THE RIGHT ANGLE MEN’S CLUB MARCH MEETING 

The Right Angle Men's Club met on March 17, 2016 to enjoy comradery, a buffet lunch and to listen to Mr. Chris Bent discuss a wide range of topics including the eight books he has authored, his business at the Best of Everything, his career as a Navy Seal and his volunteer organization Vets Visiting Vets.    

The meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance, a 50/50 raffle and the introduction of our guest speaker by Bill Cooper. Mr. Bent discussed an interesting array of topics and kept the audience entertained with numerous jokes and vignettes throughout his talk. Some of the key points from his presentation were:

·         His career as a Navy Seal:

·         Mr. Bent was part of Seal Team 4

·         He recovered the Gemini and Apollo space crafts

·         Roughly 80% of the Seal candidates quit before finishing the program

·         Hell week includes 250 ft. parachute drops, 15 mile hikes and only about 6 hrs. of sleep in a week

·         His early life in retail:  

·         After attending Yale University Mr. Bent became a Navy Seal

·         Upon completion of his multiple tours of duty as a Seal, Mr. Bent worked in retail at firms such as Lord and Taylor, B. Altman, J. Crew, Brooks Brothers and even the WWF

·         His store, the Best of Everything is a huge success which includes 4 locations in  Naples and 1 in Kennebunkport ME

·         T. J. Maxx visited the Best of Everything and said it is the finest retailer they have ever seen

·         His wife, a fabulous retail mind, runs an “analog” store with no reports – her sole focus is on the product and the customer

·         His writing career:

·         He authored 8 books including: 1-800 Laughing out Loud, 1-800 for Women Only, 1-800 for Vets Only, 1-800 I am Unhappy and 1-800 For Seals Only  

·         He used the “1-800” moniker in the title as a way to lighten the mood and to enable a vehicle to provide friendly advice much like a 1-800 phone number/help desk

·         Selling millions of copies, his books are inspirational, straight-talking, often irreverent and humorous insights of self-discovery about life as we should know it

·         His charitable work – Mr. Bent formed “Vets Visiting Vets”:

·         Veterans are out there waiting for someone to talk to

·         You can request a visit from a fellow Veteran or visit a fellow Veteran

·         Visit the website: VetsVisitingVets.com to get assigned a Veteran to visit

·          

Mr. Bent took a few questions from Right Angle members about his interesting life story and his charitable work.  

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 1:30 with Paul L’Esperance providing a small token of appreciation to Mr. Bent.