Is it possible to be inspired by watching a TV commercial?  I remember recently seeing a particular Levi’s Jean commercial that left me feeling inspired but it wasn’t until I saw it for the second time where I actually was able to catch the name of the man behind it all, John Fetterman.  Fetterman is the mayor of Braddock, PA the poorest City in Pennsylvania and whose population at its peak was near 20,000 but now only roughly 1/10 of that.  In the ad he mentions that 90 percent of the town is in the “landfill” and the footage shows the community behind him working together to “reinvent” their town.

Levi’s – Ready to Work ads:

Fetterman has drawn some serious attention for his efforts and was a guest on The Colbert Report.  Levi’s has even helped Braddock resurrect an old Presbyterian church for use as the Braddock community center as well as some other community projects.  With most of the town abandoned you could imagine some of the problems Fetterman and the community are facing.  I myself have often wondered how an individual could make a difference in breathing new life into cities on the decline but now I have an example of someone who is doing it.

So can a TV commercial inspire us??? It did me and John Fetterman and the Braddock community sure left an impression on me through the help of a Levi’s TV ad.

Meet Mayor John Fetterman:

To learn more about Braddock and Mayor Fetterman check out some of the links listed below:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Fetterman_%28politician%29
• http://www.15104.cc/
• http://braddockredux.org/

Neat Fact:

Andrew Carnegie opened his first steel mill in Braddock, PA during the mid 1870s.