It is my pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for Christian Moore and the Why Try program. I have known Christian for three years through his work with Utah School Counselors. I have attended Christian's presentations and have met one on one with Christian in discussions about his life story and how he developed the Why Try program.

Christian has used the challenges of his learning disabilities to create a powerful program for at-risk youth. Christian grew up as a street kid in the suburbs of Washington D.C. and understands the inner life of such youth. Christian used the challenges of his own life as motivation not only to graduate from college, but also to complete a Master's Degree.

Christian has now developed the Why Try program, a multi-sensory training which helps at-risk youth (and clients of all ages) see, hear and experientially understand the realities and consequences of their current behavior. Christian has presented skill-building workshops for school counselors for the past three years at Utah School Counselor Summer Training. More than 700 school counselors and school administrators attend this training, and every year Christian's presentations are "standing room only." The workshops always receive the highest marks from participants.

The Why Try program is used by school counselors for brief therapy interventions, for structured group therapy, for classroom presentations or for skill-building classes. Many other therapists also use the program widely in their daily practice. Christian has developed visual metaphors, music and experiential learning activities to help youth (and all clients) answer the question: Why Try? Many counselors have collected data on changes in student behavior and school performance. The positive results are impressive.

I give Christian Moore and the Why Try program my highest recommendation.