As DNA expert Paul Keim, Ph.D., analyzed deadly anthrax spores that were being sent through the mail and putting America on high alert, he made a personal discovery about perseverance.
“You need to have basic principles guiding your life,” Keim said, “and then when things like this – a crisis or big events – happen, stick to them. You may have to work much harder, but stick to them.”
Keim, a Regents’ professor of biology at Northern Arizona University, shared his experience regarding the 2001 federal investigation and his aha moment with Mutual of Omaha this spring as the company visited Flagstaff to gather life-changing stories.
“We went from a sleepy little evolutionary biology laboratory in a small mountain town in Arizona to being a cutting-edge criminal forensic laboratory with FBI agents taking up residence in our laboratory monitoring activities,” said Keim, the director of the Pathogen Genomics Program at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen).
The anthrax attack began one week after Sept. 11. 2001. Letters containing lethal bacterial spores were mailed to several news media offices and two United States senators, killing five people and infecting 17 others.
“We realized, in fact, it was a particular type of anthrax that we knew very well, called the Ames strain,” said Keim. “The Ames strain is a laboratory strain contained by a dozen, maybe 20, different laboratories in the world.”
At first, Keim says, there was the moment of success in solving a puzzle. And then the chill set in. “We knew what it was. But then we realized the implications of it being the Ames strain. This case was different. This case had to be a human perpetrated crime. So we were looking at a bioterrorism event.”
Under intense pressure, Keim and his laboratory had become critically important in the urgent and highly sensitive national investigation to trace the spores to their source.
During this challenging time of DNA analysis, Keim says he learned how to recognize when researchers in the lab were being stretched beyond their limits. He learned how to rotate people in and manage them so they could cope with the situation.
As a result of Keim’s work, a scientist who worked at the government’s biodefense labs in Frederick, Md., became the main focus of the investigation. Bruce Ivins died from an overdose of acetaminophen on July 29, 2008. A week later, federal prosecutors declared Ivins to be the sole culprit of the crime.
Others who recorded their aha moments with Mutual of Omaha at Wheeler Park on May 19 and 20 included Kim Meagher, who stumbled upon the realization that thousands of horses in the U.S. need rescuing. She chose to do something about it, starting with the 11 empty stalls she had at her own ranch. She created Wildhorse Ranch Rescue.
Ross Hawkins founded the Hummingbird Society to protect hummingbirds and raise awareness after falling in love with them as a photographer. His aha moment came with the decision to educate people about hummingbirds, which led to the creation of the society.
Flagstaff Community Foundation Past Chair Ken Lamm, who has spent years working for non-profit organizations, now is on the money giving side of the table. His aha moment came when he realized his previous experience gives him a unique insight in helping non-profits in a different way.
And Mike Rothmiller of Prescott was an undercover officer for the Los Angeles Police Department who was shot in the line of duty. He decided to make a career change and try something he had never done. He was hired as a news anchor despite having no prior experience and hosted an ESPN adventure reality show called The Gamesman. Now a New York Times best-selling author, Rothmiller says he has never been afraid of a career change or trying something new. His aha moment came with his mother’s advice when he was afraid he would fail at Little League.
“My mom just said, ‘Don’t be afraid. You don’t know what you can do unless you try. And even if it doesn’t work out, at least you tried and you know you gave it your best.’”
Mutual of Omaha began its Aha Moment campaign in 2009 and has aired 50 national commercials featuring real-life stories.
“Over the last four years, we have been deeply moved and inspired by the many aha moments people from coast to coast have shared,” said John Hildenbiddle, senior vice president of Brand Management and Public Relations for Mutual of Omaha. “Whether big or small, funny or sad, surprising or inspiring, each one is unique, deeply personal and worthy of recognition.”
The latest participants may be featured in a new 30-second television spot, which will begin airing in spring 2015. Stay tuned! FBN
Bonnie Stevens
Flagstaff Business News
