For several years now, readers of this magazine have been privileged to read the thoughts of Ben Yale, who passed away in June at the age of 60. For the last 10 years, I have been privileged to work for and with Ben, to learn from his experience, to share in his professional experiences and to enjoy his friendship. He was my mentor. To better understand Ben, you need to understand his personal and professional background. Ben was born in Waynesfield, Ohio – a village of about 900 people in west-central Ohio. His family operated a printing shop there and, for a period, also farmed grain crops and raised dairy cows.