By Daily Press staff
In 1981 Marc Lerner was the classic picture of good health when he was suddenly struck with multiple sclerosis. The disease quickly rendered him legally blind and partially paralyzed but his spirit remained undaunted.
Without practical direction from the care-giving and medical communities, Lerner met the challenge of his life-threatening illness by drawing on his own inner resources. Soon after he reoriented his personal circumstances he felt a strong urge to share what he learned with other people experiencing similar struggles. The genesis of a business was born.
Lerner founded Life Skills Inc., in 1984. He began working with the mentally ill homeless in Santa Monica and moved on to assisting veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder at the West Los Angeles Veterans Administration Medical Center.
Then he applied the Life Skills Approach with cancer and AIDS patients in Midland, Michigan and in Los Angeles. Today, his firm offers instructional materials and seminars for people to meet any challenge they face. It targets a wide range of clients from corporations to government agencies, as well as community organizations and individual clients.
In recognition of his accomplishments, Lerner was named the Los Angeles SBA District Office’s “Outstanding American with Disabilities Business Person” for their 2002 Minority Enterprise Development week. He received his award at SBA’s MED Week Awards and Expo at the Kodak Theater on Oct. 8 before and audience of over 1,000 supporters of minority small business and the disabled. The website for Life Skills Inc. that contains an online seminar and a description of services is www.lifeskillsinc.com. To find out more about the SBA’s programs call (828)552-3203 or access their website at http://www.sba.gov.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 19, 2003. Read the original PDF.