about us

Bob McCormick

I’m an average American citizen and I was raised in South Buffalo, NY with heavy doses of religion, common sense and human respect. After mixing them all together and stirring in a lifetime of reading, doing research and experiencing the world as a son, brother, father and grandfather, I’ve decided to do my best to share and promote the thoughts that led to the creation of this website. I'm not an idealist, a politician, someone with an ax to grind, a religious zealot, a revolutionary or someone out for personal gain. I am a citizen that has had the time and the desire to overcome the belief that an average American citizen has nothing to say about our nation's global and intergenerational responsibilities.

Lyn Vencus

I was born in Philadelphia, one of seven children, to first-generation, Irish/Lithuanian parents where we played hard, fought constantly and laughed a lot. I married early and delayed college until after children and divorce. There was little time to look beyond my own world. To my amazement, I now find myself with three grandchildren and no more excuses to put off getting involved. When I heard the phrase, "an intelligent alternative to weaponry," a light bulb went on in my head, and my heart opened. It was suddenly so obvious; this is the opposite of war, not peace. Conflict is inevitable; we all experience it. Our challenge is to manage it. As kids, in the midst of family squabbles, we figured out a fair way to share a candy bar by cutting it in half and allowing the person that didn't do the cutting to select the first piece. All of us have the intellectual capacity and the responsibility to share our world with one another. We can refuse to feed into the current cycle, stop abdicating our power to others and speak up. Promoting GlobalSummit.org is a way to be heard.

When not promoting GSO, Lyn enjoys yoga, biking, cooking, golfing, playing with kids, and laughing.

Damon Wood

Born in Columbia, SC, I now live in Kennesaw, Georgia with my wife of 15 years, Jennifer, and my son Spencer (11) and daughter Sydney (14). I graduated from Berry College in 1984 and from Georgia State University with a master's degree in film and video production in the year 2000. I have produced, directed and helped create independent films, corporate instructional videos and documentaries-- my great professional passion. Capturing the truth in an economical and beautiful way is always my goal. When I met Bob McCormick and learned of his vision for a more reasonable, cooperative life on this Earth, I knew right away that his quest needs to be the quest of the human race. As a father, nothing that I work toward is more important than helping to create a peaceful, sustainable and caring world. Through my lens I want to explore the beauty, passion and truth that "one average American citizen" can truly change the world.

When Damon is not behind the camera, he enjoys tennis, biking, movies, time with his family and movies.

Claire Liston

For the past 10 years, I've devoted my free time to rescuing homeless dogs. I'm often asked, "Why not help people?" and my answer was that it's too difficult. I felt that people didn't want to be helped, and that most would continue down a path of self-destruction, even when given an option. Meeting Bob McCormick, a man with an amazing vision for the world, has given me hope and taught me much. I now believe that people don't seek to continue down a path of mutual destruction, but that fear and helplessness keeps us moving in that direction like a runaway train. Adding to the helplessness is a feeling many people share-- that their desire to change things puts them in the minority. Changing the way the world works is hard. Joining the discussion about how the world could be different is easy.

Claire loves sailing, kayaking and walking her dogs in Old Town Alexandria.

Carroll Hauptle

I am a business lawyer with a background in telecommunications and entertainment. I work on helping businesses navigate, form relationships, stay out of trouble. I have been doing this for about 12 years, and I like it. About fifteen years ago, Chongyang Trumpa wrote that when you want to get something from people in power, keep it simple and human. In his example, if you are going to the zoning board for something, bring your dog along with you to the hearing. It will remind people that you are also a person, not just an advocate. I am thrilled to be part of this team. It reminds me most of work I did right after graduating from Yale in the late 70’s, acting in a live drama about being in prison. It was theater, but theater about the real world. I discovered back then that people are compassionate by nature. They are hungry for information about how to make their lives better and improve the world in the process. This project has the same flavor. When I met Bob McCormick, and heard about his idea, I thought to myself: “At last here is something I can work on that this really worth talking about.” And the team is so human, and Claire likes dogs. What could be more fun?

Erica Love

I grew up in Baltimore with my family, and one of the traits that I've kept since I was first able to speak has been to ask questions. I have quite often found myself in a situation where I've asked too many questions, where others would just stay silent. Meeting Bob made me realize that some questions are too important to ignore. Some questions need to be asked, to everyone, by everyone. Some questions cannot afford to remain silent, and if they grow, they can change the world.

Erica enjoys dancing, playing games with friends, camping, and finding neat things in thrift stores.