Air Force Academy Member who Lived in his Car is Now a Denver Business Owner
School and grades were never his thing. He got rejected from the Air Force because he as home schooled (did you know that was a thing?) After the bank foreclosed on their house, his parents moved to the much cheaper Florida. This was when Sean Peters started living in his Jeep, while working his job at Starbucks.
Sounds like Sean Peters was pretty hopeless, right? Actually, hope was probably all the guy had a lot of days. And that hope was enough for him to still find his way into the Air Force Reserves, and study business at Arapaho Community College and MSU in Denver.
While doing all this, Peters found time to do at least one thing that made him happy: Brew beer. He made his first batch of Amber Ale at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado Springs. He admits he failed at that too, at first. Once he even woke up to a beer-soaked ceiling after letting it ferment at high temperature for too long; and his first brew was flat and not very good.
Today, Sean is working out a lease deal to open the doors to Peak View Brewing Company in Greenwood Village. That time at MSU ended up in a 3.8 grade point average and the Provost's Award.
All the time, we see people struggling around us; but there are many more who we don't see - or, we do see them, but we assume they have it all together because of how they carry themselves. Sometimes, that latter group is working harder than anyone we know, getting up early and staying up late, racking our brains for anything that might be an open door, no matter how ridiculous or far-fetched that "something" looks, or what it sounds like to someone else. As someone who years ago found my peak of lucrativity in radio was more like a foothill, and now does it for fun and supplemental income, I have learned that the difference between success and failure is simply our approach to the situation every single day. It has little, if any, to do with our circumstances, but more in how we view them. Also important is how we view ourselves. I don't think Sean Peters thought of himself as a homeless Starbucks employee, although it was his reality every day. Maybe that's what the saying "Dress for the job you want" can mean. It's more than the clothes, it has to go to your core - believing that you can do this. I know one or two Seans in Fort Collins who have similar stories, and have gone on to make a tremendous difference in the lives of others. Success can be a decision, but it's seldom, if ever, an easy one.