about DAN & Foreword
Bio
Dan LaRock is first a Believer, husband, father and son.
He is also an entrepreneur, an executive shareholder with HUB International - Great Plains, a co-founder of Rock Ranch, a frequent communicator and speaker and deeply experienced in public relations and institutional advancement. Dan is currently the national Nonprofit Specialty Practice Leader for Employee Benefits for HUB International. He has been blessed to work with entrepreneurial leaders at incredible companies from across the Upper Midwest including Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
He is a current board member for Premier Insight, The University of Sioux Falls and Southwest Minnesota CEO. He also serves on steering committees for Children’s Home Society of South Dakota, Sioux Valley Energy and The Mandate Podcast. He is a worship leader for various churches in SW Minnesota, NW Iowa and SE South Dakota. He is a former school board member for Hills – Beaver Creek ISD #671 in Minnesota.
Dan and his family reside in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
This book seeks to honor the lifework of my grandfather, C. Maxwell Brown.
“It felt like I was sitting down with a wise, older mentor teaching me about God and life."
Adam Weber
Foreword written for Grandpa's Gift
I’m given a lot of books. A lot!
Daily they come in the mail from different publishers. Regularly someone will give me a copy of this or that book.
More often than not, I kindly take the book, go to my office, and put it on my shelf—never to be read.
When my friend Dan handed me a bland (boring) covered copy of his grandfather's book, the chances of me ever opening it were honestly slim to none.
But due to my respect for Dan and my love for words that weren’t written yesterday (I’d argue the true sign of a good book is one with words that still ring true years, or even decades, later), I surprisingly took the book home with me.
It sat on my nightstand for a week or so and then one night I opened it.
And for several weeks in a row, I found myself opening the book each night before going to sleep.
I couldn’t put it down. The words inside were filled with grace and wisdom.
It felt like I was sitting down with a wise, older mentor teaching me about God and life.
But what struck me most was the timeliness of Dan’s grandfather’s words. Even as I write this, I still can’t believe how relevant they are. Paragraph after paragraph, chapter after chapter felt like it was written yesterday—meant to address something our world (and me personally) is wrestling with today.
Once I finished the book, I couldn’t speak with Dan fast enough.
“Your grandfather’s book is unbelievably good,” I told him.
“You think so?” he asked.
In an effort to not come off as rude, I didn't tell him that my first thought when he handed me the book was that I would never read it. Instead, I told Dan what I knew to be true after reading his grandfather's words: how what he wrote had impacted me profoundly and how I knew those words would do the same for others.
I’m delighted Dan decided to share the words of his grandfather with you, too.
I only hope what he wrote will impact you, like it did me.
Adam Weber,
Lead pastor of Embrace Church
Author of Talking With God and Love Has a Name
Host of The Conversation Podcast