Ten Twenty Ten

In this raw and compelling autobiography, Stephen Polando details the seven-year climb of the iconic Arizona clothing brand State Forty Eight from 100 T-shirts sold out of a home to a multi-million-dollar enterprise. But before that could occur, his two future partners, younger brother Nicholas and childhood friend Mike Spangenberg, had to help lift Polando from the dark abyss of alcoholism. "Ten Twenty Ten: Sobriety and State Forty Eight" is Polando's accounting of the sorrow of personal losses and his slow dive into depression in his early 20s, leading to addiction, a DUI, desperation and jail. He spares no detail in describing the lengths he would go to feed his dependency and to hide his alcoholism from his family and himself. The title refers to the date he found sobriety – the book was published on his 10th "sober" anniversary –which ultimately led to the three young men combining their talents to create eye-catching T-shirts symbolizing Arizona pride. This story details the company's meteoric rise that brought together State Forty Eight's tens of thousands of friends and followers and some of Arizona's most prominent companies, sports teams and charities to truly make a difference in the community. It concludes with Polando's decision to move on from the business to use his platform to educate people struggling with addiction, to spread humor and positivity, and to make the most of the time each of us has on the planet.