Department of the Navy, Headquarters USMC, 330e Russell Rd, Quantico, VA 22134-5001

From: Brigadier General Andrew W. O'Donnell, Jr. 5504/8003 USMC To: Steve Verret
Subj: LETTER OF APPRECIATION

1. I would personally like to take this opportunity to thank you for your exceptional performance in support of our safety stand down held on 28 and 29 August at the Marine Corps Combat Development Command aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia.
2. Your skill, enthusiasm, and professionalism were greatly appreciated. Furthermore, your levity and knowledge were a perfect combination for entertaining the Marines while teaching traffic rules and regulations.
3. You were definitely able to capture their attention and make a positive impact. I am certain that Marines will remember your presentation.

I I had the pleasure of hosting Mr. Steve Verret at our recent Command wide Safety Stand-Down. Steve did three performances and the feedback has been positive. Our Command focus is the Marine aged 18 to 26 years old who statistically are more prone to an incident, Steve's presentation was embraced by an intergenerational audience. The more mature attendees were very impressed at how the content was delivered in such an entertaining way, yet was totally on point. All were very impressed. For me, the most impressive thing I learned was how the comedy piece actually reinforces the learning process. People remember the "training" because they paid attention. Why did they pay attention? It was funny! While I am no comedian, I will never forget Steve's many lessons I learned during his performances. Not the least of which is keeping a sense of humor and maintaining a light atmosphere during training is actually more effective than traditional methodologies. I would say the greatest compliment I could give is to state folks want him to come back and "do it again." You have to be pretty talented to have folks want to attend a Safety Stand-Down to begin with. The fact they ask for more is really quite remarkable! highly recommend Steve for any audience, especially those tough, seasoned veterans who have been to many briefs of this kind. They are the ones who are most impressed!