"I was in the audience when my daughter, Anne, spoke to the Youth Group at St. Juliana Catholic Church in West Palm Beach, Florida in March (2005). She inspired me with her journey of picking herself up and going forward with so many physical disorders hampering her energy and activity. She convinced me to be grateful for being healthy and able to do the simplest things so easily: like seeing well, walking where I intend to, speaking what I decide to and being an effective, intentional being. She convinced me that letting God work through me is His plan that I had best take seriously no matter what challenges and hurdles lie in my path. And she convinced me to speak and show love wherever I go."
    -Patricia E. Carroll, CPE

"I am currently working for Anne as her nanny and each day I experience her inspiration through her understanding of life. To me she is an inspirational teacher as she helps her friends and family to see life with different and new perspectives. She encourages us all to see with our hearts instead of with only our eyes, and to try to understand others struggles, as we may experience something similar in our own lives. Through my own experience I have seen how understanding, loving, and grateful Anne is for life, for her family, and for her friends. To me she has become a second mother as she helps to guide me in the right direction of life, and as she teaches me that it is ok to struggle and to not understand everything that God hands us. Recently, she helped me to cope with the loss of my own mother. She inspired me to continue trying to become the best person I can even when I had lost all hope, and listened to me when all I needed was an ear. Not only is Anne inspirational but she is a leader, in such that she leads each of us to become stronger, healthier, and more practical individuals. She views life as a gift from God, something that is truly wonderful to experience each day. If you take the time to listen to her I can guarantee that you too will gain a new perspective on life and that you will be thankful you were able to hear her words of wisdom."
    -Jessica A. Elshof

"I am most impressed with the fact that my sister has turned something thought of as soooo negative into something soooo positive. For real! She has taken a disease and made it so cool to have MS. I mean, who ever would of thought that having MS would make you a better person?!?!?! You sense her deep faith, her joy for life, her passion for Motherhood, her delight in family, and her instincts for survival and it almost makes you WANT to have MS just so you can be like her. The most poignant thing she taught me during her discussion, was to be able to "laugh at yourself." "Don't take life so seriously." Life is short and you have to make the most of it. My sister Anne is living proof of taking a bad situation and turning it into a positive. She took that depressing frown of everyday life and turned it upside down......into a SMILE! And we are all that much better people for having known her in our life!"
    -David Garcia, proud brother of a sister living with MS!

"I have been so grateful to be able to have heard Anne's words of inspiration. It made me feel how lucky I am to be healthy. She has gone though a lot but still stayed strong. She made her speech enjoyable to listen to because of the lesson it can teach us all, along with humor to let you know that she will keep living every day the best she can. She has taught me that I can get though bad times and keep my head up. Just looking at her and knowing what she has gone though makes her someone to look up to and know what a strong woman she is who can get though any thing. I am very fortunate to have heard this. It can inspire anyone to be positive and be very thankful for what you have."
    - Taylor A. Bart - 6th Grade

"Shortly after my family and I moved to Longmont, I received a knock on my door. There was Anne and her daughter Martha with a plate of Christmas cookies in hand and warm smiles, welcoming us into the neighborhood. Now, not only do we share our back fence with each other, we share a wonderfully close friendship. When you meet Anne, you immediately feel a sense of calming and comfort. She's the type of person that you want to be around because she brings the best out in you. I attended a speech she gave at a church function and I was emotionally and spiritually moved. You could feel her strength, perseverance, wisdom and light-hearted humor filling the room and touching every soul in attendance. I am very fortunate to have Anne and her family in my life."     - Tricia M. McCready- fellow mother of two, and friend

"My dear friend Anne McCullough is truly an inspirational person. With a diagnosis of probable MS, I have watched her change from an energetic, intelligent, well spoken woman to someone who has to struggle against fatigue on a daily basis. To speak her thoughts is now a challenge. To walk from one room to another or to simply see the world around her is done with great effort. Although these challenges are great, Anne continues to stay upbeat and positive about her life, her health, her family and her future. Her faith in God, the love of her friends and family, her spirit and inner strength elevate Anne to a level that allows her to not only live her life to the fullest, but to inspire others to do the same. I first saw Anne speak to a group of women at a church function where she fought to get her body to the microphone. I could sense a discomfort in the air as everyone watched her struggle to the podium, but Anne quickly put everyone at ease with her bright smile and quriky sense of humor. As Anne told her story, I could see the faces of those in the audience fill with admiration. Anne touched everyone in that room that day with her story of strength and persistence. She continues to touch my life too, and I am proud to call her my friend."     - Jodi Beck - fellow mother and friend

I work for Anne's alma mater, Marquette University, and was blessed with the assignment of writing her profile for the alumni magazine. My phone conversation with Anne, though officially billed as an "interview," would more aptly be described as a moment of grace. While I can be a bit of a curmudgeon at times, after speaking with Anne I had no choice but to reconsider and renew my outlook on life. The courage and faith with which Anne bears her cross goes beyond inspirational -- what she gave me and what she gives so many others, I truly believe, is a glimpse of the divine. Anne is a gift not only for those who face challenges similar to hers but, in fact, for anyone seeking proof that human goodness is alive and well.
- Mike Thee, Office of Public Affairs, Marquette University

Hello Anne,

I just wanted to follow up with you and ask how your speech and visit to Milwaukee went. I’m sure it was entertaining visiting with your old roommates. I know that when I get together with any of my old college friends we have a great time remembering all the things that we “learned” while in school.

Like I mentioned to you on the airplane, you are a very inspirational person and I’m sure that your new speaking career will change many lives for the better. Since meeting you and talking to you all the way from Denver to Milwaukee, I have changed my outlook and I make sure to enjoy each day a little more than I have in the past. I’m taking more time to enjoy family life, and thinking less and less about work (although I still enjoy work too).

As I was cleaning out some of my father’s things from the old farm house I came across some Minneapolis Moline photos that I though you might enjoy so I dropped them in the mail to you. It’s a little difficult see at first, but he is not actually parking the tractor in the shed in the photo, the tractor is pulling the shed from one of the neighbor farms. Although my dad only had one MM tractor and a few pieces of equipment, he always talked about how he liked the MM tractors since they are different than all the rest. It’s difficult to say goodbye to all my Dad’s “unfinished” projects, but I know some other retired farmer will pickup the pieces and move on. These antique tractors seem to “outlive” their owners several times over.

Thanks again for the conversation and the inspiration on my trip home. God Bless.