Adam Shepard initially self-published
his book, then, as word of it began
spreading, HarperCollins bought it;
Shepard has been in a thumbs-up
mode ever since. | 
Shepard reads from his book at the
Campus Reads event at the Omni.
|
Despite reports he’s read to the contrary, Adam Shepard says he knows first-hand that the American Dream lives on.
Shepard, author of “Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25 and the Search for the American Dream,” traveled from North Carolina to North Campus on November 3 to visit literature classes and to be the guest speaker at the campus’ annual Campus Read convocation at the Omni Auditorium.
Campus Read is a North Campus initiative that encourages literacy and community involvement. Each year, a book is chosen for study by students, faculty and interested staff. The book is selected based on its subject matter, literary accolades and how well it relates to the student population.
Shepard, a native of Raleigh, first got the idea for his adventures in seeking out the American Dream the summer after his freshman year at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts, where he attended on a basketball scholarship.
Merrimack is “a very white-boy type of campus,” he said. Shepard said he had hoped to earn a little summer spending money and spend the remainder of his break from classes practicing basketball, because playing professional basketball was his career goal. A neighbor told him she had about 100 hours of odd labor to do, and offered $10 an hour.
At the end of the summer, the neighbor gave him his $1,000 and loaned him a copy of Barbara Ehrenreich‘s “Nickle and Dimed,” a book that reports on the death of the American Dream.
“I read it that night, at dinner, on the toilet, everywhere,” he said. He did not like what he read, and disagreed with Ehrenreich’s premise.
“She’s a real writer. She’s got these big words and writes in real sentences,” he said. “Her attitude just bugged the hell out of me.”
When college ended for him in 2006, Shepard had focused on a professional basketball career in Europe. He packed his belongings and set out for a scouting combine in Germany, confident he’d have a long, fruitful career overseas.
“My pro basketball career lasted about 36 hours,” he said. “In about six games, I shot two for 29 from the field. It’s not as if I had 10 steals and 12 assists to go with it. I was two for 29, and my dream was dead. Playing pro basketball was all I had wanted.”
Quickly, Shepard returned to the United States to contemplate his future.
“I was back home on my mom’s coach, thinking ‘what am I going to do next?” he said. His thoughts about the American Dream returned and Ehrenreich’s book returned to his consciousness and he fleshed out his plan to write a book that rebutted “Nickle and Dimed.”
He decided to relocate to a city outside North Carolina, give himself a year and $25 in startup funds to become a regular and productive member of American society. Success would mean he’d put away $2,500 in savings, have an apartment of his own (or one shared with a roommate), an automobile in working order, and be in a position where he could continue school or start his own business.
“This was not a risk for me,” Shepard said. “This was the greatest experience of my life.”
He placed the names of 12 Southern cities in a hat and drew one: Charleston, S.C. Upon arriving there, he took up residence at the Crisis Ministries homeless shelter, where he lived for 70 days as he looked to find work and set his life’s path.
At the shelter, he worked for temporary labor pools then landed a full-time job with a furniture- moving company.
By the end of the year, he had exceeded his goals. He had $5,500 in the bank, a used pickup truck and a furnished apartment. He also started his own business. Now, he says, his occupational title is “professional speaker.”
“I’m going to milk this until I’m 87 years old,” he said. “I just love sharing this story and I’m going to be doing this for a long time.” He’s already completed his second book, and he’s thinking about others.
Shepard says the American Dream is not dead; it is alive, well and will never die. He urges others to learn from his experiences, to dream big but challenge themselves to go even further.
“It’s an adventure,” he says. “Whatever it is, you do it. You live outside the box. You don’t know what’s going to happen, you just keep moving forward.”
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 Shepard with trivia contest winners Darren Samms,
Stephanie Doro and Daniel Kins. | 
Essay contest winner Katharine Murray reads from
her entry.
|
Several Broward students and staff members won awards as part of the Campus Reads celebration: Trivia contest winners were Darren Samms, Daniel Kins and Stephanie Doro. Essay contest winners were first-place winner Katharine Murray; runner-up Stephanie Doro and in third place, Rachel Gabay.
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