. The DreamSTRONG™ Foundation supports a scholarship program to help provide educational opportunities, where there might be none otherwise.

Our unique approach to women is to provide leadership skills with the benefits of belonging to a network community. We honor the added importance of motivational and spiritual offerings as well as basic business resources. The Spiritual component for women in leadership is unique to DreamSTRONG’s philosophy. We believe in prosperity through inspiration and inspired change.

We want women to know that there are valuable resources for mind, body, spirit and business success conveniently located in one place and completely available to them at any time. Our business-based motto is “Mind, Body, Spirit and Business Success for Women.”

We ALL Need Inspiration! 

The DreamSTRONG™ movement is attractive to any woman that seeks to follow her vocational, professional or entrepreneurial dreams to enrich her life and the lives of those she loves. We know there are women among us that appear to have everything wonderful that life has to offer by outward show, but secretly feel as though something essential is missing. She may experience the emotional gamut; everything from feeling only slightly unsettled to full blown chaos and in need of calculated change in her life.

We also know there are women living in high-risk dysfunctional situations in dire need of change (whether they openly admit it or not). To them, dreams are merely visions one has at night while sleeping. The exhaustion of living a double life and keeping up appearances takes its toll physically, emotionally and spiritually, though only subtly at first. So she suffers silently, inwardly—as does those around her: her spouse or significant other to be sure, but more significantly, her children! Creating a world of contented women results in less stressed mothers who raise happier children who make this a better world.

We Are Here to Help Make a Difference in the Lives of Women & Families

Falling away from our authentic purpose or being too hesitant to ask for (or accept) help in establishing personal goals in order to achieve a lifelong dream can be daunting. Many women at high risk are:

• Too misdirected to recognize that they are in need of help
• Lost in the minutiae of the daily grind
• Stuck in a job they detest or find unfulfilling
• Too busy to acknowledge their own needs
• Wrapped up in living their double life and making it ‘work’ for them
• Simply exhausted and don’t know how to break the cycle

Women are counted upon steadily while our own needs fall lower down the line in the family pecking order. We slap on a brave and smiling face and go about our daily duties, striving to give it our best—all we’ve got, in some cases. Meanwhile, our dreams and aspirations lay on hold in a quiet corner of our memory. Many women are content with life, yet love attending special events to network and learn about new possibilities—mind, body, and spirit. DreamSTRONG™ sponsors community events in various locations and online offerings as well. Free gifts, downloads and other special goodies are available, too!

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