Great article today in the WSJ about Michigan Corps, a non profit intent on boosting Michigan's ailing economy. Michigan Corps was recently started by Rishi Jaitly, a New York native and former Google executive.

Here's some info about Michigan Corps and Mr. Jaitly from the article:

The New York native and former Google executive this week launched Michigan Corps, a national nonprofit intent on boosting Michigan's economy and creating wealth for its residents. Founding board members include Google's chief executive Eric Schmidt, CNN's chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta, author Jeffrey Eugenides and former Digg CEO Jay Adelson.

As you may or may not recall, I am an active member of a vintage scooter club, The Rovers.  This weekend marks one of my favorite times of the year.  Our scooter club throws its annual scooter rally in the city of Detroit.

A post by guest blogger Jill Scapelliti

If you have a pet, then you know how fulfilling it is to get that perfect picture of him/her doing something cute or goofy or literally just sleeping (you just can’t help yourself because it’s so darn adorable). You show off the photo to your friends, post it on Facebook, even frame it and put it on your desk at work. These photos make you smile during your longest days.

If any of the above hits home with you, then please take a second to read about our great Calendar Contest where you can show off your “Hollywood” kitty or pooch and also give back to homeless furry pets in need of love and help this summer.

I am a dedicated volunteer at Almost Home Animal Rescue League in Southfield. The economy has really hit us hard over the past year, and the number of homeless cats and dogs has skyrocketed. We are a true 100% No-Kill shelter, meaning we keep our animals until we find them a new forever home. We are overflowing with cats and dogs, and our volunteers are exhausted. Just when we start to feel great about finding two little kittens a new home, another litter is dumped at our doorstep. It’s never-ending, but our volunteers are tireless and determined to make a difference in each and every animal’s life.

Did you know that you can help clean up the BP oil spill using something found right on top of your head?  I stumbled across this interesting video from a chairty called Matter of Trust this morning.  They create oil absorbing booms and mats using hair collected from salons, individuals and pet groomers.  Hair is a natural, efficient and abundant material for collecting and containing petroleum spills.  If you're interested in donating to this cause or encouraging your salon or doggy groomer to do so, you can find more information here.

Every year Quicken Loans sponsors a table at the annual Bow Wow Brunch- a charity event that benefits the Michigan Humane Society. This weekend was their 21st annual brunch - held at the Ritz Carleton in Dearborn - and I was honored to represent the company, along with several others, for a cause that is close to my heart. Several local personalities were on hand to lend their fund-raising celebrity to the function, while silent and live auctions also raised money for the nonprofit. Especially enticing for the pet lovers in attendance were the sweet kittens and pups that graced the foyer, auditioning for new homes.

The auctions featured items donated by local businesses, craftspeople, and artists, as well as some specialty experiences, such a private breakfast with the giraffes in the Detroit Zoo, and also a thrilling ride with GM's Vice Chairman Bob Lutz aboard his private J-39 Soviet jet.

I have a dog from MHS, who was surrendered to the Huron Valley branch at the age of 3 weeks, barely responsive and suffering from dehydration, malnutrition, and urine burns on his paws from unclean conditions. A foster care provider working with the shelter nursed him back to health with lots of care and attention from her family. When I took him home at 9 weeks, he was happy and healthy and loving, and instantly fit right in with my other pets. He's been a loved and valued member of my household ever since. Because of him - and because every animal in my home was once in the care of a Humane Society - I feel indebted to MHS. (See comment in epilogue for correction! MHS is NOT affiliated with HVHS.) I was very happy to be able to attend and contribute, and was very pleased with what I heard during presentations at the brunch.

Today, Detroit’s Bizdom U entrepreneurial bootcamp was featured on CNBC’s Power Lunch program.  The segment, which features interviews with Dan Gilbert and Detroit Mayor Dave Bing, focuses on the need for a strong entrepreneurial core as part of Detroit’s recovery.

Bizdom U teaches entrepreneurs everything they need to know to start a thriving business in the city of Detroit.  While undergoing four months of intensive training, the entrepreneurs develop a plan for a scalable business that must be located in Detroit.  If the business plan is ultimately approved, the entrepreneur receives funding and continued mentoring along the way. 

Check out the Bizdom U video on Youtube.

I like to think we've done some innovative stuff here at Quicken Loans regarding online customer service and social media. It's been a passion of ours for several years now and it's great when results come back and get noticed.

Earlier this month Quicken Loans was featured in a WOMMA webinar about online customer service. I'm also be on the faculty of the upcoming WOMMA School of WOM in May in Chicago (I highly urge everyone with an interest in word of mouth marketing to attend the School of WOM - you'll be happy you did).

And next week Quicken Loans has been asked to sit on the panel of PRWeek's webinar - From Foe to Friend: Turning online critics into brand ambassadors.

It's a free webinar and I recommend signing up. You'll get some great advice and best practices from four online customer service experts, including our own Kelly LaVaute.

Don't miss it! You can sign up here.

Sometimes words are best left to the experts. That's why I'm going to re-blog a bit of information I feel our DIFF readers need about World Water Day from their website:

What is World Water Day?

Water affects every aspect of our lives, yet nearly one billion people around the world don't have clean drinking water, and 2.6 billion still lack basic sanitation. World Water Day, celebrated annually on March 22, was established by the United Nations in 1992 and focuses attention on the world's water crisis, as well as the solutions to address it.

This year, a collaborative of US-based organizations have joined to raise awareness and call for stronger commitments from governments, the private sector, and US citizens for water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) initiatives in low-income countries.

I love it when I hear about great Quicken Loans customer satisfaction.

It's a nice feeling to know that our clients are happy and I take it personally. After all, I spend a big portion of my waking hours working for Quicken Loans. Obviously, I want my work to mean something and I want the company to which I devote so much of my time and energy to be perceived in a good fashion and to help people.

It means something to me to see a review or testimonial where a client is "wowed" by the customer service they received from their mortgage banker and the many other mortgage professionals that touch their home loan during the mortgage process.

So we decided to share some of these mortgage success stories and happy clients with the world. We call it our Quicken Loans customer satisfaction page, and it's here that you'll find the latest and best reviews of Quicken Loans from a variety of sites across the web. Viewpoints, Epinions, Twitter, FiLife, YouTube and our own Quicken Loans Reviews site, to be exact.

Let us know what you think. I also wanted to share one of my favorite video testimonials we've receieved in a while, from Tony and Amy of New Jersey. They refinanced and took the money they saved from their payment and did some really cool things around their very cute house. My favorite quote? "Our bathroom is no longer from the 60s."

Love it!

There are a lot of iPhone apps out there, some being more useful then others.  Some apps help with productivity, some let you be creative, others are games, and many help you get from place to place.  But the other day I came upon a completely different kind of app.  It’s an app that lets me volunteer, right from my phone! 

The Extraordinaries is an app that gives people an opportunity to help others while they’re going about their daily lives.  While you’re riding the subway to work, help AmeriCorps by tagging images in their archives.  Look at the photo and describe what you see.  Or when you’re walking with your kids in the park, take a photo of litter to help DoSomething.org raise awareness about pollution.  The Natural Area Preservation in Ann Arbor, Michigan just needs people to turn GPS on through the app when they walk down a trail in Ann Arbor.  And with the recent earthquake in Haiti, there are a lot of missing and displaced people.  You can look at some photos and describe the people in them so their loved ones can find them.

From the BeExtra.org website: “The Extraordinaries allows people to complete micro-tasks for organizations, causes or people they're passionate about, using a mobile phone or web browser, in a few minutes of spare time.”

We’re really busy people.  We have work and school and football games.  We spend time with our friends and our families.  We clean our houses and mow our lawns.  We want to help others and do more than just give money, but where do we find the time?  Luckily the guys over at BeExtra.org make it easy for us with the Extraordinaries iPhone app.  Of all the cool apps out there, I think this is one of the coolest.  And these guys are certainly doing something extraordinary. 

For more ideas on "ways to make a DIFFerence", check out this article on Time.com.

A couple of months ago, one of Quicken Loans own team members, Linda Evans, was told that she needed Gall Bladder surgery. Linda ended up going in for surgery at Botsford Hospital in Farmington Hills, MI. She had been to different hospitals in the area before, but she had never been to Botsford Hospital before this surgery.

Linda was surprised at the level of service she received at the hospital. Her surgeon, Dr. S Pastor, always greeted her with a smile on his face or a hug and made certain she didn’t worry about her upcoming surgery. Even after her surgery, her check-ups at the hospital were just as pleasant.

The most surprising part of the service Linda received happened last week on December 21st, months after her surgery took place. Linda received a phone call from a nurse at Botsford Hospital (Jan Shimmel). The nurse was calling to follow up on how Linda was feeling after the surgery, asked if she had any concerns and wished her well.

A big round of applause goes out to Botsford Hospital for taking great care of your clients. In the words of Linda Evans herself, “There is a hospital out there that doesn’t just treat you as a ‘patient’ but as a person and cares about you. Four stars from me.”

Pictured above is Linda Evans.

Quicken Loans is proud to have a unique culture, one which we're proud to share. You can even find our list of ISMs (a set of principles by which we live) on our website for everyone to see.

Crain's Detroit Business has an article, written by Dan Mulhern (Michigan’s First Gentleman), "Other Voices: Tough Times Test Corporate Culture"  which talks about the culture of some of the great companies in Michigan and mentions Quicken Loans as one of those:

The best companies identify what they want their ideal culture to be and define what that means and how to live it every day. In Southeast Michigan, we can look to business leaders such as Google, Valassis, Quicken Loans and Plante & Moran. Each of these companies has achieved national recognition for their commitment to their workforce.

Thanks, Dan, for your recognition of Quicken Loans pursuit of creating one of the best cultures to work in.

My lunchtime is usually reserved for me. It's a few moments to escape, get some fresh air, chat with some friends and snag some grub.

But yesterday, just before lunch, I got an email from one of my favorite project managers saying that she was was doing something slightly less self-serving on her lunch. Courtney wanted to hit some stores to support the new coat drive that Quicken Loans is doing.

Courtney sent out a 2 sentence email to some of the people around the area that we sit in and in less than 10 minutes, had over $100 to go spend on coats. So Courtney, me and one of our awesome BA's, Lisa, hit the road just after noon. Through some thrifty moves and a lovely Kohl's employee who hooked us up, we managed to get 11 coats. 11! A little bit of money, a few people, an hour of time and we'll keep 11 kids warm this winter.

I know, I JUST KNOW that Quicken Loans is going to collect so many more coats, but it was just crazy to me how with just a little bit of time and a little bit of money we could do that much. Trust me, we're not done. The entire company is on this mission. We'd like to invite you, too - we are collecting NEW coats on behalf of Capuchin Soup Kitchen and the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation. The coats should be for high school-age children or younger. You can bring them to any of our Michigan locations until December 15. Questions? Kelly@QuickenLoans.com

By Stuart Davis

I have previously written about the beginnings of an addiction to Twitter, my fascination with a social media virtual meetup, and the application of social media engagement to assist entrepreneurial success. 

At Quicken Loans, we utilize twitter and other social media venues as a part of our marketing strategies and client service.  We have quite a few stories regaling our abilities to help clients through our process successfully.  I think that it is amazing that companies are out there listening and willing to take action when needed.

I recently had a series of events transpire that started off as a simple complaint and turned into a fabulous outcome.  It is this one story that I will reveal to you in some detail so that we can see the power of social customer service on a person to person level.

About a month ago, I headed out of the house to enjoy my day.  On my list of things to do were:

• Get a good cup of coffee
• Get the oil changed in my car
• Walk around the Ann Arbor Art Fair.

Lately we've had a lot of questions about the number of online complaints about working with Quicken Loans. The problem is, the complaints are completely out of context.

The Internet gives the opportunity for everyone to voice their opinion about products and services, and Quicken Loans is no exception. Overwhelmingly, our clients have wonderful things to say about their experience with Quicken loans, and have gone online to recommend us. But, it’s true, some people are not always as satisfied. While no one likes to hear complaints, I feel it’s important to set the record straight and tell all sides of the story.

Mortgages are complicated, and sometimes - though infrequently - something goes wrong:
Appraisals come back lower than expected, mortgage rates change before they’re locked, income can’t be verified, or a larger down payment may be required.

These are the some of the typical snags we encounter that lead to client dissatisfaction and complaints. That’s why we have a dedicated client relations team to make sure all of our clients get the service they expect and deserve. And we also actively participate in Twitter and other social media sites.

Have a problem with your mortgage that needs to be addressed? Kelly@Quickenloans is there to help.

Back to the complaints, here is what we struggle with: There is no way to know the complaints represent about 1/10th of one percent of our closed loans over the past 25 years (we've closed around 800,000 loans).

There is no way to know that we work with about 10,000 clients every day. There is no way to know we close several hundred loans, every day. There is no way to know we just had our biggest month in closing totals in our history.

There is no way for anyone reading online complaints about Quicken Loans to know that.

So, to put it all into context, to make sure people can get the full picture, we created this video to talk about Quicken Loans complaints. The bottom line - we aren't some rip off scam fly-by-night company that is out to commit fraud. We are the nation's largest retail online lender and the fifth largest mortgage lender overall in the U.S.

Here's Quicken Loans VP of Mortgage Banking Tony Nuckolls setting the record straight:

We love Earth Day. It's a great time to look back at the year and see what kind of progress we've made in our continual "Go Green" efforts!

This year we made it easier to recycle in our kitchens by supplying recyle bins, we provided a forum for people to hook up with carpooling buddies, and we implemented technology that powers off our computers at night - saving energy as well as saving the company money.

And we're always looking to improve. Recently we met with Choose Renewables for a building walk through. They provided us with several power saving options that we're beginning to implement. And we're also in the process of adding styrofoam recycling to our recyling repertoire.

We're also working with Choose Renewables to help us make smart choices as we plan our move to downtown Detroit. We want to make use of the latest technologies in our new space to reduce power consumption and utilize earth-friendly materials whenever possible.

Wondering about your own efforts to go green? On Quizzle, our home and money website, we've developed a Green Quiz with the help of Choose Renewable. The quiz helps you evaluate the "greeness" of your home and lifestyle. Answer a few questions, and you'll get a Green Score! It's a great tool to see how you compare to other homeowners, and to see what areas of your home and life could use some green love.

We look forward to reporting more great news about our ongoing green efforts. Got any green tips? Celebrate Earth Day by sharing some inspiration!

Happy Earth Day!

Jay Leno is the man. He's funny and a huge star - and evidently he has a huge heart. I saw on Yahoo today that he's planning on doing a free show for Michigan's unemployed. Wow.

That's a very cool and unexpected unemployment benefit. Here's more from Yahoo:

The NBC "Tonight Show" host said on Monday's show the April 7 performance will be for "anybody out of work in Detroit."

People only have to say they're unemployed to get tickets.

Refreshments and parking also will be free when "Jay's Comedy Stimulus Plan" comes to the home of the NBA's Detroit Pistons.

Tickets will be available starting Monday at the Palace box office. Only four tickets will be allowed per person.

Michigan's unemployment rate has been among the highest in the nation. It was at 11.6 percent in January.

This is really cool gesture from Jay Leno. Very cool. Thanks Jay.

Michigan really appreciates you!

Just a quick note to our readers to something that is very important to us here in Southeast Michigan, and maybe even to the rest of the country.

GM is in bad shape and facing bankruptcy. The other day the GM Fastlane blog went into pretty good detail on why a GM bankruptcy is very bad for America. Very bad.

I'm not going to get into how I personally feel about this issue. What I will say is that I know MANY people who work for GM or it's direct suppliers. And I know many more who work for GM's indirect suppliers.

I know that a GM bankruptcy (and heaven forbid GM closing it's doors) would be disastrous for the economy, especially the one around Detroit.

So take a read and think about what GM is saying. If you don't think you should care about this, you might want to think again.

On February 24, 2009, IHOP (the International House of Pancakes) is hosting National Pancake Day 2009 to raise money for Children's Miracle Network and other great causes.

Here's how it works from IHOP's National Pancake Day site:

Known also as Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras, National Pancake Day dates back several centuries to when the English prepped for fasting during Lent. Strict rules prohibited the eating of all dairy products during Lent, so pancakes were made to use up the supply of eggs, milk, butter and other dairy products…hence the name Pancake Tuesday, or Shrove Tuesday.

I like Kashi. I think it's a great brand with great products.

So it doesn't surprise me that I just got an email from them notifying me, as a Kashi consumer, that they are launching a voluntary recall of certain products to reduce consumer fear relating to the recent salmonella-tainted peanut butter scare.

Kashi products have nothing to do with the salmonella poisoning, but they made the call to do the recall regardless. I think that's cool and to be honest, I'm not surprised.

It's what I actually expect from a quality brand like Kashi.

Here's the entire email: 

Wondering what to get the eco-conscious people in your life this holiday season? If a hybrid car is beyond your budget, and an in-kitchen composter is a little too weird, you might consider giving a solar-powered handbag or back pack.

That's right folks, you can plug in your laptop, cell phone, camera, recharger batteries, or GPS right into your personal portable solar cell. How many times have you been stuck looking for an outlet in an airport of coffee shop?

You can give your friends and family freedom from plug panic with this practical present.

'Tis the season for giving. And wouldn't I like to give to every semi-frozen Charity Rep standing outside every toy/electronics/apparel/outdoor/home goods/dollar store in the metro area. Thing is... I never carry cash. You can jingalingaling that little bell all you want, but the chances of me finding even a dollar, hell, a quarter (I park in metered cities often) is slimmer than Heidi Klum's abdomen. I WANT to donate, I WOULD donate... if you only accepted debit. Needless to say on a shopping spree of 3+ stores and no cash for handouts, the thick coagulation of guilt is... err... not so Christmas-spirited.

But yesterday I ran into the smartest group of caroling charity supporters and police officers I've ever encountered. With sloppy joes on the menu for last night's dinner I had to stop and get some very necessary Manwich at Kroger at the corner of Livernois and Long Lake Roads in Troy (Michigan).

This is insane. I don't know what to say other than ENJOY! WOW! HOW DID HE DO THIS?????

On Thanksgiving at 9 PM (EST), CNN's Anderson Cooper will host "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute."

These aren't heroes who can run 40 yards in four seconds, or score 100 points in a basketball game. They aren't guys who have built business empires that makes billions.

They are regular people who have dedicated their lives to helping others. According to CNN:

"Our Top 10 CNN Heroes are proof that you don't need superpowers -- or millions of dollars -- to change the world and even save lives," Cooper said.

CNN launched its second annual global search for ordinary people accomplishing extraordinary deeds in February. The network has aired weekly CNN Hero profiles of those people, chosen from more than 3,700 nominations submitted by viewers in 75 countries.

From the smarty pants over at Mashable, check out their list of 25 internet resources to help you carpool.

And there's even more carpool sites in the post comments from Mashable fans.

Just another way for us all to get a bit greener...

And seriously, consider subscribing to Mashable's feed....or follow them on Twitter for the best online social networking updates!

Blight Busting is a fine way to spend a Saturday.

What's Blight Busting, you say? This vigorous, uplifting activity can take on many forms: from adorning a drab urban building with a colorful mural, to boarding and securing a dangerous property, to rehabilitating a neglected house with paint, nails, sweat, and care.

It can even mean dismantling a damaged home with sledgehammers and axes - an activity that especially delighted the rambunctious Quicken Loans volunteer group who participated in a volunteer Saturday as part of Motor City Blight Busters' ongoing community revitalization mission.

Working out makes me feel skinny. Even on my fattest day, after my fattest meal, or after I've crammed 24 animal crackers into my mouth in a Baker's Minute (that's 13 seconds by my watch), somehow if I've worked out... I don't feel so bad. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing fun about working out for me. I'm not one of those, "run six miles at 5am and feel revived!" kind of people. In fact, I have to recite the old Nike slogan repeatedly as I pack my gym bag. (Meghan, just do it. Seriously, just do it.) I wish I were kidding. But regardless of how much those stupid weight machines suck, with the crazy callous-causing rubber handles... by the time I leave I am feeling pretty comfortable in my clothes. And somehow there's a difference between that and weight loss.

In the past few weeks, three members of the DIFF team moved on to new careers. I want to personally thank them for their work on the blog and wish each of well with their future professions.

Two of them, Ann-Marie Murphy and Corey Bailey, were on the team that launched the DIFF. The third, Christy Brewer, stepped-in big time once we got this thing off the ground, helping out tremendously, especially at times when I had too much other stuff going on to write a lot of posts.

Make no mistake, they all made huge contributions to the DIFF and I’m convinced it wouldn’t be what it is today, a unique and interesting (and I like to think successful) approach to corporate blogging. Here’s a little more about each of them:

With gas prices now over 4 bucks a gallon and speculation that prices are only going one direction in the near future (can you say "up"?), we've (Quicken Loans) just launched  a new carpooling program called Divide the Ride. Divide the Ride is a great idea and couldn't come at a better time. Kudos to our guys who put it together.

Here's how it works: Quicken Loans team members go to an intranet site that, using maps and other data, matches them up to other interested Quicken Loans folks living in their area. So let's say I want to find out who else in my area wants to carpool, I can go to our Divide the Ride site and click on a map of my neighborhood or enter my zip and all folks close to me are returned as results. I then contact them and work out the car pool details. If no one else has yet signed up in my area, I enter my info and wait until others near me also sign  up. It's simple to use. I like it.

This past weekend I was lucky enough to attend two very special fundraising events. They both made me realize that caring people are not a silent minority and that change can happen if we want it to.

The first event, the Keith Hamm Foundation's annual fundraiser, was a truly amazing night (I went this past Saturday night).  Here's a little background.

Last year I wrote about Quicken Loans VP Mark Miller being named the Michigan Lymphoma and Leukemia Society's Man of the Year for organizing the Keith Hamm Foundation, dedicated to the discovery of a cure for blood-borne cancers. Mark and his close friends created the Keith Hamm Foundation as a lasting memorial to Keith, who died of cancer last year.

This year's fundraiser was a great success and generated over $20,000 for cancer research.

Tax time can be frustrating, but here at the DIFF, we found a super simple chart that Yahoo! Finance posted from the IRS which breaks down when you'll receive your tax rebate by your social security number! However, we must insist you only check it out after you've finished filing your taxes, so get on it if you haven't already....sure hope everyone is getting a refund!

I already think the Wii is pretty great. I'm an excellent bowler and can totally hold my own at boxing. Not so great at tennis, though.

And get this: According to Yahoo! Games, the U.S. Department of Energy has made it possible to defuse bombs using the Wii remotes! They've replaced the typical joystick with the ultra-sensitive Wii remote and have made great strides in controlling their fancy bomb-defusing robots. "By virtue of its unique motion-detection capabilities, the Wiimote has streamlined the process and allows operators to focus more on the collected data and less on how to steer."

Maybe I'll work on honing my Wii skills tonight....you never know when I might get called in for some major covert operation to save the world.

I moved from Michigan to South Carolina last year. While my family is dealing with the usual adjustment issues, I’m also confronted with lots of stereotypes – Yankees, Southerners, dialects, and who eats what. It’s been an experience with a lot of surprises. I’m really enjoying watching all these nasty assumptions fall apart. Really, it’s for the best that they do.

According to Infoplease.com:

It took 15 years to create the federal Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. Congressman John Conyers, Democrat from Michigan, first introduced legislation for a commemorative holiday four days after King was assassinated in 1968.

Michigan. Yeah. That makes me proud.

What makes me not-so-proud:

2005: South Carolina becomes the last state to make MLK Day a paid holiday for all state employees. Until now, employees could choose between celebrating it or one of three Confederate-related holidays.

Go to www.freerice.com and do your part to eliminate world hunger while you test your English language skills.

What a cool site!

And talk about viral.  The first day the site began donations, 830 grains of rice were donated.  77,126,310 grains of rice were donated yesterday! 

FreeRice is a sister site of the world poverty site, Poverty.com, and according to its site, has two goals:

1. Provide English vocabulary to everyone for free.
2. Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

So, check it out, test (and hopefully improve) your English language skills, and get some rice in the mouths of those who need it most.  The more words you get right the more grains of rice are donated.  It's that simple. 

In this case simple is very good.

I salute the folks behind freerice.com for not only creating a great site for two great reasons, but also creating something that is actually "viral" – one of the most misunderstood and overused terms in business today! 

Editors note: This is a bit different than most DIFF posts, but it’s a good story about people working together to stop a burglary ring and we wanted to share it with our readers…

by David O'Janpa

Last January, as we began seating thousands of princes and princesses and their parents attending a performance of Disney on Ice: Princess Wishes, Arena Team Leaders met with detectives from the Amherst, Ohio police. 

An Amherst home had been burglarized and two tickets to that performance were among the items taken.  We were given the section, row, and seat numbers of the pilfered ducats.  A plan was put into effect to arrange for the police detectives to interview anyone who showed up with the stolen tickets.  A man, woman and small child arrived with the tickets just as the show began and they were whisked away quickly and quietly to the arena's police room.

Larry Hagman’s career has spanned decades. He’s starred in countless television shows and movies, but he’s probably best known for two roles: The ruthless oil baron, J.R. Ewing from Dallas; and Major Nelson from I Dream of Jeanie.

You probably wouldn’t expect a former television oil baron to be an advocate for the environment, and user of clean, environmentally friendly energy, but Larry Hagman is nearly completely off the electricity grid. His electricity bill was a mere $13 for all of last year—that’s about $1.08 a month to power a 10,000 square foot home.

Hagman is generating so much alternative energy that he decided to run lines from his solar power sources to five low income homes near his ranch, all of which are now completely powered by his solar energy. In addition to his solar efforts, Hagman has recently installed wind turbines, drives a Toyota Prius Hybrid and an electric Dodge Gem.

This year the 75-year-old actor started a campaign, refundsforgood.org, directing people how to claim telephone tax refunds and turn that money over to environmental funds like the Solar Electric Light Fund, which helps developing nations build solar energy infrastructures.

by Eric Whitener

What would you say if I told you that every healthy adult has the ability to change the world?  What would you say if I told that every one of them could save the lives of others without any training or know how?  Would you want to be one of the people that make the world a better place, or would you be standing on the sidelines leaving it up to others?  That is exactly what 95% of eligible blood donors do in the United States each year.

Only 5% of eligible donors donate in a given year, and that is why there is a continuous shortage of blood.  It’s a relatively simple process that takes under an hour, and each pint of blood collected can help up to three different people!  When it’s put in the perspective that one hour of a person’s life can lead to saving the lives of three different people; it’s a mystery that more people are not donors.

By Ryan Charlton

I had the opportunity to attend the retirement party of a friend, Pat Furnner. Pat has been in education for over 20 yrs in the Pontiac School System.  She is also a very satisfied client of Quicken Loans (Phil Hatley- Team Bad Boyz)

During her retirement speech, Pat spoke of her son, Scott.  Scott is a husband and father, expecting his second child. Scott was not able to attend the function. 

Senior Master Sergeant Scott Furnner, a career military man, is serving our country in Iraq.  That's him in the picture.

By Mark Messing

It is very rare that we will get ourselves fired up for a specific concert by our favorite band, and then decide not to go because of where it's held. 

Really, the only contributing factors are location and price. It is an extreme rarity that anyone would hesitate to see their favorite band because of, let’s say, the parking.

And yet, that's exactly what I was contemplating early this summer when I sat on ticketmaster.com wondering whether or not I should join my friends in seeing the Dave Matthews Band in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.

By Ann-Marie Murphy

I couldn't care less about Michael Vick. And I would never ever advocate the harming of animals. But what does get my blood boiling is when we condemn a man (or a woman for that matter) before a trial of his peers has deemed him guilty. In this country, we're supposed to be innocent until proven guilty.

In case you live on Venus and haven't been paying attention to the news, Michael Vick, the quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on dog fighting charges. However, an indictment is not a conviction. An indictment only means that formal charges have been brought against Vick. The actual trial could be years away.

Yet, the NFL has told Vick that he can't attend the Falcons' training camp until they finish reviewing the charges brought against him. While they haven't yet formally disciplined Vick yet, not allowing a professional athlete to practice with his team is punishment if you ask me.

By Cassie Bixler - winner of the 2007 Summer DIFF Intern Blogger Contest

Traveling…if you ever want to develop your patience level, start traveling a lot and on a time schedule.  From the coordination of the event, travel time, to your arrival, several things can occur that irritate you beyond measure. You try to ensure your plans are good to go, foolproof. Regardless, there always seems to be a set back.

Airport security, road construction, reservation screw-ups, and sometimes it is a combination of all the above. The challenge lies in determining how you face the set backs. I have learned that in a trying situation, whatever it may be, the general secret is just chill out.

By Mark Messing

We are all familiar with the typical war heros provided to us by the media.  When we think of the history of war some of the only images we visualize are of the John Waynes and Tom Hankses of Hollywood portraying “true American” heroes in the most famous “true American” battles. 

And just so I’m not misunderstood, I want to make it clear that I love these kind of movies.  The stories they represent are intriguing, patriotic and entertaining.  However, for every story told to us by 14 different major movies at the same time, there are stories which are told by none.  Though they are full of heroics and patriotism; some stories just slip through the cracks.  With the essence of Memorial Day still at hand, I have decided it’s about time someone mentioned a war story that Hollywood hasn’t yet, a tale of “Diff” sized proportions. 

It's about the Nisei.  Never heard of them?  That's a shame, considering the Nisei were some of the bravest fighters in WWII.

By Mark Swistock

Mark Swistock was a banking intern last semester.  He's now a mortgage banker in our Livonia office.  Congratulations on being hired full-time, Mark!

Ever since I can recall, my dad has been the one to display what we like to call The Diff.

From early in my life, I have understood what it means to earn your money and hard work is only the beginning of it.

My dad has always been what is called a blue collar worker, but I don’t think that title either fits him or gives him any justice what so ever. Work ethic is something I can truly say that I learned and now express thanks to things my dad has taught me. He is always told me, “If you’re early you’re on time, if you’re on time then you’re late.” This holds true to all, and is definitely something I try to fulfill in my own career.

Ever since Clayton Closson joined the Quicken Loans Marketing team; he has gone head-to-head against Doug Peeples in a "Costco vs. Sam's" battle.

Costco is Clayton's favorite place to be. Not his favorite store, but place. He'd rather be at Costco, sampling all the hors d'ouvres, than at the Red Wings game.

After listening to them do battle day after day, I noticed an article in Costco's Connections magazine. (Yes, I choose Costco over Sam's as well.)

This article details how Costco goes above and beyond.

I can't go into Home Depot now without whining that they don't offer baskets throughout the store. You know, the little ones you carry when your arms are full of duct tape, cabinet door hinges and paint brushes. Just as you're about to drop everything, you find the one thing you forgot you needed: Swiffer dust cloths. Now, at Lowe's I could skip to the end of the aisle and drop everything into a basket and be happy.

But, no. I have to get cranky, because I've come to expect Home Depot to understand my plight and pre-empt my need with the solution.

I've become very critical, and I blame Dan Gilbert.

I’ve often heard about "Doctors Without Borders," or more accurately "Médecins Sans Frontières," the actual French name of the humanitarian organization that was founded in 1971. 

In fact, I've seen Doctors Without Borders (DWB to keep things simple) hundreds of times on newscasts about some famine or horrible situation somewhere in the world.   But I don't really know anything about DWB.

What exactly is DWB?  Who are these doctors who often put their lives in danger to help the world's least fortunate?  Why do they do it?  How do they do it? 

Well, I decided to do a little research and this is what I found on the DWB Web site:

“DWB is a private nonprofit association, with an international network in 19 countries that provides services in over 70 countries. The organization’s mandate is to both provide emergency medical assistance and raise awareness for the plight of the people it assists.

By Kathy Fawcett

Have you ever had to dive into a pitch-black lake at midnight to possibly locate a missing child on the murky lake floor? My daughter has. She tells me that the adrenaline rush that her body gets when called out of a deep sleep to do this job is staggering, but that all her training kicks in to autopilot.

That's why my feathers get ruffled when someone makes the comment about how cool it would be to lifeguard in the summer, "just hanging around on the beach, getting a tan."

Editor's note: we are pleased to post our first entry submitted by someone not affiliated with Quicken Loans or one of our partner companies.  Who is next to appear on the DIFF?

By C. Thomas Terry

In the nether months of 2006, I received this picture from my holiday work party. Apart from the fashionable co-workers flanking my mid-party mug, the picture tells an ugly story and was a real wake-up call. Having not seen a recent picture of myself in recent months, I was stunned at how--let's be gracious--horrific I looked (contrary to the optics, I wasn't over-served; I was blinking).  When had I started shaving only a few times a week? How did I not notice? How did I ever think this looked remotely cool? When had my face swelled to look like a Hamtramck paczki?  When did I get this OLD?

Yes, you read that headline correctly.

One of my favorite things to do is to read weird news stories because it sometimes makes me laugh. Here's one that really fascinated me and made my jaw drop this time. It's a story about a Golden Retriever that saved its owners life by performing the Heimlich Maneuver on her after she started choking on a piece of fruit. It just goes to show you don't have to understand what the DIFF is to be the DIFF.

Read the story on MSNBC here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17819432