Marv Perel

I was born in Montreal, Canada and grew up there with my younger sister. When I was four years old, we moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to be closer to family who had been separated during WWII. My father was a house painter and my mother a homemaker. We lived in a blue-collar, working-class neighborhood and, while we were not wealthy, our home and neighborhood were filled with love and a strong sense of community. At 17, I contracted a rare autoimmune disorder that left me paralyzed for a year. I went from being an independent person to being imprisoned in my body. In the hospital, I was in a ward with soldiers who had lost limbs in the Vietnam War. What I witnessed and experienced there profoundly impacted how I understood myself and others. I eventually recovered from my illness with a sense of curiosity and awareness of the struggles others experience in life. I learned not to judge anyone from their outward appearance, and I have carried this perspective forward in my life and career. I have enjoyed an honorable career in sales that spanned over 45 years, and my success in this field was driven by a curiosity to understand the person behind the image. I decided to work with EQuipt because it reminds me of the way in which I grew up, where people respect each other and there is compassion and trust. What I witness in today’s marketplace is a sense of unhappiness and decreased productivity. I believe that better communication, greater empathy, and effective listening will benefit us all.