The American Dream Factory

06/01/2026

Had to share a great graduation post from Forest Grove Middle School to show some of the smiling faces that we've been blessed to work with over the last 3 years who will be moving on to High School next year. It's always amazing to witness the amount of growth that happens in that short span of time that shows up in physical growth spurts of height and weight as well as maturity and book smarts. While those levels of change are completely different for every student that comes through those doors, they are most definitely given the best opportunity to succeed and continue to grow throughout life based on the level of care and education that they have received during that 3 year stretch of time from the AWESOME group of Teachers, Admin, and Staff that Forest Grove's ALL-STAR Principal, Keonisha Bobo, has put together over the 5 years that I've been fortunate enough to witness such progress as a mentor and after-school Club provider. As we say at the end of almost every post, "It takes a village", which aren't meant to be mere words, but actual actions taken from an African proverb that can clearly be seen below! Congratulations once again to all of those moving forward in life and to those who helped them get there:) J ItTakesAVillage

05/31/2026

I couldn't have woken up to a better message than this one that seriously speaks to where we are in our 17+ yr journey to change the way that great ideas are brought to market in the youth-led and community-based fashion that we prefer. And to prove just how close our results are to catching up to our vision, just look at the last post that our pilot program's Champion Teacher and Co-Founder of all that we are creating under the umbrella of The American Dream Factory Inc., Brian Tygesson, is literally bringing to life for 2 visions we have in-mind for our own Brand of self-funding and cause-related Coffee (https://www.theamericandreamcafe.com/), as well as a super cool concept we're working through for "Coffee with Bert (and Spud)" that could lead to group meetups for veterans and service dogs anywhere around the country and beyond...

Just as the point of the shared post say's, our results won't show up immediately because we've only just begun to develop and implement what started as a vision worth sharing and moving forward on. Which is the exact same position that every product and project that we are working on is in the state of, and why so many things moving at once can look so messy for those who can't see the vision until the results are in and proven. Thankfully, there are more and more like-minded people, schools and youth-led organizations who see the vision like Brian and I do, which is only going to create an exponential rate of increased speed for each idea moving in its own space and time to catch up to its initial vision. Needless to say, that's when the back-end of our custom-designed process to process our own pipeline of ideas will finally and fully begin to produce much needed JOBS, increased tax bases, philanthropy, and far more that will already go on top of the creative mentorship process and JOB READINESS program on the front-end of our Non-Profit and Startup business model that we are in a position to expand our after-school Clubs into other schools on the Treasure Coast and our local 4-H. And if that's not good enough for those with the eyesight of an eagle and vision of a clam to see, that's on them and will wait to see them at the finish line when "our reality" catches up to "our vision"!

Plenty more pictures and proof of such amazing people and connections coming in the year-end post that I've yet to find proper time to put together in a way that will try show just how far we've come in the last 5 years of our Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs Club as well as how close our results are to catching up to our vision thanks to the hard work and very messy time spent by more and more Dreamers like us who can easily see the incalculable value of our current and future results that are invisible to others:) J !AndTennis -LedCulinaryAndArtContest ???

Big visions rarely make sense to people who cannot see what you see.

That is why so many dreamers get laughed at in the beginning.

The results are invisible.

The proof does not exist yet.

All people can judge is your current reality.

So they call it unrealistic.

Risky.

Delusional.

Keep going anyway.

Every successful entrepreneur has spent time looking foolish before looking successful.

The difference is they believed long enough for reality to catch up to the vision.🏆✨️

05/25/2026

https://www.theamericandreamcafe.com/

05/19/2026

While we're running slightly behind on another year-end post that will highlight all of the super cool and amazing activities, growth, and connections that year 5 of our pilot Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs Club produced, there is no doubt that this incredibly talented and dedicated young man will be a huge part of that update! For those not familiar with Carter Viss or the very personal reasons behind the creation of the Carter Viss Foundation https://cartervissfoundation.org/, I highly recommend checking out the links provided (especially if you spend any amount of time on the open water and/or care about the environment) and to take a look at the youtube page that Carter just launched to see just how much talent he has to offer the world in that dominant left hand of his!!!

Plenty more to come about our recent connection and upcoming collaborations that will no doubt include the creative smash-up between our very own pipeline of marine safety and eco-friendly inventions that Carter has graciously offered his own expert help and endless connections necessary in the type of highly successful global product launch we are looking for. And if having the dual input of a boating strike survivor AND graduate student on track to earn a Master's degree in Marine Science and Oceanography from FAU/Harbor Branch https://www.fau.edu/hboi/education-and-outreach/graduate-programs/ms-marine-science-and-oceanography/ isn't awesome enough to have working with our next crop of students, how cool is it going to be when Carter's own marine life artwork is seen on our Brand of clothing and Eco-Bags that will not only help fund the growth and expansion of our pilot program to new schools and Clubs (think 4-H) but to help fund all of the amazing things that Carter is doing with his own Foundation to help ensure that what happened to him doesn't happen to anyone else. Now that's the type of win-win-win scenarios that WE are looking to create in our own backyard and around the world in due time:) J

P.S. Here's a link to Carter's YouTube page as well as one of my favorite timeline videos that show the same artistic skills used to transform Carter's daughters bathroom that our champion teacher and 8th grade MOA Prep teacher, Brian Tygesson, is advocating school officials to allow Carter and MOA prep students to duplicate as a life-sized marine life mural to cover the outside walls of Forest Grove Middle School's MOA prep building!

https://www.youtube.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPDX_3HUSHA

05/03/2026

Well, there couldn't be a better way to end another wild week on the journey to truly change the way that great ideas are brought to life (and market) than to spend time working through those plans with local legends like these two. For those who have followed us long enough would know, Buzz Smyth has been a long-time supporter and activist for our project and cause for too many years to count. As the actual builder and manager of Causeway Cove from its inception, Buzz has always seen the enormous value in our concept to transform Causeway Cove into a Flagship Marina in our larger vision to create a global network of Safe and Green Marina's in its likeness.

And a great as it is to have someone of Buzz's expertise in the marine and marina industry not only love but support such a "solid plan" as Buzz likes to call it, there couldn't be a much better person to grade our pipeline of marine safety and eco-friendly products than Carter Viss of the Carter Viss Foundation (https://cartervissfoundation.org/)! As we've shared news of our recent connection in earlier posts, it was super nice to finally meet Carter in person so he could see the spectacular location we've had to work from for the last few years and to hear his thoughts on how we can ramp this project up with his own help and highly powerful connections in the marine industry.

As someone who is a huge fan of validation from experts in the field of our endeavors, Carter comes to the table with the type of bona fide credentials that few can match as an amputee survivor of a tragic boat strike that he's lucky to be alive from in 2019 and a Grad student working on his Master's degree in Marine Biology at Florida Atlantic University/Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. Needless to say, Carter's thoughts and ability to clearly see the value in what we are developing through this project and everything else we have to launch in our pipeline matters to me and everyone else involved with this project greatly.

Add that to the valued opinion of Brian Tygesson, who is not just a champion teacher for our pilot after-school program for Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs who are helping to design and implement this project as well, Brian is a former U.S. Coast Guard member who knows a few things about marine safety. Brian also happens to hold a Business degree and be the 8th grade science teacher for Forest Grove Middle School's Marine Oceanographic Academy (MOA) prep program which qualifies his expertise in all things related to the environment and real economic business that will surely come from our planned expansion to marina's around the country and world in due time especially if we receive a well-deserved insurance break for marina's who adopt such upgrades and policies as ours.

With those facts pointed out, it should be fair to believe that we're building quite a team of experts who see value in everything we are creating as a whole which isn't just designed to make a marina safer and greener but meant to add value throughout entire communities. While that goal might sound like mere talk or highly unlikely to some, we believe that such goals and dreams are more than achievable by having our youth involved with leaders and mentors such as these three mentioned as well as far more currently involved, and yet to be met, who will help our students to transform not only this marina but other marina's and communities around the world who will surely choose to collaborate once they see the total value we are creating for 'our' kids and 'our' community right here on the Treasure Coast:) J

05/02/2026

Who knew: If there was ever an idea in our pipeline that would be a prime example of how one thing can lead to an explosion of others it would have to be the very first iteration of an original idea to save lives on the water that was personally filed for patent in 2010, officially patented in 2012, and morphed into something beyond my wildest dreams in 2026 by over a dozen genius engineering students who used the products initial concept to showcase their own skills learned during their time spent at Florida Polytech.

Not to mention the fact that simple idea was the entire reason and ultimate catalyst behind the creation of Open Water Products, The American Dream Factory, The American Dream Cafe, The Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs Club, and everything else that we hope to launch as a means to benefit our own community, and world for that matter, from that initial spark.

Needless to say, we couldn't have been prouder as Capstone Sponsors to see the 4th and final Team of senior engineering students that Brian Tygesson and I worked with over the past two semesters get to display an entirely new set of creative ideas and broader market pe*******on that's now possible during this week's Capstone Showcase event in Lakeland. And while we were blessed to work with dozens of Florida Poly students and assigned Professors over the entire school year, I would have to say that this particular Team, led by Sahil Talwalkar and Dr. Apurva Patel, could not have been more helpful and proactive in their own product designs and customer approach and can only hope that we are fortunate enough to hire each and every one of these graduates once the wheels are fully turning in our own Dream Factory.

Until then, we'll keep pushing and putting pieces of the big picture in place that all came from the same original thought and prepare ourselves for next year's Capstone submission which as you can see by the pictures attached are in a crowded field of literally out of this world ideas that range from lunar rovers sponsored by NASA to automated boats used for warfare, life-saving medical devices, and far more super cool ideas that we hope to compete against once again. While we don't know what the next idea submitted will be, we do know for an absolute fact that it will definitely be a byproduct of our very first idea born which just happened to turn Sweet 16:) J

04/25/2026

Legacy Building 101: While we are nearing the end of the school year, we were incredibly blessed to have another round of very special guests join us for the day that not only spoke to the type of groundbreaking work we are doing today, but the type of long-term impact and legacy that this group of students and project as a whole will leave for future generations to come.

Those comments were part of a deeper conversation that also covered resume building and even grant writing opportunities that our good friend and very proactive Director of St. Lucie County 4-H, John Ferguson, gave with Dr. Vincent Encomino who has spent the last 8 years with University of Florida's IFAS (Institute of Food and Agricultural Services) and Florida Sea Grant as an Extension Agent for both Martin and St. Lucie Counties seen here. https://www.flseagrant.org/fsg-directory/dr-vincent-encomio/

As mentioned in a February post about Dr. Encomino's upcoming visit titled Coming Attractions, Vincent is also an accomplished author who co-wrote Living Shorelines of Florida (https://ifasbooks.ifas.ufl.edu/p-1844-living-shorelines-for-florida.aspx) as well as the perfect Ambassador for Florida Sea Grant's mission to use research, education, and community outreach to conserve coastal resources and enhance economic power for the people of Florida as highlighted here. https://sfyl.ifas.ufl.edu/martin/sea-grant-martinst-lucie---water-ambassador/

The larger reason for the visit which Mr. Ferguson put together was to connect Dr. Encomino's ongoing environmental work and hands-on projects with his local 4-H, with the incredible work that Brian Tygesson is doing with Forest Grove Middle School's Marine Oceanographic Academy (MOA) prep program and the great things that our very own pilot program for Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs are developing on the Treasure Coast.

This type of networking with like-minded individuals and collaborative groups like ours were also spoke about during the visit as a means to teach our students how to become effective leaders in whatever field or endeavor they choose in life, and if all goes well, will be a shining example of how our very own pilot program will have expanded its long and humble beginnings into a full blown Corporate Partnership with 4-H which is the largest youth-led organization in the country!

And while there are no guarantees as I say at the end of every documented post, there is no doubt that another wave of opportunities and highly important connections are going to come from this incredible introduction which increase the odds of our success even higher to become a valuable partner and asset for any school or youth-led organization like 4-H who are seeking real-time and real-world STEM/STEAM-based activities that help to prepare our youth for the 21st Century workplace as seen here too (https://4-h.org/support/corporate-foundation-support/).

On a closing note, it also helps to increase the odds of success for the 1st Annual Seafood Festival that we are planning for the end of summer at Causeway Cove Marina as we are putting ourselves in a fantastic position to not only showcase our own work and ongoing projects like our Safe and Green Marina initiative, but all of the great work that organizations like SLC 4-H and Florida Sea Grant are doing in the community as well.

Add that to upcoming meetings next week with Carter Viss of the https://cartervissfoundation.org/ who will be lending his expertise to our event and development of our marine safety and eco-friendly products/projects as a boating accident survivor and Grad student of FAU/Harbor Branch Institute of Oceanography and hopefully you can see why the odds makers should be calling the race in our favor soon as "chance favors those who persist" (and network like they've got something special to offer the world too:) J -H -LedCulinaryCompetition

04/16/2026

As we continue to document the ever-amazing journey of what it's like to bring inventions and creative business ideas to market in the youth-led and community-based process that we prefer, we wanted to share some exciting news that has come from recent conversations with Carter Viss that will only add rocket fuel to plans already in-motion for our end-of-summer event as well as our Safe and Green Marina initiative at Causeway Cove Marina.

While we covered the story behind a near death diving accident in 2019 that Carter survived as part of a recent post that documented our connection and synergy between our own pipeline of marine safety products waiting to be fully developed and Carter's very personal mission to save lives on the water, Brian and I got to share another side of Carter's unique set of skills and gifts with our students that relate to marine life art and music that he will soon get to apply to our upcoming event and long planned clothing line!!!

As you can see from an image grabbed from the Carter Viss Foundation FB page as well as another work of art that Carter did for his young daughter which was featured in an article by Canvas Rebel linked here (https://canvasrebel.com/meet-carter-viss/), Carter is an incredibly talented artist that uses his skills to help raise funds for his own life's mission to promote safety on the water and protect all things related to marine life and the fragile ecosystems they depend on. So, how cool is it that Carter is offering to apply his amazing artistic gifts to the creation of a very special event logo that's going to be personally designed by Carter (and a few budding artists in our pilot after-school program) for our 1st Annual Seafood Festival which we will announce the official name for when the logo is unveiled!

There are even conversations on the table to license Carter's own Brand of marine life artwork on our very own Brand of clothing and environmental line of "Eco-Bagz" that we have been holding on to for the inevitable launch of Open Water Products (OWP) for way too long that will also help to fund Carter's Foundation. No guarantees as I continue to say, BUT there is no doubt that between Carter's interest in helping to test and promote the type of marine safety products AND eco-friendly ideas in-mind to "curb urban runoff", that we have the perfect person coming on-board soon who not only is an expert in the world of marine safety due to his own tragic accident but in the world of marine life as well as he is currently in the process of earning his Master's Degree in Marine Science and Oceanography from Florida Atlantic University & Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute located right here on the Treasure Coast!

And if that news isn't awesome enough, there's even cooler collaborative work coming out of the connection between Carter and our very own Champion Teacher and business partner, Brian Tygesson, which just might lead to a complete underwater mural that covers the outside building of Forest Grove Middle School's esteemed Marine Oceanographic Academy prep program which Brian is literally in the process of converting their current fish tank room into a state-of-the-art organic oyster farm and aquaculture program thanks to a $474,000 grant that Brian helped to write and secure through the EPA!!!

Call me crazy again, but I say that's not just fate based on the timing of it all, that's the Universe working it's magic once again by connecting personal dots in a fashion that will leave behind a legacy and memories for a lifetime for each and every one of the current students involved in what we're doing and future ones to come that will obviously benefit from such bright stars being connected together in the youth-led and community-based fashion that we are creating together:) J

04/13/2026

They say a picture says a thousand words, but there's no way this one can capture all of the great things that were discussed, planned, and set in-motion during our regularly scheduled Coffee with Bert (and Spud) thanks to a solid 2 hours of time that myself and Brian got to spend with our special guest John Ferguson of St. Lucie County 4-H!

While we've been deliberately slow to get things right while working through an open application that John provided us to become a trusted Corporate Partner of 4-H, we talked through a number of tweaks and adjustments that will ultimately help to secure our Partnership by outlining all of the benefits and JOB readiness features that our STEM/STEAM-based pilot program for Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs has to offer 4-H's national "Beyond Ready" campaign seen here. https://4-h.org/about/blog/4-h-answers-the-call-to-building-a-ready-generation/

We also solidified steps in organizing our next collaborative end-of-summer event at Causeway Cove Marina that could easily become one of the biggest annual events on the Treasure Coast (and beyond) once news of this youth-led and community-based template event spread to other schools and Clubs looking for collaborative projects that span between our Safe and Green Marina initiative to ideas in-mind to incorporate schools (and 4-H Clubs) with culinary programs that will help showcase their future Chefs skills and feed the masses who will surely show up and support!

Plenty more to share soon enough regarding the amazing Partnership that is blooming like Spring flowers (or lucky 4 leaf clovers:) thanks to Mr. Ferguson's proactive leadership and vision for SLC 4-H to expand upon its current strengths in Agriculture by allowing us to custom-build our very own charter 4-H Club for Young Inventors and Entrepreneurs that is powered by The American Dream Factory (and Cafe'), but I'll leave it here for now. As always, stay tuned for even more amazing news is working its way through the pipeline that will only increase our odds of success for each and everything that we intend to do for OUR youth and OUR greater community at-large:) J =ECO

04/05/2026

Please help support free STEM education and workforce readiness training for students in areas where these opportunities are not available.

https://gofund.me/8b60c0bfc