Living with Purpose

Ken Baldwin, 58, embraces each day with such joy. It does not matter if the days are good or bad. It's the simple fact that they just are.

When Ken was 28, he had a traumatic life changing occurrence that lasted 4-seconds. From that moment, his life would forever be changed.

Ken was driving to work on a beautiful August morning in the San Francisco Bay area. He had a lovely wife of six years and a 3-year old daughter. He would never make it to work. Instead, he drove himself to the Golden Gate Bridge, walked to the center area, looked at the beauty of San Francisco. He then looked around to make sure no one would see him and he did what some 1,700 people have done over the history of the life of this majestic architecture...he jumped.

Ken would become what he felt would be best - a memory for those who knew him. This would be Ken's second attempt to end his life; he wanted to be sure it worked. This is why he chose the bridge. He just could not face another day of the mental anguish he felt. He was sure Ellen, his wife, and young daughter, would be so much better without him.

When Ken let go of that railing and started to fall, he clearly remembers saying to himself, "This is a very bad idea. I want to live!" He would drop some twenty stories. The 4-seconds moved very quickly. When he hit the water, he realized he was still alive and started fighting for his life.

Ken survived. He's one of twenty-six who have gained a second chance at life.

Ken, now a high school teacher, exudes with passion for each day. He shares this story with anyone that will listen, including his students. We were very fortunate to have filmed with Ken. I am certain his story and message will help change the course of thinking for so many that will see this film.

Thank you, Ken, for your personal time and thank you, Ellen, for sharing Ken with us and allowing him to retrace his footsteps on that bridge.

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate strait, the mile-wide, three-mile-long channel between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula, to Marin County, bridging both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 across the strait. The bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco, California, and the United States. It has been declared one of the Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

The Frommers travel guide considers the Golden Gate Bridge "possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world". It opened in 1937 and was, until 1964, the longest suspension bridge main span in the world, at 4,200 feet (1,300 m).