Help EGAN Medical Equipment, MDA Cure ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis)

A Letter and Call-to-Action From EGAN Medical CEO Peter Egan

By: EGAN Medical CEO Peter Egan

First, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all of our loyal customers for your unwavering support since we launched as a shoestring start-up in January of 2011. It is because of you that I have the privilege of writing this letter today.

The reason I am writing this blog today is because effective this coming Thursday, May 20, 2013 at 12:00 noon, I am going to jail. According to my arresting officers with the Muscular Dystrophy Association, my crime is having a big heart, and to that I plead no contest.

Steve Gleason Blocks the Punt that Breathed Life Back into New Orleans

For the second consecutive year, EGAN Medical will be participating in the MDA's annual "Covington Lock-Up" event, in which local CEO's from in and around the Covington, Louisiana area are "arrested", and must "post bail" in order to regain their freedom. Of course, I'm not REALLY being arrested, but the bail money that is raised is earmarked for research to "Strike-Out ALS". By that, of course the MDA is referring to research geared toward finding a cure for this debilitating illness that has touched me on a very personal level when I learned of former New Orleans Saint Steve Gleason's diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS.

** DONATE HERE: Help EGAN Medical CEO Post Bail for ALS **

I know the impact Steve Gleason had on me personally. I lost everything during Hurricane Katrina. I lost my uninsured home, my business, and an approximately $5 million contract with the Planet Beach Corporation scheduled to be signed the day the levees broke.

When he (Gleason) blocked that punt versus the Atlanta Falcons in the first game to be played inside the now-dubbed Mercedes Benz Superdome following Katrina, in an instant, a million people whose lives had been turned upside down were given hope for the first time in over a year. We (New Orleanians) hate the Falcons, which made it all-the-more significant. For the first time in a year-plus we had something to be proud of.

Hearing that man state during an interview in the days leading up to this season's Super Bowl (during which we provided a piece of medical equipment for a guest of Mr. Gleason who also suffers from ALS) that the worst part about ALS is "having to have someone else wash my genitals" broke my heart and literally brought me to tears as the press corps was chuckling.

That man did so much for so many. To see a man my age dying, and rapidly at that -- someone who helped me muster the strength to pick myself up by the bootstraps and stop feeling sorry for myself -- really tugs at my heartstrings.
While I have yet to replicate the business success I experienced pre-Katrina when e-commerce was in its earliest of phases and I was one of a select few who had mastered the craft that early on in its development, I am happy; and more importantly God has provided for me that which I need and much of what I want.

ALS is a terrible disease, and its one for which I have a personal incentive to do my part to help find a cure.

I certainly expect nothing from anyone, but every dollar counts, and if you've been blessed to be in a position to help whatever the extent, it is greatly appreciated - not only by me but more importantly by all those less fortunate than ourselves who actually have to die painful deaths in which their bodies deteriorate until they can no longer function.

EGAN Medical is not in this for publicity. We're overwhelmed amidst a move and really aren't in the best position to be pursuing fundraising opportunities aside from for-profit endeavors. That said, this cause is so important that I feel compelled to do everything within my power as well as that of my company to help the Muscular Dystrophy Association do all it can to find a cure for the disease sooner rather than later.

As an aside, EGAN Medical was privileged to have had the opportunity to deliver a sliding transfer bench to Easter Seals of Louisiana, who was working to accommodate a Super Bowl guest of Mr. Gleason earlier this year with the Super Bowl in New Orleans. The guest also suffers from ALS, and we were honored to be able to provide it with same-day delivery, charging only that which we paid for the item (we regularly donate to Easter Seals, and this was a particularly high-end item that at the time we were not able to outright donate).

Thankfully, we've grown considerably since then, and are in a far better position now to make large donations, hence our commitment to match all donations by anyone outside the company dollar-for-dollar (up to $1,000). We're eager to contribute as much as we can, and we'll need your help in order to do so.

It matters not if your budget affords you the ability to donate $1 or $100, every dollar counts, and every dollar up to $1,000 will be matched by EGAN Medical Equipment, Inc.

Please carefully consider my plea, and if you've been blessed with the wherewithal to help cure this dreadful disease, please reach into your pocketbook and donate whatever amount your budget allows.

While we certainly have no expectations on an individual basis, but we are hoping to raise at least $1,000 within the next three days, so time is of the essence.

If you are in a position to give, you have my utmost assurances that we'll match dollar-for-dollar your donation, and it could not possibly go to a better cause than helping ensure that one day (preferably sooner rather than later), good men like Steve Gleason and all others suffering from this terrible and terminal illness will have hope that their diagnosis may not necessarily mean an imminent, painful and cruel death --- a death that claims the lives of young and old alike without discrimination.

Again, no expectations, but much gratitude for anything that anyone reading this can afford to do.

Sincerely and Best Regards,

Peter Egan

EGAN Medical Equipment, INC
President, CEO

To donate and help find a cure for ALS, please visit the following URL: http://www2.mda.org/site/TR?px=1795931&fr_id=5921&pg=personal

EGAN Medical Meets It's You Babe --- In Person

EGAN Medical CEO Has Dinner With It's You Babe Founders at Dickie Brennan's in New Orleans

On Saturday, May 04, 2013, Peter Egan and Katherine Henderson of EGAN Medical had the honor and privilege of hosting Chris and Darrell Seering of It's You Babe, LLC for a dinner at Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse in downtown New Orleans.

And an honor it was indeed. In Peter's 31 years, he recanted the following day, he'd met very few individuals much less couples in possession of the combination of class, kindness, friendliness, intellect and wit.

Katherine and Peter couldn't help but discuss on the drive back to Long Beach their shared impression that they had a fair amount in common with the Seerings, and wouldn't be altogether shocked if they were to bear a striking resemblance to the Seerings 20 years from now, provided the good Lord helps keep the two of them together for that long.

If they (Katie and Peter) are lucky, they'll be in a position similar to Chris and Darrell 20 years from now (and not just from the standpoint of business).

They are a couple that are very much along the lines of what Peter and Katie aspire to become over time.

Peter was very clear that he really enjoyed the opportunity to chat with them for a few hours. There was so much to talk about on so many levels, some related to business, some not. 

From Left: Katherine Henderson, Chris Seering, Darrell Seering and Peter Egan

It was one of those meetings where although you're meeting someone for the first time, it feels like you've known them for years and are merely catching up. 

They were exactly as he (Peter) envisioned them, and he said afterward that could not have been any more impressed with the two of them, their intellect as individuals and as a couple, and the manner in which they present themselves.

After spending just a few short hours with these upstanding entrepreneurs, it is easy to see how they manage to produce the world's premiere maternity support, not to mention the world's premiere compression therapy garment indicated for vulvar varicosities (a product called the V2 Supporter).

The maternity support is known as the Prenatal Cradle, and there is also an adjustable version (linked to in previous paragraph) called the Best Cradle.
 
All-in-all, it was a pleasure and honor to have been given the opportunity to host such an admirable couple for a dinner at one of the city (and world's) finest dining establishments. Everyone in the EGAN Medical family was thrilled that Katie and Peter not only got to meet Mr. and Mrs. Seering, but take them to dinner in a city known for its cuisine. Even those who did not attend were excited for Peter and Katie.

After spending a few hours with them, Peter said he understood why his initial 'gut instinct' telling him to invest into the It's You Babe line of products was so powerful that he acted upon it with almost no data to support the decision. Obviously, it's worked out well so far, and should that change at any point it certainly won't be for lack of effort.

EGAN Medical Celebrates First-Ever Sale to Pakistan

EGAN Medical Celebrates First-Ever Mid-East Sale

Egan Medical is celebrating its first-ever sale to a customer outside of North America and Europe today. The sale involved the purchase of a Best Cradle (adjustable Prenatal Cradle) maternity support to a customer in of all places Pakistan.

While not listed on the list of ship-to countries, EGAN Medical has long held a quiet policy of shipping anywhere in the world if an individual customer from any given country were to send an email requesting a shipping quote to that individual's respective locale.

Well, a gentleman from Pakistan did just that, and EGAN Medical replied with a shipping quote which surprised both parties in terms of the price. No, it wasn't shockingly high, but rather the opposite. The shipment cost just over $12 U.S. dollars, a figure which both parties found to be quite reasonable all things considered.

About a week after the gentleman requested the shipping quote, an order came through with a shipping destination in Pakistan.

The sale is notable within the annals of EGAN Medical firsts in that it was not just the company's first-ever sale to a Pakistani customer, it was EGAN's first-ever sale to a customer located anywhere but the United States, Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, Greece or Portugal. Prior to the shipment to Pakistan, EGAN had not experienced a sale beyond the reaches of North America and Western Europe. (Article Continued Below Image)

As for the product purchased, one could not be faulted for wondering what type of product is so rare and important that buying it from someone halfway around the world is worthwhile and justified. Well, apparently the Best Cradle (Adjustable Prenatal Cradle), which is manufactured by a Michigan-based company called It's You Babe, LLC, is that important. The Best Cradle provides support to virtually every spot on a woman's body that experiences pain as a direct result of being pregnant. It is more comprehensive than a traditional maternity belt in the design, and as a result can help relieve pain all over the body as opposed to merely the abdominal region and back.

The Best Cradle was apparently important enough to one gentleman that he went well out of his way to find out if a company was willing to ship to his country-of-origin, request a shipping quote, then purchase it from halfway across the globe so that his daughter would be as comfortable as possible during her pregnancy.

Vitamin D Supplementation: Its Role in Ending Autism

Vitamin D Supplementation's Role in Ending Autism

Given the mounting research demonstrating a link between Autism and vitamin D deficiency in the mother during pregnancy and possibly also in the child during his or her first months on earth, how can we help the day when Autistic children are no more arrive sooner rather than later? We have the best vitamin D supplements in the world, and would be willing to defer profit (if we can figure out how to do so sustainably --- OR --- work with someone who already does know how to function sustainably without the end-goal being profit) if we can do our part to help end Autism.

On a personal note, one of our employees' relatives was diagnosed as a child with Autism. Years of therapy and whatever other treatments he now can interact socially at a normal level, and supports himself as --- of all things --- a radio broadcaster for an NPR-affiliated talk radio station in Texas.

Wonderful strides have already been made, and if the experts determine that vitamin D supplementation in low-income and underprivileged moms coupled with the education thereof for those who can afford to buy their own supplements, we are open to any and all ideas on how we can help to see to it that Autism becomes a condition of the past sooner rather than later.

Happy Mardi Gras from EGAN Medical!

EGAN Medical Equipment & Supply would like to extend our best wishes to all celebrating Mardi Gras this carnival season!

As much as we'd like to be in the Big Easy enjoying the parades, marching bands and adult beverages, EGAN Medical will be open-for-business Mardi Gras day (Fat Tuesday, February 12, 2013). Our customer service representatives will be available during normal business hours for all of Mardi Gras day and most of Ash Wednesday. We will be permitting staff to take off for one hour tomorrow (Wednesday, February 13, 2013) to observe Ash Wednesday traditions for those staff who wish to do so.

However, we do not anticipate everyone leaving simultaneously, and all orders for both Tuesday the 12th and Wednesday the 13th will ship on-time, as scheduled as though these were normal business days for the Gulf South region.Once again, EGAN Medical would like to wish all of our customers and employees a happy, safe and fulfilling Mardi Gras 2013. 

Orders will be shipping from our Mississippi distribution center near Gulfport and Biloxi due to USPS Post Office closures in and around the New Orleans area including but not limited to St. Tammany Parish on Tuesday, February 12.

Telemergency Manufacturer Vanishes Mysteriously

Telemergency Manufacturer Disappears Without a Trace

The maker of the wildly popular EGAN Medical product Telemergency 750C Emergency Alert System has vanished without a trace, and nobody seems to have any knowledge of their whereabouts or the reason they have apparently gone out of business. 

In fact, it's the truly bizarre circumstances surrounding this company's disappearance that make this case so interesting and so intriguing as to dedicate precious time that could be spend in hundreds of more productive ways to sit down and blog about it.

The owner of the company is/was a man named Elliot Baum. It's possible that Mr. Baum died, and as a result Telemergency ceased to exist. However, going strictly off of the volume of sales that EGAN Medical Equipment did involving Telemergency 700 and 700C units during the 2012 calendar year, it does not appear that the firm was experiencing any financial difficulties. The product was in high-demand, and made up a considerable percentage of our sales for the 2012 calendar year.

The most recent obituary I was able to find for an Elliot Baum was dated 2007, and the company appeared to be showing indications of life and a desire for growth (based on various media reports) as recently as mid-2012. Therefore, it is doubtful that the Elliot Baum who died in 2007 is the same man listed as CEO of Telemergency Systems, and still listed as the registrant of both domain names associated with the company (telemergency300.com and telemergencysystems.com). All phone numbers associated with both Telemergency as well as a separate corporation also listing Mr. Baum as CEO are now listed as non-working numbers.

While the homepage of Telemergency300 still resolves, the links no longer work, leading to 404 error pages instead, and no means of contact, sales or ordering are accessible via the lone page still resolving when entered into the URL bar.

TelemergencySystems.com resolves to a Network Solutions administrative control panel. 

shop or to cease to exist as a business entity. Neither we nor any of the half-dozen or so other retailers whom have contacted us seeking the same information received so much as a phone call or email from Telemergency notifying us of an intention to cease all business operations as of a specific (or even a tentative) date. We were given no time to prepare for this, and in most cases there were issues with orders as a result (customers ordering an item they believe to merely be on backorder but which is actually no longer available anywhere except from those individuals selling them used on eBay --- and even they are few and far between.Furthermore, the company issued no notice whatsoever of any plan to close up

The manner in which Telemegency just disappeared is eerily reminiscent of a novel I once read (and the far more recent motion picture version). The book and movie: Atlas Shrugged.

If in fact the motive underlying Telemergency's sudden disappearance from the marketplace did constitute and act of one of the men who makes the world go-round 'going John Galt', then at the very least Mr. Baum could have seen to it that the question of "Who is John Galt?" could have (and should have) been published at the former-company's web domains in place of a once-functional website index page and a NetSol admin page.

I can respect such a motive for the closing down of a company, as well as doing so in such a peculiar manner; as the amount of money being confiscated from those remaining few who still produce it constitutes insufficient motivation to invest the time, effort and energy into performing all of the hard work that goes along with the pursuit of what was once known as "The American Dream".

This author admittedly feels a bit like the character of Dagny Taggart from the novel when she wonders aloud why so many great men seem to be disappearing without a trace. That said, this author's own personal preference would have been to go out in more the style of Ellis Wyatt's character upon his exit from the private sector still trading in U.S. currency. For anyone unfamiliar with the story, read it or buy the audio book and either read or hear the story for yourselves. I won't give any more detail as I wouldn't want to deprive anyone of the most enlightening literary experience in the history of earth.

In any case, Telemergency is no longer conducting business, so needless to say the product will no longer be available at EGAN Medical. Egan Medical will however allow the page to remain online (orders will not be processed if attempted) in the event we find a suitable replacement, at which point we will either redirect the Telemergency Emergency Alert System page to the replacement product, or at the very least link to it from the page.

EGAN Medical is deeply saddened and disappointed to learn of this development, and will be working diligently in the meantime to find a suitable replacement product for our valued customers which hopefully will serve all the needs of the Telemergency without the recurring fees associated with most similar products.

If anyone reading this knows any details regarding the sudden disappearance of Mr. Elliot Baum and/or his companies and products, please use the comment form below and we will contact you at the email address entered into the comment form for more details.

The Telemergency 700 and 750C are what's known as "Emergency Alert Systems". The products consisted of a phone-type device that was programmable with custom phone numbers which allowed elderly, frail and disabled persons to place a phone call to the person of their choosing with the simple push of a button. The device also included a pendant worn around the neck which when activated by either the push of a button or the breaking of the chord (designed to detach during a fall) would automatically notify authorities of the accident and send for help while the individual may not be in a position to move about physically.