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About

Why Fit was created

fit objective

fit inspires 

FIT believes that teaching through entertainment is a productive, fun, and stimulating avenue to grab societies attention. "What Would You Do?" videos are a thought provoking approach that allow people to think about how they would handle a given situation; to observe how tone, word selection, and action -affect the outcome of interaction with others.

 

Showcasing "Movies with a Message," such as helpethan.com, is one of FIT's favorite ways to bring awareness to the daily struggles facing teens and young adults today. These videos are available, not only on FIT, but on various other online sites to reach as many people as possible.

your story

Sometimes people feel like they are alone in their given situation. Posting stories of experiences will help others know they are not alone; that we all have struggles sometimes, and there is a way to manage them in a healthy and productive manner.

 

Consider sharing your story today. See our "contact us" page or to submit your story for consideration to be posted in our forum section in FIT Groups.

Wendy D. Ball

Communication Ambassador

President

drew brown

Chief Strategist &

Marketing Director

Gill Lanigan

Social Events Director

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Alexander J. Podgorny
Student Ambassador 

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meet the fit team

Julia Rose Podgorny
Office Assistant 

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Wendy d. ball

Ms. Ball graduated magna cum laude from Argosy University with a BA in psychology (Chicago College of Psychology). She has taken a vast array of psychology courses and training courses that allowed her to gain perspective in the field of personal development. She is a Certified Life Coach (Radiant Life, San Diego, CA) who has been educating both youth and adults in communication skills and healthy relationships. She guides people to use these skills and to see the positive in their circumstances. She views life challenges as an opportunity for growth and improvement. Being the youngest of 11 children has given her unique experience of observing and interacting with a vast array of personalities and ages throughout her childhood/lifetime. In addition, her educational background allowed her to gain perspective on how important communication is to personal interactions, relationships, and conflict resolution.

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Wendy's initial career was in the legal field as a paralegal/office manager for 20 years, where she was able to utilize her passion for assisting others; productive communication was essential in this field. Over the last thirty years she assisted with the care of and eventually took over the care of her quadriplegic brother, while raising three children on her own. She has always been an advocate of children and teens - volunteering for multiple school, community, and church organizations. Currently Wendy is also a *Behavioral Therapist assisting children with Autism to learn communication skills necessary for a productive and happy life. She is looking forward to sitting for her RBT exam! She is excited every day by the possibilities of assisting teens/young adults, and parents/educators become more aware and better equipped with various tools to handle the daily challenges facing them today. Wendy believes that building healthy relationships, by acquiring communication skills, can and will improve society as a whole. 

Drew Brown

Mr. Brown earned his BS degree from Southern Illinois University in 1988, and promptly went to work as a sales and marketing executive in the consumer products industry. He was a top executive for Hershey Company for 12 years, managing $1B+ in assets. He retired from Hershey to allow more time to build a closer relationship with his daughters, and to help manage the family business. Drew then worked as a manager for the Illinois Secretary of State for the past 5 years. He recently began his own production and marketing company, Virtual Chameleon, LLC. Virtual Chameleon has created "Movies with a Message," beginning with the first production, helpethan.com premiering on YouTube in the fall of 2016. He is looking forward to contributing his time and talents to help Fit Young Minds grow. 

Gill A. Lanigan

Gill Lanigan has worked as the office manager for 15 years. She has raised four children with her husband of 25 years, while also giving shelter and food to wayward teens. She has been guiding these teens through their daily struggles, from minor issues, to major traumatic events. She is looking forward to dedicating more time to assist teens through Fit Young minds. 

Alexander J. Podgorny

Alexander is a student at the University of Illinois. He has extensive background in Math, Science, Psychology, and Italian studies. He is looking forward to assisting in the growth of Fit Young Minds. 

Julia R. podgorny

Julia is our office assistant. She is a student preparing to obtain her law degree. She has extensive knowledge about the "ins and outs" of our organization. She makes sure that "FIT" runs smoothly.

Support Fit Young Minds

Our mission is to have the ability to assist everyone in need of support. With your help we will be able to answer everyone's call for assistance. Please consider becoming a partner with FIT by contributing now. 

*Please note, Wendy is not available for ABA therapy. These duties are performed as an employed through an organization specializing in ABA therapy.

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**FIT does not specialize in mental illness. If you are in need of professional counseling, please contact a mental health professional, or go to our resource page for possible links to assist you. If you are experiencing an emergency situation, please contact an adult, like your parent or a relative, or please call 911.

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