Style Magazine_ El Dorado Hills and Folsom_December 2018

get to know
Q &A
“My
life was
saved, and
now my
purpose
is to be a
beneficial
presence
in the
world.”
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO YOUR YOUNGER
SELF?
Extend the gift of compassion, patience, and
understanding to yourself and others.
WHAT COMES TO YOU NATURALLY?
Service. I feel most alive when I’m in service to
another soul. It gives my life great meaning and
leaves me feeling purposeful.
WHAT’S YOUR BIGGEST PET PEEVE?
When someone uses a pronoun (i.e., he or she)
in place of someone’s name when the person
they’re referring to is standing next to them.
BIGGEST LIFE INSPIRATIONS?
My greatest desire in life is to be a beneficial
presence and use storytelling as a means to
heal the wounds inflicted by mental illness and
restore hope to those in need.
FAVORITE HUMANITARIAN CAUSE?
The worldwide effort to normalize the
conversation around all forms of mental illness,
and the global push to reduce the numbers of
deaths by suicide.
David
Woods
Bartley
BEST WORDS OF WISDOM YOU’VE RECEIVED?
My big brother, Major General John R. Bartley
(Ret.), taught me the true meaning of servant
leadership, the impact of remembering a
person’s name, and the healing power of a
good old-fashioned handwritten note.
Although he didn’t know it
at the time, the day David
Woods Bartley found
himself standing on the
edge of the Foresthill Bridge in Auburn—
planning to jump—would prove to only be
the beginning of his journey, not the end.
It had been a long and difficult road to
that fateful day in August 2011. Bartley
had spent his youth dealing with chronic
depression, following a series of childhood
traumas including the early loss of his
father and sexual abuse at the hands of a
trusted community leader. He later found
solace in running an animal sanctuary
for senior and special-needs pets, but the
pressure of caring for over 100 animals
took its toll on his already-tenuous mental
health. “My self-care went out the window,”
he recalls. Fortunately, first responders
were able to bring Bartley down from
the precipice and get him the help he so
desperately needed.
Bartley is now a public speaker and
mental health advocate (davidwoodsbartley.
com)—using stories of his experiences with
animals to help destigmatize mental illness
and reach out to those struggling to go
from “mental hellness to mental wellness.”
He also serves on numerous community
and nonprofit boards, including the Placer
County Mental Health Alcohol and Drug
Advisory Board (MHADAB), the National
Storytelling Network’s Healing Story
Alliance, and Bread of Life, a communitybenefit
educational organization. For Bartley,
it’s all about spreading a message of hope.
“My life was saved, and now my purpose is
to be a beneficial presence in the world,” he
shares. “I want people to know it’s possible to
achieve mental health.”
—Amber Foster
favorites
Author/writer
Irving Townsend (Separate Lifetimes)
Guilty pleasures
Blueberry muffins, fruit basket cake, and appetizers
Meal in town
Mahi Mahi Burrito with a side of rice and beans at
Dos Coyotes Border Café
Local landmark
William Jessup University
Movie
It’s a Wonderful Life
Musician/band
George Winston
Annual event
Christmas lights in the Fab 40s
Saying
“The world is my country, all mankind are my
brethren, and to do good is my religion.”—Thomas
Paine
Do you know someone in the community who makes a
difference or is particularly interesting that we should Get
to Know? Email their name, where they live, and why they
should be featured to megan@stylemg.com.
16 stylefedh.com // DECEMBER 2018 // /stylefedh /stylemediagroup /stylemediagroup /stylemagfedh
Photos by DANTE FONTANA.