Bob's Message- Download the entire "Beat the Odds" message

 "It's not the Volleyball, it's about the YOUR future"

Following his volleyball exhibition, Bob would take the microphone and address the entire audience. He would start with some jokes or "ice breakers" and then share his heart. With the undivided attention, he would share four main points.

Beat the Odds! 

Don't Quit! 

 
Holmes shared, "Walt Disney was told by his first boss that he had no talent. I was shy growing up, never played on a team, wasn't an athlete". Holmes would tell a story about a boy who approached him one day after an assembly. He revealed five self-inflicted wounds on his arm including a fresh one. "The young man said, 'Last night, I tried to take my life, but after seeing you play and beat the odds, I am not going to give up on life.'"

Most young people end up with a dead end life because they simply gave up and gave in to the pressures that surround them.   Many good people have made some wrong decisions and have never got over them.  Many see themselves as failures without a future.

Drugs, Alcohol, & Sexual Peer Pressure

"It is cheaper to build a boy or girl than to repair a man or a woman"

Look Ahead!

Bob has a practical demonstration with a student driving a car to illustrate that you have to look ahead when you drive. "If you look ahead, you will be much safer in life. A 13 year-old boy came up to me and took off his hat revealing no hair. He said, 'I am dying with AIDS and have only a few months to live. Bob, keep going and make them listen. At night, as I lay in bed wide-awake, I feel like the AIDS virus is chewing my organs apart. Those rock singers sang to me all about sex, but they never told me I would end up like this. When I was so sick in the hospital, none of them jumped on a plane to visit me ... naw, they are out there in their heart-shaped swimming pools. Please, make 'em listen!'"

Bob was only into about 50 games at that time and made a vow he would keep going.

"I promised the boy that I would keep going. If I can still play volleyball at the age of 85, and even if I have to use a cane, I will keep going.  Little did I know I would play over 16,000 games."

Don't believe all of the commercials!

Holmes would share,   "You see these alcohol parties with everyone laughing and drinking. These commercials are saying, 'If it feels good, do it'. But they don't tell you what can happen as a consequence. A lady in New Hampshire, my home state, came into a school, and took a jar from a gym bag as she addressed a class. 'I want you introduce to you my son. This is my son, revealing a jar full of ashes. He was a good kid, but got drunk, drove his car right into a tree and killed himself.' Now tell me students, how would you like to see a commercial showing that?" He said, "I read where 25,000 people died last year in America because of drunk drivers.

That is 7 times more than died in the twin towers. It's got to stop!"

Stand Alone!

Bob further added, "Your lives are important to me. I am tired of the TV making girls look like cheap sex objects. It is time for you boys to respect the girls and keep you hands off of them until marriage. (The girls cheered loudly every time) I don't care what Britney Spears says. And, you girls need to respect the boys (The boys cheered). Your future is what matters to me. Make the right choices and don't go with the crowd if they are heading in the wrong direction."

Quite honestly, if you haven't had Bob Holmes for a school assembly in your community, you are missing a huge blessing. This guy can deal and can make a lasting impact that is tremendous.